The management of a particular local common resource (such as a forest or pasture) by a well‐defined group of resource users who have the authority to regulate its use by members and outsiders. …
A resource (such as the air, migratory birds, fish in the oceans, and wilderness areas) which is not privately owned. Rights of use are communally shared, so it is freely available, at least in theory, to anybody who wants to use it. See also Tragedy of the Commons. …
An area of open land that is available for common use, such as shared grazing of animals on common pasture. See also common resource, Tragedy of the Commons. …
A natural material such as sand, stone, gravel, and clay that has no market value as a metal or for energy production, which is often extracted in large amounts and used by the construction industry. …
Resources that are managed by a community for long‐term sustainability. …
A group of plant and animal populations that live together in a given area, are adapted to local environmental conditions, and interact with each other. Also known as ecological community . See also climax community. …
A bottom‐up (grassroots based) approach to conservation, usually within the context of ecosystem management, that is based on two broad concepts?that people who participate in decision‐making will be more inclined to implement agreed outcomes, and that people are quite capable of deciding for themselves what the most appropriate solutions should be, provided they are given sufficient informati…
An approach to the management of natural resources that is based on engagement with local communities, as a means of focusing attention on natural resource problems or opportunities that require action at community level or that involve the management of shared resources (such as land, forest, water resources, fisheries, and wildlife). See also community based conservation. …
An approach to urban planning which engages citizens and local communities as stakeholders in the development of comprehensive neighbourhood plans. …
The study of the interactions between the populations of organisms within a particular ecosystem. …
A 1992 law in the USA that requires the Federal Government to identify land that it owns that is not contaminated with hazardous substances and that can be made available for public use with a minimum of cleanup. …
An approach to forestry management that includes local people and takes their needs into account. It includes the establishment of village woodlots, farm forestry, tree planting in private fields, and joint management of forests by communities and governments. See also social forestry. …
An inclusive and democratic approach to planning and management that allows all stakeholders to have their concerns heard and taken seriously, by giving them access to reliable and up‐to‐date information and allowing them to exercise their right to have their say and to protest against decisions they are unhappy with. …
Making information about environmental threats (particularly toxic pollution) readily available to anyone who would like access to it. …
A North American category of land use that covers land used primarily for schools, hospitals, churches, libraries, sewerage and water treatment plants, sanitary land fills, public parking areas, and other community service facilities. …
US legislation on community safety, which was designated to help local communities protect public health, safety, and the environment from chemical hazards. It is based on local emergency planning committees for each district which include representation by fire fighters, health officials, government and media representatives, community groups, industrial facilities, and emergency managers. …
A comparison of the risks associated with two or more hazards, judged by experts using a common scale. …
A subdivision of a site or area, for example a particular part of a forest or nature reserve, that is recognized in management plans. …
Able to exist together harmoniously. Contrast incompatible. …
Different uses of land or other resources which are harmonious and can exist together in the same area, so that one does not inhibit or adversely affect another. Contrast incompatible use. See also complementary uses. …
The point within a water column at which plant photosynthesis just equals plant respiration. It defines the lower boundary of the euphotic zone. …
The ability of water, ice, or air to carry particles of a given size. The competence value is defined by the viscosity of the medium, so ice has the highest competence and wind the lowest. …
A government agency that is responsible for regulating complex things such as biotechnology, biosafety, and intellectual property rights. …
Interaction between two or more organisms in the same space, where each requires the same resource (such as food, water, or space) which has a limited supply and where the presence of each is in some way harmful to the other(s). Competition can occur within (intraspecific competition) and between species (interspecific competition) and it is an important factor in adaptation and evolution by natur…
A competitive form of consumerism, driven by the quest for unlimited control of resources for personal use. …
The local extinction of one species by another in the same area, as a result of competition to occupy the same niche and to use the same resources in the same habitat. Also known as Gause's principle . …
Different uses of land or other resources, each of which benefits from the other(s) where they exist together in the same area. …
Any highly variable land surface (terrain), particularly mountains. …
