Definitions
There are several definitions for the concept of ecological threshold. The common feature of most definitions is the non-linearity of the responses in ecological or biological systems to pressures caused by human activities or natural processes.
Groffman and others define ecological thresholds as the points at which there is an abrupt change in an ecosystem quality, property or phenomenon, or where small changes in an environmental driver produce large responses in the ecosystem. On a general level, ecological thresholds are the breaking points of ecosystems at which the pressures lead to abrupt changes in the ecosystem.
Critical load, tipping point and regime shift are examples of other closely related terms.
Read more about this topic: Ecological Threshold
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