A collective term for non‐biodegradable products (such as glass or plastics) that are contained in wastes. …
The number of infants who die within the first year of life, per 1000 live births. …
benthic organisms that live in the sediment on the floor or a waterbody such as a lake or sea. …
An incident in which an infectious agent is transmitted and invades the body of people or animals. …
Any micro‐organism (such as a pathogenicvirus, parasite, or bacterium) that has the ability to invade body tissues, multiply, and cause disease. …
A disease that is caused by pathogenic organisms. …
Hazardous waste that is capable of causing infections in humans. This includes contaminated animal waste, human blood and blood products, isolation waste, and pathological waste and discarded syringes, needles, and blades. Also known as red bag waste . …
A logical conclusion that is supported by evidence. …
1 To occupy in large numbers. 2 To live on a host. See also parasite. …
The process of developing open zones within an established area (such as brownfield sites within a town) before developing outside the established area (such as a greenfield sites). …
The movement of water from the ground surface into a soil or into a porousrock or sediment. Contrast percolation. …
The maximum rate at which water can enter the soil at a particular point, under a given set of conditions. …
The amount of water that enters the soil at a particular point in a given period of time. …
The average rate at which the general price of goods and services increases through time. …
1 The natural flow of water into a lake or reservoir from upstream tributaries. 2 The flow of rainwater into a sewer system from drains and sewers. …
1 A stream that enters a large or larger river. 2 A waste product (such as water that contains pollutants) that enters a particular part of the environment, often accidentally. Means literally ?flowing in?. Contrast effluent. …
Recreation activities that take place outside and are not directly managed. See also dispersed recreation, developed recreation. …
Houses (for temporary or permanent use) which have been built on land without formal planning approval. …
The use of computers and statistical methods in the classification, storage, retrieval, and analysis of data, information, and knowledge. See also bioinformatics, data mining, geoinformatics. …
Data that have been transformed through analysis and interpretation into a form which is useful for drawing conclusions and making decisions. See also management information. …
The administration, use, and transmission of information and the use of theories and methods of information science to create, modify, or improve systems for handling information. See also knowledge management. …
The study of the creation, use, and management of information. …
Radiant energy that has a wavelength of 1000 to 0.77 micrometres within the electromagnetic spectrum, between visible light and microwaves. Most of the energy that is emitted by the Earth and its atmosphere is infrared. Gases such as water vapour, carbon dioxide, and ozone absorb infrared radiation, which creates the greenhouse effect. Also known as thermal radiation and longwave radiation . …
The basic services and facilities (such as roads and sewers) that are needed for the development and growth of an area or activity. …
Taken into the body via the mouth, after which it is digested by swallowing. Contrast absorption. …
Breathing in a substance in the form of a gas, vapour, fume, mist, or dust. …
1 To receive genetic material from parents through biological processes. See also heredity. 2 To receive an item from a previous owner (often a relative) upon their death. See also legacy. …
General term for private land within public parks, forests, or wildlife refuges. …
A well used that is for injecting water or other fluid into a groundwater aquifer, by pressure. …
A geological formation that receives fluids through a well. …
Waterbodies (such as lakes, streams, rivers, canals, waterways, inlets, and bays) that have no direct access to the ocean. …
An entrance to a waterbody, such as an estuary or bay. …
New methods to effectively treat hazardous waste, which can offer cost‐effective, long‐term solutions to cleanup problems, may provide an alternative to land disposal or incineration, and are often more acceptable to local communities than some established treatment technologies. …
A substance (such as metals, minerals, and rocks) that does not contain carbon and is not derived from biological material. Contrast organic. …
The chemistry of substances that do not contain carbon. Contrast organic chemistry. …
Any compound that does not contain carbon. Contrast organic compound. …
Nitrogen which is in the mineral state and can be readily used by plants. Contrast organic nitrogen. …
Waste (such as sand, glass, or any other synthetic material) that consists of materials other than plant or animal matter. …
Energy, matter, or information that is put into a system in order to achieve a result. Contrast output. …
