Abstract
The usefulness of estimates of the contents of various components of ecological systems and subsystems in the form of material inequalities is demonstrated with the aid of the principle of the threshold nature of the action of chemical substances on producers and consumers. The principle of the coupled material-characteristic imbalance is formulated, according to which the unknown part of the mass of the ecological system can be estimated with the aid of inequalities expressing the relations between the masses of the components and their contributions to the overall characteristics of the system as a whole. The possibilities of using material inequalities for different levels of initial information for the monitoring of eco-systems and for the planning of physicochemical nature-protecting measures are demonstrated. The bibliography includes 40 references.