A chemical reaction which gives off heat. Contrast endothermic. …
Not naturally occurring in a particular area. Also known as alien . Contrast indigenous, native. See also erratic. …
1 The killing, capture, or collection of wild organisms for human use. 2 The use of a natural resource for profit or benefit to humans. …
Competition between two or more organisms for the same limited resource. See also interference competition. …
A well that is drilled to find and produce oil or gas in an unproved area, to find a new reservoir of oil or gas in a field previously found to be productive, or to extend the limit of a known oil or gas reservoir. …
Growth at a constant rate of increase per unit of time, which can be expressed as a constant fraction or exponent and graphed as a J‐curve. Contrast arithmetic growth, geometric growth. …
To transport a commodity to another area, such as the transport of municipal solid waste and recyclables outside the locality where they originated. …
Visibly unprotected. In terms of wave exposure, an open coast that is facing away from prevailing winds but has a long fetch, where strong winds are common. …
The members of a population who have been exposed to a pollutant or other agent. …
1 Contact between an organism and a chemical or physical agent, by swallowing, breathing, or direct contact (such as through the skin or eyes). Exposure may be either short term (acute) or long term (chronic). 2 The degree of wave action on an open shore, which is determined by the fetch and the strength and duration of winds. Compare exposed, extremely exposed, sheltered, ultrasheltered, very exp…
An estimation of the magnitude, frequency, duration, route, and extent (number of people) of exposure to a chemical or physical agent. …
An incident of contact with a chemical or physical agent. …
An environmental indicator that provides evidence of exposure to a chemical or biological agent. …
The amount or concentration of a chemical or biological agent that is measured in or on an organism. …
The regulated level of exposure a chemical or biological agent that should not be exceeded in order to protect human health and well‐being. …
The route that a particular pollutant takes from its source to people or other organisms, via, soil, water, or food. See also exposure route, indirect exposure pathway. …
The way that a chemical or pollutant enters an organism after contact (by ingestion, inhalation, or absorption through skin). See also exposure pathway. …
The relationship between exposure level and incidence of adverse effects. …
Outside, off site, or away from the natural location. For example, biological material which is in a laboratory, collection, botanical garden, zoo, or aquarium. Also known as off‐site . Contrast in situ . …
An approach to the conservation of biodiversity that is based on keeping organisms and species alive by the deliberate removal of biological resources (seed, pollen, sperm, individual organisms) from their original habitat or natural environment, and protecting them elsewhere under controlled conditions. Contrast in situ conservation. See also gene bank. …
Existing or surviving, still living at the present time. Contrast extinct. …
A basic forecast of general weather conditions three to five days in the future. …
In conservation assessment, the size of site that is required to ensure that the unit to be managed is viable. …
A consequence or impact of a decision about resources that is not directly accounted for in the price paid for the resource, such as pollution, loss of wilderness, or environmental change. Also known as externalization of production costs , or social cost . See also environmental economics, internalization, market failure. …
No longer living anywhere. A species for which there is no reasonable doubt that the last individual has died. A threatened category defined by the IUCNRed Data Book. Contrast endangered, extirpation, threatened, vulnerable. …
The permanent disappearance of a species throughout its entire range, caused by the failure to reproduce and the death of all remaining members. Extinction has occurred throughout Earth history for entirely natural reasons, either because of major catastrophes (such as meteorite impacts) or because species were unable to adapt quickly enough to natural environmental change. Most recent extinctions…
The disappearance of a population or species from an island, area, or region. Also known as local extinction . Contrast extinction. …
The act of removing a resource, such as felled timber from a forest or groundwater from an aquifer. Also known as abstraction . …
A conservation area in which certain kinds of resource harvesting on a sustainable basis are permitted. …
Estimating a value by projecting or extending known values, for example in order to predict outside a range of known conditions (such as predicting future values). Contrast interpolation. …
The radiation from the Sun that reaches the top of the Earth's atmosphere. See also solar constant. …
A mid‐latitudeclimate zone that lies poleward of the tropics. …
Any environment that has extremes in growth conditions for plants, including temperature, salinity, pH, and water availability. …