An organism that lives on or in the body of another, or in its nest or abode, without benefit or damage to the other organism from which is gets shelter and sometimes food. …
A small, air‐breathing, invertebrate animal (arthropod) that has three body parts and three pairs of jointed legs; some species of insect have wings. Examples include bees, ants, and moths. …
A light‐weight oil that smothers plants, insect eggs, and larvae on contact, which offers an environmentally sound means of controlling insects. …
A soap that is derived from fats or oils that have been treated with a specific kind of alkaline substance (such as potash), which paralyses and eventually kills insect pests (such as aphids) when sprayed on them. A common form of insecticide. …
A chemical pesticide that is used to control or kill insects. …
Insect‐eating, feeding largely or exclusively on insects. …
A steep‐sided hill composed mainly of hard rock, which rises sharply above a plain in tropical and subtropical areas. …
Towards the shore, or close to a shore, where waves are transformed by interaction with the sea bed. Contrast offshore. …
On site or in its natural location. Contrast ex situ. …
Incoming solar radiation, the radiation from the Sun that enters the Earth's atmosphere. Around a third is returned to space (21% is reflected back into space from clouds, 6% is reflected back from the ground, and 5% is scattered by tiny particles in the air as diffuse radiation); half reaches the ground (30% by direct radiation and 20% by diffuse radiation); and 18% is absorbed in the atmosphere …
A type of physical weathering which involves repeated heating and cooling of rock over daily cycles, progressively breaking apart the grains of rock. …
Not capable of being dissolved. Contrast soluble. …
A condition that exists when a rising parcel of air in the atmosphere continues to rise because it is warmer, and thus lighter, than the air around it (the opposite of stability). Precipitation can only occur in such unstable air conditions, which allow a parcel of air to cool to the dew point, condensation to occur, and water vapour to condense around the condensation nuclei to produce the initia…
Waste material that is generated at institutions such as schools, libraries, hospitals, and prisons. …
The quantity of water that is required in a stream in order to meet the needs of fish, wildlife, and recreational users. …
Water that is used within the stream channel, for uses such as hydroelectric power generation, navigation, fish farming, and recreation. Contrast offstream use. …
The value or worth of objects that provide a means to some desirable end, that satisfy some human needs and wants. See also intrinsic value. …
A category of species defined by the IUCNRed Data Book as taxa that are suspected but not definitely known to belong to any of the at‐risk categories (endangered, extinct, extirpated, threatened, vulnerable), because of lack of information. See unknown (threat) category of species. …
1 A structure through which water enters a reservoir. 2 The process (ingestion or inhalation) by which a substance enters a body without being absorbed through its exterior. See also administered dose. …
Incapable of being touched or seen, having no physical or material presence. …
Assets such as open space, attractiveness, diversity, and satisfaction that are not material or physical. Also known as intangibles . …
An approach to the management of natural resources in which a specific area is zoned and regulated for a variety of uses (such as research, conservation, tourism, harvesting, hunting, or fishing) that is compatible with the management goals for the area. …
An assessment that brings together data about the past, current, and future condition of ecosystems, the impact of humans on the ecosystems, and the effects of environmental change on humans. This form of analysis is regularly carried out to predict the likely impact of environmental change (such as global warming) and to evaluate policy responses to it. See also environmental assessment. …
A systems approach to the management of natural resources within a drainage basin, which includes consideration of all environmental, economic, and social issues within an overall management plan. See also integrated water resource management. …
An approach to environmental management that is based on linking nature conservation in protected areas (such as national parks) with local social and economic development, with a view to making biodiversity conservation more effective, increasing local community participation in conservation and development, and increasing economic development for the rural poor. …
An estimate of the total exposure of a person or population to a particular toxic chemical, through all media, over a given period of time. …
An ecological approach to the management of pests that relies on natural mortality factors (such as natural enemies, weather, and cultural control methods) and carefully applied doses of pesticides. …
An approach to the control of pollution by industry in the UK, in which any person who carries out a prescribed process must obtain authorization from the environmental regulator, and must comply with conditions set by the environmental regulator. This has been replaced since 2000 by Pollution Prevention and Control. …
