Final answer:
The term that describes an ecosystem's ability to quickly return to balance after environmental disturbances is resilience, whereas resistance refers to maintaining equilibrium despite disturbances.
Step-by-step explanation:
The term that describes the ability of an ecosystem to withstand moderate environmental disturbances by returning to its equilibrium state after such disturbances is resilience. Resistance refers to the ability of an ecosystem to remain at equilibrium in spite of disturbances. While resilience represents the speed at which an ecosystem can recover its equilibrium after being disturbed. These two parameters, resistance and resilience, are crucial when evaluating the impact of human activities on ecosystems. High resilience implies that an ecosystem can quickly rebound to its original state of balance among organisms and their environment after a disturbance.