Any coal that meets sulphur dioxide emission standards for air quality without the need for flue gas desulphurization. Also known as low sulphur coal . …
Monitoring that is done to ensure that statutory requirements (such as limits on the amount of a particular pollutant that can be emitted) are met. …
An agreement that has been negotiated between a polluter and a government agency, which details dates and procedures by which emissions will be reduced in order to comply with a regulation. …
An identifiable, functional part of a system that is defined for a particular reason. Within an ecosystem, for example, this could be a species, a habitat, an individual organism, or even part of an individual, depending on the purpose of the study. …
The relative proportion of space or biomass that is accounted for by each species or system component in a given area. …
Completely or partly decayed organic matter that is dark, odourless, and rich in nutrients. It results from the controlled biological decomposition of solid organic waste materials under aerobic conditions by bacteria, fungi, and other micro‐organisms, and is used to fertilize the soil and increase its humus content. …
A substance that is made from two or more elements in fixed proportions. …
US legislation that provides for the cleanup of hazardous substances released to the environment, usually after the substances were disposed of improperly, by giving the Environmental Protection Agency the authority to clean up abandoned hazardous waste sites. Also known as the Superfund . …
A database and management system operated by the Environmental Protection Agency that contains the official inventory of Cercla sites in the USA. …
An official plan, developed and adopted by local government, that contains a vision of how the local economy is expected to change and a set of plans and policies to guide land use decisions. Also known as general plan and master plan . …
A system for classifying soils that was developed by the US Department of Agriculture and is now widely used around the world. All soils are divided into 11 soil orders, which in turn are subdivided into 47 suborders, 185 great soil groups, many subgroups, and a great many soil families and series. See also alfisol, andisol, aridisol, entisol, histosol, inceptisol, latosol, oxisol, ultisol, vertis…
Natural gas stored in a high‐pressure container. It provides a clean alternative fuel for motor vehicles because it emits little hydrocarbon or ozone‐producing material, but it does emit a significant quantity of nitrogen oxides. …
The process of becoming smaller or closer together, which increases density. Geological compression causes folding in rocks. …
A model of a complex environmental system that is based on known mathematical relationships between system components and uses a computer to do the complicated modelling, usually in order to predict future states or patterns. Examples include Daisyworld, general circulation models, and Limits to Growth. …
An agricultural business in which animals are raised in confined situations and fed an unnatural diet, rather than allowing them to roam and graze freely. …
Recreation activities associated with developed recreation sites, such as campgrounds, picnic grounds, ski areas, fishing ramps, scenic viewpoints, and interpretive sites. Contrast dispersed recreation, intensive recreation. …
The amount of a particular substance that is contained or dissolved in a given amount of another substance or medium (such as air, water, or soil). …
A defined area of land that is licensed or leased to a company for a given period of time, for exploration and development of natural resources (such as logging) under specified terms and conditions. …
A small, hard, local mass of mineral matter (such as calcite, gypsum, iron oxide, or aluminium oxide), often rounded, which is found in sedimentary rock and often contains a fossil nucleus. See also manganese nodule. …
The liquid that is produced when a vapour is cooled or compressed, such as the liquid hydrocarbons that are condensed from natural gas and oil wells. …
The process by which energy is released from a vapour or gas when it changes into a liquid. For example, water vapour in the air can collect as droplets on a cold surface or in the atmosphere (around condensation nuclei) to give rise to precipitation. Contrast evaporation. …
Minute particles in the air which are derived from air pollution or from natural processes (such as pollen, salt from sea spray, and dust from volcanic eruptions), around which moisture can collect via the condensation of water vapour, to produce precipitation. Also known as hygroscopic nuclei . …
Stable unsaturated air that will result in instability if condensation occurs. Also known as conditionally unstable . …
A state of being conditional, or qualified by reservations. The granting of development assistant funds to a country might depend on it signing a climate change policy agreement, for example. …
Air that has been heated, cooled, humidified, or dehumidified to maintain comfort inside a building, vehicle, or other space. Also known as tempered air . …
A response that is learned or altered by conditioning. …
The transfer of heat within a substance or between substances that are in direct physical contact. See also electrical conduction. …
A measure of the ability of a sample of water to carry an electrical current, which reflects concentration of ionized substances (dissolved solids) in the water. Also known as conductance, electrical conductivity . See also thermal conductivity. …