In terms of wave exposure, an open coastline which faces into the prevailing wind, is directly affected by both wind‐driven waves and ocean swell, and has deep water close to the shore. …
Any of more than 400 chemicals that are classified as toxic by the Environmental Protection Agency and listed under SARA. …
In terms of wave exposure, a fully enclosed coast with a fetch of no more than about three kilometres. …
A micro‐organism whose optimum growth is under conditions of extreme acidity or alkalinity, salinity, temperature, or pressure. …
External, coming from outside. Contrast intrinsic. …
A natural resource that has been adapted or modified by people in order to provide additional values, particularly for recreation. Examples include historic sites and archaeological sites. …
Value in terms of what something means to people. Contrast intrinsic value. …
Igneous rock that has formed on the surface of the Earth, such as basalt. Contrast intrusive. …
The region surrounding a city and its suburbs where wealthier families tend to live. Also known as suburbia. …
An oil tanker that ran aground, spilling 300?000 barrels of oil in Prince William Sound in Alaska on 24 March 1989 , creating an oil slick that covered 12?400 square kilometres and polluting at least 1100 kilometres of coastline. Damage was extensive, partly because the area is ecologically sensitive and thus not able to withstand great stress. The problem was made worse by a lack of disaster pre…
The warm calm area at the centre of a tropical cyclone, where the winds are light and skies are clear or partly cloudy. …
The zone of powerful updraft around the eye of a tropical cyclone, which has the heaviest rain, strongest winds, and worst turbulence and causes a ring of heavy thunderstorms. …
The nest of a bird of prey, such as a hawk or eagle, which is usually built high in a tree. …
The way in which particles and minerals are arranged in a rock, sediment, or soil. See also imbrication. …
The characteristics of a sediment or sedimentary rock unit, such as mineralogy, colour, texture, and fossil content, which are indicative of the conditions when the rock formed. …
A building or place that provides a particular service or is used for a particular activity. …
A ship that is equipped to process large quantities of fish or whale products at sea. …
Having the ability to live under different conditions, either with or without a particular environmental factor such as oxygen. …
A beneficial symbiont that associates with its host but is also able to live apart from it. Contrast obligate mutualist. …
An organism (usually a micro‐organism) that is capable of adapting to either aerobic or anaerobic conditions. …
Solid unabsorbed residue (waste matter) that is passed out of the digestive tract of an animal, though its anus. See also coliform bacteria. …
A temperature scale in which the freezing point of water is 32?F and the boiling point is 212?F at sea level. 32?F is equal to 0? Celsius, and ?C = (?F-32)?5/9. This scale is widely used in the USA. …
A weather condition in which there is less than four‐tenths opaque cloud cover, no precipitation, and no extremes in temperature, visibility, or wind. …
1 A season between summer and winter, that is known as autumn in most of the English‐speaking world beyond North America. 2 A rapid process of mass movement on a hillslope. 3 Another name for waterfall. …
Solid material that falls to the ground from the sky, including radioactive debris that falls after a nuclear explosion, and volcanic ash that falls after a volcanic eruption. …
The practice of leaving a patch of land idle and uncropped, either tilled or untilled, during much or all of a growing season, in order to accumulate moisture, improve soil structure, or restore nutrient content. …
1 A social unit, including parents and children, which lives together and may include relatives. 2 The fifth highest (of seven) category in the scientific system of classification for organisms (taxonomy), below order and above genus. Each order comprises more than one family, and each family comprises more than one genus. 3 A category in the Comprehensive Soil Classification System that is interm…
A system of limiting family size and the frequency of childbearing by the appropriate use of birth control. …
An acute shortage of food that leads to malnutrition and starvation. …
A wedge‐shaped body of sediment (usually sand and gravel), such as an alluvial fan. …
See United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. …
Buildings and associated land that are used for agriculture. …
Arable land that is worked for farming by ploughing, sowing, and raising crops. …
Land that is occupied by the dwellings, barns, pens, corrals, gardens, and similar associated with an operating farm. …
The partly decomposed excreta of domestic animals mixed with straw or other litter. See also dung, slurry. …
Ice in a lake, river, or the sea that is permanently attached to a glacier or to the shore, the bottom, or in shallow water. …
An accident that causes one or more deaths within a year. …
A death that is caused by an accident or a disaster. …
