This subject will develop and expand student knowledge and skills in a number of ecological processes that are considered essential to an understanding of agricultural science, its practical application and its relationship to the surrounding environment. Students will explore ecosystems and how certain processes link the living, or biotic, components to the non-living, or abiotic, components. A healthy ecological system is a key indicator of a sustainable environment. Areas explored includes: soil origin, formation, description, classification, chemistry, carbon and organic matter; the physicochemical characteristics of water and their biological applications and implications; the underlying principles and concepts of aquatic science; aquatic ecosystems such as lakes, ponds, rivers, and streams and coastal habitats; nutrient cycles in ecosystem health, energy flows and food chains.

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