Any material that readily transmits (conducts) heat or electricity. …
A cone‐shaped depression in the surface of a water table, in the vicinity of a well, that is caused by pumping. See also draw down. …
The cone‐shaped depression produced in a water table by the pumping of water from a well. The surface area included in the cone is known as the circle of influence of the well. …
The act of confining or restraining, such as the techniques that are used to confine a release of hazardous material (such as a spill or leak) to a limited area, and prevent damage elsewhere. …
A layer of rock that is less permeable than those above or below it, and which prevents or restricts the vertical movement of water and pressure. …
1 A place where things merge or flow together (such as where a tributary flows into a river). 2 The process of convergence. …
A boundary between two layers of rock that does not indicate a major change in sedimentary conditions. …
A coarse‐grained clasticsedimentary rock composed of large rounded clasts (gravels, cobbles, boulders) which are cemented together in a matrix of fine materials. …
An area of land in the USA that has been reserved by an act of Congress for a specific purpose, such as a wilderness area or a wildlife refuge. …
A tree or shrub that has needles and produces seeds in cones, for example pine, spruce, or fir. There are 570 species of conifer in the class Gymnospermae; most are evergreen, but a few (such as larch) are deciduous. They usually grow faster and develop less dense wood (softwood) than other trees, and are commercially important as a source of timber for the papermaking, building, and furniture ind…
A forest dominated by conifer trees, with very few other tree species. It grows in thin, acidic soils that have few nutrients, in climates with long, cold winters, and short, occasionally warm, wet summers. It is the largest terrestrial biome on Earth, and grows in a broad band at high latitudes across much of North America, Europe, and Asia, where it forms the climax vegetation, and extends to th…
The state of being connected. Used by ecologists to describe the networks of corridors that link isolated patches of habitat in an area. See also fragmentation, habitat connectivity. …
1 An official term for conservation of the environment and natural resources. 2 In the USA, a commission that has jurisdiction over fisheries and navigation in a port or river. …
The planned protection, maintenance, management, sustainable use, and restoration of natural resources and the environment, in order to secure their long‐term survival. Conservation recognizes that natural communities of plants and animals are not static, and it involves preventing any development that would alter or destroy natural habitat but not interfering unduly with ecological changes that…
An evaluation of the natural ecosystems and biomes of a region, with a special focus on the need and potential for nature conservation and protecting biodiversity. …
The multidisciplinary science that deals with biodiversity. …
In North America, an organization or government programme that compiles, maintains, and disseminates information about biodiversity in the area it is responsible for. Also known as the Natural Heritage Program . …
An easement that restricts a landowner to use that particular land for functions that are compatible with long‐term conservation objectives (such as protecting wildlife habitat, agricultural lands, natural areas, scenic views, historic structures, or open spaces). It is a means by which the development rights to that land are secured (by the government), without buying the land itself. …
Farming practices that are designed to protect wildlife and habitats, for example by minimizing soil erosion and the release of pollutants. …
A non‐profit, US‐based international organization whose mission is to conserve global biodiversity and demonstrate that human societies are able to live harmoniously with nature. It has headquarters in Washington, DC, and works in more than 40 countries on four continents. See also biodiversity hotspot. …
A long‐range federal programme in the US, in which farmers voluntarily contract to take cropland out of production for 10 to 15 years and to devote it to nature conservation uses. …
The cultivation (tillage) of soil with minimum disturbance (no ploughing), which leaves plant residues on the soil surface, controls soil erosion, and conserves soil moisture. …
Land use zoning which limits the development of unsuitable areas such as steep slopes, scenic areas, and spaces with other natural values. …
A junction in the Earth's crust between two crustal plates that move past each other in opposite directions along a transform fault, where crust is being neither created nor destroyed. Also known as conservative margin . Contrast constructive plate boundary. …
To save, use sustainably, avoid waste, and preserve for the future. For example, protecting a natural resource (such as water or an endangered species) through wise management and use. …
The view, put forward in the 1990s by biologist Edward O. Wilson , that everything in the world can be understood and explained through a small number of natural laws or principles, which apply across the sciences and the humanities, but which are based on physics and evolve according to the laws of evolution. …
Tightly packed or composed of particles that are not easily separated. See also unconsolidated. …
Buying expensive services and products that are not really needed, in order to impress others. …