A large‐scale linear fracture at the Earth's crust, along which the rocks on either side have been displaced as a result of pressure in the adjacent bodies of rock. The displacement can be vertical, horizontal, or both at the same time. There are four common types of faults (normal fault, reverse fault, strike‐slip fault, and thrust fault), which are produced in different ways and produce diff…
A fracturing of the rocks on the Earth's crust that produces a line (fault line) along which significant movement takes place, which causes rocks on either side to be displaced vertically or horizontally relative to each other. …
The contact zone between two sides of a fault, along which the rocks on either side move. …
The part of the Earth's crust that is affected by faulting. Faults occur where such a zone intersects the ground surface. …
1 All forms of animal life that lives in a region, period, or special environment. 2 A record or book of animals. …
The world's longest‐established international conservation body that was founded in 1903 , and one of only a few whose mission is to protect the entire spectrum of endangered species of animals and plants world‐wide. …
The desirable state for a site to be in for conservation purposes. …
The desirable status of a population for conservation purposes. …
1 An investigation to establish whether a project will work and achieve the desired results. 2 A study to evaluate alternative remedial actions from a technical, environmental, and cost perspective, which normally recommends selection of a cost‐effective alternative. …
The state of being fertile; capable of producing offspring. See also fertility. …
The leading federal emergency planning agency in the USA that seeks to reduce the loss of life and protect property against all types of hazards (including disasters and urban riots) through a comprehensive, risk‐based emergency management programme. …
Land that is owned and managed by the US government, including National Parks and National Forests. …
US legislation that governs how the US Bureau of Land Management manages, protects, develops, and enhances public lands. It specifically requires the Bureau to manage public lands for multiple use and sustained yield, for the benefit of both present and future generations. This act triggered the Sagebrush Rebellion. It was partly replaced by the Public Rangelands Improvement Act ( 1978 ). …
US legislation that established as a national objective the restoration and maintenance of the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's water, and required area‐wide planning to prevent future water pollution that could be associated with growth, development, and land use, including timber management. …
Ground or processed grains that are fed to animals, including hay such as alfalfa or silage. …
An internal adjustment within a system, where once a component reaches a certain level it inhibits (negative feedback) or promotes (positive feedback) further action. For example, a thermostat signals a boiler to turn on or off according to room temperature. See also homeostasis. …
A confined area for the controlled feeding of large numbers of animals, which produces large amounts of animal waste that can flow into and pollute nearby waterbodies. …
A group of common aluminium silicate minerals (the most common minerals in the world) that contain potassium, sodium, or calcium, and that form rocks. …
1 To cut down standing vegetation, such as a tree. 2 Traditional British name for open moorland. …
A light‐coloured igneous rock rich in silica minerals (such as quartz and feldspars), which is a major component of the Earth's continental crust. The term is also used to refer to the minerals themselves. Contrast mafic. …
In organisms with separate sexes, the one which is capable of giving birth or laying eggs. Contrast male. …
A type of wetland dominated by marsh‐like vegetation, produced where slightly alkaline groundwater emerges to the surface, that accumulates peat deposits. Bogs have similar types of vegetation but tend to be acid. …
A row of trees, conifer, shrubs, or groundcover plants that provides food and cover for wildlife. …
Peat that is alkaline or non‐acidic because of the presence of calcium carbonate. …
A domesticatedanimal that has adapted to living in the wild. …
A type of anaerobic respiration by a living agent (such as yeast, bacteria, or mould), which breaks down complex organic compounds into simple ones. For example, yeast converts sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide. In biotechnology, fermentation is the process of growing microbes to produce chemical or pharmaceutical compounds. …
The number of live births per female within a population, which is always lower than fecundity. In 1998 the average fertility in the world was 2.9 children per woman; the average in the USA was 2.0, the averages in Italy and Spain were 1.2, and in the West African state of Niger it was 7.4. A population stops growing when it reaches the replacement‐level fertility, but this requires a total f…
The number of children that are born in a given year, usually expressed per 1000 women in the reproductive age group. …
