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Counterpoints SS 11
Ch 13 Environment
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| biosphere | regions of Earth occupied by living organisms, made up of all the ecozones |
| stewardship | careful management of resources to ensure that they are sustainable |
| permafrost | subsoil that remains frozen all year long |
| carrying capacity | the largest population that an environment can support |
| deforestation | the process of destroying a forest and replacing it with something else |
| global warming | the observed and projected increase in the earth's average temperature due to burning of fossil fuels and deforestation |
| ecology | the science concerned with the relationship between living things and their environment |
| acid precipitation | any form of precipitation that is high in sulphuric acid and nitric acids as a result of pollution in the air. |
| sustainable development | a way to maintain economic growth without damaging the environment |
| Earth Summit | meeting of world leaders in Rio de Janeiro, in 1992, to discuss environmental changes and sustainable development |
| Agenda 21 | statement of environmental action that outlines actions that should be taken to protect the planet and achieve sustainable development |
| herbicides | substances used to kill plants |
| pesticides | substances used to kill pests such as unwanted plants and animals |
| organic | grown or produced without chemical fertilizers or pesticides |
| CO2 emissions | carbon dioxide emissions caused by burning of fossil fuels; largest contributor to global warming |
| biodiversity | having a variety of life forms |
| ecotourism | tourism to threatened areas that tries to be low impact and small scale |
| Protected Area Strategy (PAS) | plan to protect 12% of BC's provincial land for parks, recreation and wilderness |
| watersheds | river basins drained by a river and flowing into the same large body of water |
| groundwater | water beneath Earth's surface in underground streams and other forms |
| surface water | water that is readily available on Earth's surface in streams, rivers, wetlands, lakes and oceans |
| wastewater | water that has been used in homes or industries and, as a result, contains waste products |
| watermilfoil weed | a plant that grows and spreads quickly, choking out native pants, fish, swimming areas and posing a safety problem |
| aquifer | an underground layer of rock, gravel etc from which water can be drawn for wells and which is a source of springs |
| carbon footprint | total amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases emitted over the full life cycle of a product or service |
| troposphere | lowest level of Earth's atmosphere |
| greenhouse gases | various gases in the atmosphere that absorb and emit radiation, including carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and ozone |
| ultraviolet radiation | invisible rays from the sun that can cause skin cancer |
| ozone layer | a thin layer of ozone in the atmosphere 15 to 30 km above Earth; the ozone layer filters the sun's UV rays |
| CFC's (chlorofluorocarbons) | chemicals used in coolants, solvents, and aerosol cans that damage the ozone layer |
| Montreal Protocol | international agreement signed in 1987 to phase out the ozone-depleting chemicals CFC's |
| peatlands | wetlands with soil formed mostly from decomposing plants |
| greenhouse effect | greenhouse gases trap heat in the atmosphere, causing Earth's temperature to rise |
| carbon sink | a reservoir that can absorb and store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, including forests, peat, and oceans |
| meltwater | melted snow or ice, including ice from glaciers |
| runoff | water from rain and melting snow that cannot be held in the soil - making its way into streams, river, lakes and oceans |
| UN Framework Convention on Climate Change | Plan to keep greenhouse gas concentrations from increasing |
| Kyoto Protocol | international agreement that sets binding targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions |
| Carbon Credit | purchasing a credit from an organization that is below target emissions for an organization that has produced more greenhouse gases than it is allowed |
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