A divergent boundary between two lithospheric plates that are moving apart, where new crustal rocks are being formed. For example, at mid‐ocean ridges associated with sea‐floor spreading. Also known as constructive margin . See also plate tectonics, destructive plate boundary. Contrast conservative plate boundary. …
An organism (such as an animal or a parasitic plant) that obtains energy and nutrients by feeding on other organisms or their remains. There are several different kinds of consumers including carnivores, herbivores, and detritivores. Contrast producer. See also heterotroph. …
A term used to describe the effects of equating personal happiness with purchasing material possessions and consumption. …
1 The process of using resources to satisfy human wants or needs. 2 In water supply, the fraction of the water that is not available for use by humans. …
The use of resources in ways that reduce supply. Example include mining and grazing, or hunting, fishing, and logging in a forest. Contrast non‐consumptive use. …
Any game and fur‐bearing species of wildlife that are harvested for sport, food, fur, study, or commerce. …
A herbicide that only kills the part of the plant it is sprayed on, not the root systems. Contrast systemic herbicide. …
The metamorphism of rock that is caused mainly by heat and pressure from pockets of magma, which bakes and hardens the surrounding pre‐existing rocks. Contrast regional metamorphism. …
A pesticide that kills pests when it touches them, instead of when they eat it. …
Any disease that is easily spread between individuals by direct contact. …
Any activity involving organisms that limits their contact with people and the environment, by the use of a physical, chemical, or biological barrier. …
Any method of enclosing or containing hazardous substances in a structure, in order to prevent the release of contaminants into the environment. Examples include the shielding of a nuclear reactor within a thick concrete structure and the containment of an oil spill using a floating boom. …
Any substance that pollutes or contaminates another. In particular any physical, chemical, biological, or radiological substance that causes an impurity in the environment (air, water, and soil) and/or which may be harmful to human health. …
A measure of how much of a contaminant is present. …
To pollute or make impure or unclean, either by contact or by mixture. …
Land which has had its quality and usefulness reduced by the presence of one or more contaminants in the soil and/or groundwater. …
Any site or land that contains harmful contaminants (particularly in its soil and water) because of previous land use. …
1 The act of polluting or contaminating. 2 An increase in the background concentration of a chemical, micro‐organism, or radionuclide. Also known as environmental contamination . …
Very close or connected without a break, sharing a common boundary or edge. For example, the contiguous states of the USA do not include Alaska and Hawaii. …
A zone of the high sea around each coastal state, that was established by the Convention on the Territorial Sea and Contiguous Zone, and extends seaward up to 12 miles from the state's territorial sea. A state has the authority within this zone to exercise the control necessary to prevent violations of regulations within its territories and territorial sea. …
One of the seven major land areas on the Earth, which are North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, and Antarctica. …
Originating in an inland area, away from the coast. …
A dry air mass that develops over a continent or large land mass. …
A climate that is found in the interior of continents, having low humidity, low rainfall, and large diurnal variations in temperature compared with marine climates. …
That part of the Earth's crust that forms the continents and the continental shelves. It is composed of rocks that are rich in silica, and varies in thickness from 35 to 60 kilometres. Contrast oceanic crust. See also continental plate, sima. …
The line of high ground that separates rivers that flow toward opposite sides of a continent, usually into different oceans. …
A geological theory that was used to explain the relative positions and shapes of continents, and the formation of mountains, folds, faults, earthquakes, and volcanoes, as caused by the floating of continents across the Earth's crust on the mantle, like logs floating on water. The lighter continental crust (sial) floats on the more plastic ocean crust (sima) below, and geologists believe that the …
The formation of an ice sheet over a large area of a continent during a glacial period. …
In climatology, the degree to which the climate of a place is influenced by a neighbouring land mass. …
The area between the shoreline and the beginning of the ocean floor, which includes the continental shelf, continental rise, and continental slope. …
A thick section of the Earth's continental crust that is composed mainly of granite, floats on the asthenosphere, and moves over the surface of the Earth. …
A dry, cold air mass that develops over continental areas at high latitudes in the northern hemisphere, and is very cold in winter and mild in summer. …
The part of the ocean floor that extends from the continental slope down to the abyssal plain, with a gentle slope and a smooth bed. …
The gently sloping part of the ocean floor that extends from the shore of a continent down to the continental slope, usually to a depth of about 200 metres. …
The relatively steep‐sloping part of the ocean floor that extends from the continental shelf to the continental rise or ocean trench. …