1 The union of male and female cells (sperm and egg; gametes) to form a new individual. 2 Adding nutrients to soil or plants to stimulate growth. …
A substance (such as animal manure or an artificial chemical, particularly one that contains nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) that is added to soil in order to increase its productivity for crops. …
The distance of open sea over which the wind may blow to generate waves until it meets a coastline. …
A cultivated area of land that is usually enclosed by a hedge, wall, or fence, and is used for a particular crop or cropping sequence. …
The amount of water that a particular soil can hold after gravitational water has drained away. This is mostly capillary water. Also known as field moisture capacity . …
The vegetation at ground level in a forest or woodland. …
The pursuit, capture, and killing of wildlife for entertainment. Also known as country sports and game sport . See also big game, fishing, game, hunting, shooting. …
A perforated pipe, usually made from plastic or clay, that is buried under the surface of the ground to improve soil drainage. Also known as drainage tile . …
Soil or sediment that is added to change the height of the land, for example to fill in a hole or to build an embankment. …
A porous mesh that allows air or liquid to pass through but holds back solid particles. …
An organism that filters out food particles (such as plankton, bacteria, or detritus) from freshwater or seawater. Also known as suspension feeder . …
The process of removing particulate matter from water by passing it through a porous medium such as sand or a filter. Filtration does not remove dissolved salts or organic contaminants. See also direct filtration, flocculent. …
Cutting of the few original trees that remain in a shelterwood cut, once new trees have been established. …
In greenhouse gas emissions trading, the fully matched and negotiated bids/offers that are under contract for delivery. …
A document prepared by a federal agency in the USA, based on the results of an environmental assessment, that shows why a proposed action would not have a significant impact on the environment and would thus not require preparation of an environmental impact statement. …
An approach to the conservation of biodiversity that is directed toward particular habitats or species that may be threatened or endangered and might fall through the coarse filter. …
A soil, sediment, or rock in which the grains or crystals are too small to be seen with the naked eye. …
Water that has passed through all the processes in a water treatment plant and is ready to be delivered to consumers. Also known as product water . …
A type of insecticide that works by disrupting normal nerve functions in the insect. …
The rapid oxidation of a fuel that results in the release of heat, light, and other byproducts. …
A barrier, usually either a natural clearing or one created by removing vegetation (fuel break), that is designed to prevent or slow the spread of fire. Also known as fire line . …
All activities that are associated with the management of fire‐prone land, including the use of fire to meet land management goals and objectives. See also fuel break, prescribed fire. …
The role that fire plays in an ecosystem, which depends on the frequency and scale of fires, and may include proposals for the controlled use of fire in a given area. See also prescribed fire. …
The period(s) of the year during which fires are likely to occur, spread, and cause enough damage to require organized fire control. …
A raging fire of great intensity that spreads rapidly. …
A climax community of vegetation that is maintained by periodic fires. Examples include grasslands, chaparral shrubland, and some pine forests. …
Snow on the surface of a glacier that has remained from the previous year, which may be compact but not yet turned into ice. A transitional stage between snow and ice. Also known as granular snow or n?v? . …
The dividing line between old ice and new snow on a glacier, at the end of the melting season. …
The zone on a glacier that separates the (upper) accumulation area from the (lower) ablation area. …
The water that comes out when a tap is first opened, which is likely to contain the highest level of lead contamination from plumbing materials. …
The industrialized capitalist or market economy countries of Western Europe, North America, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand that were the first to industrialize. See also Second World, Third World. …
A cold‐bloodedvertebrate animal that lives in water and breathes through gills; most fish have scales. See also game fish, rough fish. …
Any stream, lake, or reservoir that supports fish, or has the potential to support fish. …
A place where fish are caught and processed and sold. …
US legislation that provided for the conservation and management of fisheries, which established a 200‐mile fishery conservation zone and Regional Fishery Management Councils comprising Federal and State officials, including the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Also known as Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management Act . …