A warm, dry air mass that develops over subtropical deserts and continental areas at low latitudes. Contrast tropical maritime air mass. …
A plan for action that is prepared in anticipation of an incident (such as a release of toxic chemicals, a fire, or an earthquake), that clarifies responsibilities, resource requirements, and appropriate action. See also disaster plan. …
In economic evaluation, a method of valuing non‐market uses of a natural resource (such as clean air, wildlife, or an attractive view) by directly asking people how much they would be willing to pay for it under certain circumstances, or what sort of compensation they would regard as necessary if it were not available. See also non‐market values. …
The growing of crops each year in succession, without a period of fallow, which allows soil fertility to recover. …
A permitted release of pollutants into the environment that occurs without interruption, except for infrequent shutdowns for things like maintenance. …
Monitoring of flows or processes that continues without interruption, normally using equipment that is fitted with a recording device. …
Allowing grazing livestock unrestricted and uninterrupted access to a given area of land over the whole period when grazing is allowed. …
Planting a crop and ploughing in horizontal rows that follow the contour lines of a hill, which minimizes soil erosion. Also known as contour cropping, contour ploughing, and contour tillage . …
A type of barrier hedge that is grown along contours to help prevent runoff and soul erosion from a field. …
A line drawn on a map that connects points of the same elevation. Also known as a contour . …
A topographic map that shows relief by means of contour lines. …
A type of strip mining in hilly areas where the mineral is exposed at the surface at roughly the same height along the hillside. It involves removing the overburden from the mineral seam, starting at the outcrop and proceeding around the hillside, so the cut appears as a contour line. Also known as contour strip mining . …
A form of strip mining used in areas of steep topography, where the mineral seam outcrops at roughly the same elevation along a hillside. …
1 To manage or regulate. See also control measure, command and control. 2 In a scientific experiment, a standard or baseline against which other conditions can be compared. …
An activity that is undertaken to ensure that a standard is maintained, or a risk or hazard is eliminated or reduced to an acceptable level. See also control technology. …
A rod made of cadmium or boron (which absorb neutrons) that is used to control the power in a nuclear reactor. Large numbers of rods are lowered into or lifted from the reactor core in order to control the number of neutrons that cause a chain reaction. …
A control measure that uses special equipment, for example in order to reduce air pollution. See also Best Available Control Technology, Best Available Control Measures, maximum achievable control technology. …
An extensive urban settlement that is formed when two or more cities, which were originally separate, grow together to form a continuous metropolitan region or megalopolis. …
The vertical circulation of air, water, or molten rock within the Earth which is driven by density differences and results in heat transfer. …
A rising column of gases, smoke, ash, particulates, and other debris that is produced by a fire. …
A current that transfers material (such as air, water, or molten rock within the Earth) due to differences in density that result from differences in temperature. See also sea‐floor spreading, turnover. …
A form of rain that occurs when heated air rises and cools, so that air temperature drops to the dew point and condensation occurs. …
Instability that is caused by the rising of very dry air over warm, moist air below. Also known as potential instability . …
1 An international agreement that is usually legally binding between the states who signed up to it. Also known as international convention . 2 A large formal assembly. …
Farming practices that involve the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and machinery. Contrast alternative agriculture. …
An international convention that was adopted by UNESCO in 1972 , which aims to encourage the identification, protection, and preservation of cultural and natural heritage. It recognizes that nature and culture are complementary and that cultural identity is strongly related to the natural environment in which it develops, and provides for the protection of those cultural and natural ?properties? …
A regional component of the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter, which applies to states bordering the northeast Atlantic Ocean, from Iceland to Spain. Also know as the Oslo Convention . …
An international agreement, launched under the auspices of the IUCN in 1975 , designed to regulate trade in endangered wildlife and thus help to conserve those species. It has been signed by 132 nations, and protects nearly 90 species of plants and 400 species of animals which are listed as ?threatened with extinction?. …
An international convention that prohibits the dumping at sea of certain hazardous materials, requires a prior special permit for the dumping of a number of other identified materials, and a prior general permit for other wastes or matter. Also known as the London Convention . …
A United Nations convention that came into force in 1958 and defines the territorial sea and the contiguous zone for each coastal state. …
Coming together or confluence. Contrast divergence. …
The evolution of two or more species from different places but under similar environmental conditions, so that they come to closely resemble one another. Also known as convergence . Contrast divergent evolution. …
A junction between two lithospheric plates on the Earth's crust that are moving towards each other, which forces one plate down beneath the other into the mantle (where it melts), by the process of subduction. Also known as convergent margin . …
The change of mass into energy, for example converting a fuel (such as gasoline, coal, or biomass) into heat or electricity. …
The loss of water from a pipe or canal that is caused by leakage, seepage, evaporation, or evapotranspiration. …
A population within a species which is isolated geographically and different from others within the same species, usually a subspecies or ecotype. …
A liquid or gas that is used to cool a machine, including the liquid or gas used to transfer heat from the core of a nuclear reactor to the steam generators or directly to the turbines. …
A structure that helps to remove heat from water that has been used as a coolant (for example in an electric power generating plant) by direct contact (evaporation) between the warm water and cooler atmospheric air. …
US legislation that authorized technical and financial assistance to states to enable them to provide technical assistance to private forest landowners and processors. …
US legislation that brought together authority from nine cooperative assistance programmes in forestry, expanded some of them, and authorized consolidated programmes to participating states. It built on the Clarke‐McNary Act ( 1924 ), the Forest Pest Control Act ( 1947 ) and the Agriculture and Consumer Protection Act (1973). …
1 To bring order and organization to. See also coordination. 2 A number that identifies a location relative to an axis, on a graph or map. …
The planned collaboration of individuals and organizations, and their resources, in order to achieve a common goal. …
A member of a large group of species of tiny shrimp‐like crustaceans (zooplankton). …
An arsenic‐basedinsecticide that is toxic by ingestion. It is also used as a wood preservative and has an emerald green colour. Also known as Paris Green . …
A natural metallic trace element that occurs naturally in rock, soil, water, sediment, plants, and animals. It is a good conductor of heat and electricity and is used in making brass, copper alloys, and electrical conductors, in agriculture (to treat plant diseases), for water treatment, and as a preservative for wood, leather, and fabrics. In high concentrations copper can be toxic to plants. …
A traditional form of woodland management in which multiple stems (poles) are allowed to grow up from the base of a felled tree. The poles are then cut every few years to provide fuel and wood for making tool handles, fencing, and charcoal. Contrast high forest. See also pollard. …
An organism (such as a dung beetle) that feeds on faeces. …
Small colonial invertebrates (polyps) that live in shallow saltwater seas found in the coastal zones of warm tropical and subtropical oceans. The coral can be white, red, or black in colour. When they die, their vacant protective skeletons (also called coral) form layers on which other corals build, and this creates a coral reef. …
The whitening of a coral colony, indicative of environmental stress. This occurs when the coral polyp expels symbiotic algal cells (zooxanthellae), which contain photosynthetic pigments, from its body. The coral reef appears bleached because most reef‐building corals have white calcium carbonate skeletons, and these show through the tissue of the corals. …
The way in which a coral colony expands in size, by forming an offshoot. …
A reef made by colonies of stony coral invertebrates (polyps), together with algal and mineral components, which through time have been consolidated into limestone. Coral reefs are found only in shallow regions of tropical oceans. See also atoll, coastal reef, fringing reef, lagoon. …
Small‐diameter and/or low‐quality wood that is suitable for pulp, woodchips, or firewood, but not for sawlogs. …
1 The central part of the Earth's interior, which is composed mainly of nickel and iron, divided into a relatively small inner core and a much thicker outer core, and surrounded by the mantle. The inner core has a radius of about 1255 kilometres (about 20% of the total radius of the Earth). It is solid, and made up mainly of iron molecules with some nickel and possibly some silicon and sulphur. Th…
The inner area of a biosphere reserve which is legally protected and where only the minimum amount of human activity is allowed, to enable plants and animals to thrive without disturbance from people. Often surrounded by a buffer zone. Also known as a core . …
A project (Co‐ordinated Information on the Environment in the European Community) that is designed to build a common environmental database for the European Union, using geographical information systems. …
The tendency for air above the Earth, and for ocean currents, to appear to be deflected to the right (in the northern hemisphere) or the left (in the south) because of the rotation of the Earth. See also geostrophic wind. …
A view that natural resources are unlimited and perpetual economic growth is not only possible but essential. See also optimist, environmental. …
A series of coloured rings in the sky that surround the Sun or Moon, caused by the diffraction of light by small water droplets. …
A US approach to reducing energy consumption by increasing the fuel economy of cars and light trucks, based on calculating the sales weighted average fuel economy, expressed in miles per gallon (mpg), of a manufacturer's fleet of passenger cars or light trucks manufactured for sale in the USA for any given model year. …