A place where aquatic plants and animals are grown commercially, in ponds, pens, tanks, or other containers. See also aquaculture. …
Catching fish, for food or as a field sport, in freshwater or at sea. …
The sudden death of most if not all of the fish in a waterbody, caused by the introduction of pollutants or a reduction in dissolved oxygen concentration. …
A form of aquaculture in which a population of a fish species (such as salmon) is held in captivity for the first stage of their lives, then released, and later harvested as adults when they return from the sea to their freshwater birthplace to spawn. …
A method of small scale fishing using traps and nets. Also known as beach seining . …
1 The ability of certain rocks to be split along bedding planes. 2 See fissionable. …
1 The nuclear process in which the nucleus of a particular isotope splits into (usually) two nuclei of lighter elements, releasing great amounts of energy at the same time. This process is exploited in the breeder reactor. Contrast fusion. 2 Division of a cell into two cells by splitting. …
The property of the nucleus of some atoms that allows them to split into smaller particles, and so be capable of sustaining a chain reaction of nuclear fission. Also known as fissile . …
An isotope that can undergo nuclear fission when it is hit by a neutron at the right speed. Examples include uranium‐235 and plutonium‐239. …
A long, deep, narrow opening in a rock or glacier (crevasse), or an opening in a volcano through which volcanic products can erupt. …
Adaptedness, or the ability of an organism to survive and flourish in its current environment, relative to the other organisms that are also there, which is measured ultimately by reproductive success. …
To convert carbon dioxide to carbohydrate (carbon fixation), or nitrogen dioxide to ammonia (nitrogen fixation). …
A sand dune that has become stabilized by vegetation and is therefore largely protected from further erosion and movement by the wind. …
A long, deep, steep‐sided valley with a U‐shaped profile, that was formed by glacial erosion and is now flooded by the sea. …
A micro‐organism that has several hair‐like projections on the cell surface, which it uses for locomotion or food gathering. …
A thin whip‐like appendage on a motile cell, which is used for locomotion. The plural is flagella. …
A small number of globally important endangered species (including the giant panda, tiger, marine turtles, great apes, whales, elephants, and rhinos) which are well known and attract public interest in conservation efforts both for themselves and other species at risk. …
Any solid, liquid, vapour, or gas that will ignite easily and burn rapidly. …
1 A sudden burst of flame. 2 A device that burns gases (such as methane gas in a landfill) to prevent them from being released into the environment. …
The controlled burning of waste gases (for example, through a chimney) before releasing them to the air. …
A localized flood that rises and falls quite rapidly with little or no advance warning, usually as the result of heavy rainfall over a relatively small area. …
The three cooperative mechanisms for reducing greenhouse gas emissions that were agreed under the Kyoto Protocol, which are Joint Implementation, emissions trading and the Clean Development Mechanism. Also known as Kyoto mechanism . See also fungibility. …
A type of chert that is found as nodules or bands in chalk and limestone. …
A collection of smaller particles that have come together into larger particles, such as the solids that are formed in sewage as a result of biological or chemical action. …
Chemical processes in which salts (flocculent) are added to water to make colloids aggregate into larger masses that are too heavy to remain suspended. …
1 A substance that is added to water to make particles clump together, in order to produce more effective filtration. 2 Also used to describe the particles that clump together. …
To fill quickly to beyond capacity, so that the fluid spills out. In a river, it means a high flow that overflows from the channel and inundates the floodplain, which is normally dry. On a coast, it means seawater flowing over low‐lying land that is normally dry. See also flash flood, inundation. …
An engineering scheme that is designed to protect areas of land from being flooded. Options include the construction of embankments (levees and dykes) and walls, channel improvement, detaining part of the flood flow in a reservoir, and diverting some of the water into a bypass or floodway. …
The transport of floodwaters downstream, with little if any damage. …
The onshore movement of a tidal stream, toward the shore or up a tidal river or estuary. …
The economic loss that is caused by a flood, which includes direct damage due to inundation, erosion, and sediment deposition, as well as emergency costs and business or financial losses. …
A prediction of the likely height, timing, and duration of a flood, particularly the peak discharge at a specified point on a stream, based on information about precipitation and/or snowmelt and the form of the drainage area. Also known as flood prediction . See also forecast. …
The probability (likelihood) that a flood of a certain size will occur in a given year in a particular river or part of a river. See also recurrence interval. …
Analysis of hydrograph records of river flow to determine the flood frequency at a particular location within a river system, based on either the annual maximum series or the partial duration series. …
A method of irrigation in which entire fields are occasionally deliberately flooded. …
The highest stage (largest discharge) reached during a particular flood at a given point on a river. Also known as peak discharge . …
An area of flat, low‐lying land adjacent to a river, that is composed of alluvium. It is normally dry but is covered by water during a flood. Also known as alluvial plain or flood basin . …
A coordinated approach to the reduction of flood damage that usually includes emergency and contingency plans, flood control works, and regulations to control current and future development in the flood plain. …
A type of natural resource zoning that prohibits and restricts development within floodplains, in order to prevent damage to property and risks to people. See also prohibition zoning. …
The process of protecting a building from flood damage, for example by raising it above the ground, building a wall round it to keep out flood water, or using lower floors for activities that can tolerate inundation. …
The water level (stage) in a river or stream beyond which the flow starts to flood adjacent land. See also bankfull. …
The portion of the tide cycle between low water and the following high water, during which the water is rising or levelling off. Also known as rising tide . …
The river channel and parts of the adjacent floodplain that are required to carry flood water and must therefore not be built on or restricted. …
1 All forms of plant life that live in a region, period, or special environment. 2 A record or book of plants. …
1 The movement of a liquid or a gas. See also flow rate. 2 Rapid mass movement of any unconsolidated material. See also debris flow. …
The addition of water to a stream from a storage reservoir in order to enhance flow, particularly to help fish migration. …
The percentage of time that discharge in a river exceeds a particular level, averaged over a number of years. …
1 A plant that is cultivated for its blooms or blossoms, its colours, and/or its scent. 2 The reproductive part of a plant. …
An artesian well in which the pressure is large enough to make water flow out onto the land surface. …
A device that is used for measuring the flow or quantity of a moving fluid. …
The annual pattern of variations in discharge in a river. …
A natural resource that is simultaneously used and replaced, which includes all perpetual resources and renewable resources. …
A vent or chimney for a combustion device, through which smoke, gas, and fumes rise. …
The air that is released by a flue or stack after combustion in the burner it is venting, which can contain nitrogen oxides, carbon oxides, water vapour, sulphur oxides, particles, and many chemical pollutants. …
A method of reducing the sulphur content of fossil fuels at combustion, in order to reduce air pollution, that involves passing the flue gas through a mixture of crushed limestone and water. Also known as flue gas scrubbing . See also scrubbing. …
Any substance, gas, or liquid that can flow freely. …
Making particles float in a gas or fluid that is blowing upwards. …
A method of reducing the sulphur content of fossil fuels at combustion, in order to reduce air pollution, that involves burning the fuel in a special furnace that lifts it in a stream of air and passes air through it while it burns. Also known as fluidized bed technology . …
A natural or man‐made structure that conveys water. …
The property of absorbing light of a particular wavelength and then emitting light of a different colour and wavelength. …
The addition of a fluoride to the water supply, usually in order to prevent dental decay. …
A non‐metallic element, the lightest of the halogens, usually in the form of a yellow, irritating, flammable gas which is one of the 100 most toxic substances known, and is persistent in the environment. Used commercially in the form of sodium fluoride. …
A compound that contains fluorine and carbon, including those which are chlorinated (CFCs) and those which are brominated (halons). They are inert and highly stable, and are used in refrigerators and aerosols. …
1 A sudden, rapid flow of water. 2 A type of fen that is irrigated by a spring or soakway. …
A floodplainsoil, that usually has buried horizons and amounts of organic matter that decrease irregularly with depth. …
Geological work (erosion, transport, and deposition of sediment) that is done by a river. …
Flow of energy, fluid, or particles per unit of area per unit of time. …
Fine particles of ash that are made from the burning of coal, released in flue gas, and carried in suspension in the air. …
A seasonal migration route along which waterfowl travel between wintering grounds and nesting/breeding grounds. …