Awareness, acceptance, and management of the implications and effects of all corporate decision‐making, taking particular account of community investment, human rights, and employee relations, environmental practices, and ethical conduct. …
The adoption of solutions that result in the reduction or elimination of an identified problem. For example, the cleanup of hazardous waste contamination at particular sites. …
1 A measure of the association between two or more variables. 2 The matching of sedimentary deposits (for example on a lake bed or in a rock) that are of similar age but in different places. …
A strip of natural habitat that connects two or more larger areas of natural habitat (or nature reserves) surrounded by developed land, which allows the migration of organisms from one place to another. Also known as buffer, buffer strip, buffer zone, greenway, or migration corridor . …
A process in which a metal is attacked in a chemical reaction. See also rusting. …
A liquid or solid that destroys metals and other materials or burns the skin. …
The ability to dissolve or break down certain substances, particularly metals. This is one of the four characteristics that is used to define hazardous waste in North America. …
A variety of high‐energy particles (mainly protons (92%) and alpha particles (6%)?) that bombard the Earth from outer space. …
The study of the origin and nature of the universe. …
Widely distributed across the globe, as opposed to local or regional. …
The quantity of resources that are required in order to achieve a desired end, usually expressed in monetary terms. …
Achieving specified objectives under given conditions, for relatively little expenditure or at equal or lower cost than current practice. …
A legal process in the USA that allows the government to recover the cost of cleanup at hazardous (Superfund) waste sites from those who cause the contamination. See also cost sharing. …
Sharing the costs of a project between different people or agencies. For example, the government might share the cost of a cleanup operation with those who caused the pollution. See also cost recovery. …
A formal quantitative assessment of the short‐term and long‐term social and financial costs (losses) and benefits (gains) that arise from an economic decision, for example about investing in a major project which may have social as well as economic outcomes. Financial values are assigned to each cost and benefit, and the decision whether or not to proceed with the project is made based on the …
A long, deep, winding channel formed by water erosion (probably by glacial meltwater at the end of the Pleistocene), which is often dry or carries intermittent flow, and might have an underfit stream flowing through it. …
The Council of the European Union which directly represents the Member Governments, and is the principal decision‐making body that acts on proposals from the European Commission. …
An advisory council to the President of the USA that was established by the 1969 National Environmental Policy Act and reviews federal programmes for their effect on the environment, conducts environmental studies, and advises the President on environmental matters. …
A form of camouflage in some birds and aquatic organisms, that are dark coloured on top but light coloured underneath. …
Those Central and East European countries and former republics of the Soviet Union that are in transition to a market economy. …
1 Short for countryside. 2 The land occupied by a nation. …
A light breeze that blows into a city from the surrounding countryside, and is most obvious on clear nights when the urban heat island is strongest. …
A statutory agency that was established in the UK in 1999 to conserve and enhance the countryside, promote social equity and economic opportunity for the people who live there, and to help everyone, wherever they live, to enjoy it. …
UK legislation that contains new provisions for access in the countryside and for protection of Sites of Special Scientific Interest. …
The linkage of two atoms that share a pair of electrons. See also ionic bond. …
1 The percentage of ground that is covered by living or organic material. See also ground cover. 2 Any feature that conceals wildlife or fish and allows them to escape from predators, rest, or feed. Also known as covert, escape cover, or shelter . …
Plants, such as rye, alfalfa, or clover, that are planted in between the main crop in order to maintain a plant cover on the land after harvest, and thus reduce erosion and leaching. …
The ratio between hiding cover and forage area for wildlife, in a given area of land. …
A covering that helps to conceal, such as cover for wildlife (usually game). …
A release of a biological agent that is unannounced and causes illness. Contrast overt release. …
A small flock of game birds such as grouse or partridge. …
General term to describe an economy that behaves as if natural resources are infinite in supply and nature can absorb all wastes. …
The evolution, by natural selection, of characteristics in two or more species that are to their mutual advantage. …
Evolution in two or more species that interact, in which the adaptive changes of each species influence those of the other. …
An approach to the management of natural resources which is based on the sharing of authority, responsibility, and benefits on a cooperative basis, either informally or legally, between different stakeholders, such as local government and local communities. …