An EUdirective that was introduced in 2000 , which promotes an integrated approach to controlling the environmental impacts of certain industrial activities, and involves determining the appropriate controls for industry to protect the environment through a single permit process. See also pollution prevention and control. …
The comprehensive management of two or more natural resources (including water, soil, timber, range, fish, wildlife, and recreation) in the same area, in order to optimize the overall benefits on a sustainable basis. Also known as integrated resource planning, multiple‐use management . …
An approach to the sustainable management of waste, based on environmentally sound processes such as source reduction, recycling, resource recovery, incineration, and landfill. …
An approach to the sustainable management of water resources in a drainage basin which recognizes the need to preserve the integrity of the basin water cycle, and respects the interrelationships between different parts of that cycle. See also integrated catchment management, integrated resource management. …
Completeness or totality, unmodified and not reduced. See also biological integrity. …
In animals, the covering of skin (which includes hair, nails, scales, and feathers) which supports and protects the body. …
The overall body of knowledge that exists within an organization in terms of data, information, and wisdom, which is held in the minds and experience of people, creates intelligence, and helps to drive creativity and innovation. …
Knowledge that stems from the exercise of the mind, is recognized and protected under law (for example by patent, trade mark, design, copyright, and plant breeder's rights), and can be given a monetary value and made subject to contractual agreements such as licensing. …
The major legal mechanisms by which intellectual property is protected (particularly copyright, patent, and trademark), which enable owners to select who may access and use their property, and thus protect it from unauthorized use. …
Agriculture which involves intensive management of land, designed to maximize output through the use of chemicals (fertilizers) and machinery, the reseeding of grassland, clearance of unproductive areas (such as hedges and small copses), and drainage of wetland. See also agricultural intensification. …
High‐density concentrated recreation activities, such as developed campgrounds and picnic sites, swimming beaches, hiking trails that are major access routes into wilderness areas, and areas used by all‐terrain vehicles. Contrast dispersed recreation. …
The diversion and conveyance of water from one drainage basin to another, usually via pipes and aqueducts. Also known as trans‐basin diversion . …
The precipitation that lands on the leaves and branches of plants, and is then evaporated back to the atmosphere as water vapour. …
Growing two or more crops in the same field at the same time, either mixed together or in alternating rows, in order to protect the soil and use land efficiently. Also known as interplanting . …
Applying the knowledge and skills from different academic disciplines or subjects that are normally regarded as distinct, to the same task or project. See also multidisciplinary. …
A shared boundary, for example between liquids, solids, and gasses, or between two systems (for example where a river meets the sea). …
Competition in which one species prevents another from having access to a limiting resource. See also exploitation competition. …
Water that moves downslope within a soil, through the pore spaces within the soil structure. Contrast throughflow. …
The principle that the present generation should pass on to future generations enough natural resources and sufficient environmental quality that they can enjoy at least a comparable quality of life, and inherit a healthy and sustainable environmental heritage. It seeks a fair distribution of the costs and benefits of a long‐term environmental policy, when costs and benefits are borne by differe…
A period of increased temperatures between ice ages, or between major phases of glaciation or ice advance. The present Holocene period is an interglacial. See also interstadial. …
A major international scientific collaboration between hundreds of specialists from around the world, that focuses on the likelihood and probable nature of induced climate change, based largely on forecasts from general circulation models. It was established in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization and the United Nations Environment Programme to assess the scientific, technical, and soci…
A drainage pattern in which streams converge in a closed basin and evaporate without reaching the sea. …
The removal of immature trees from a forest, often by thinning, before the major harvest, in order to improve the quality of the remaining forest stand. Contrast harvest cut. …
The belief that, within a given ecosystem, the highest species diversity exists under conditions of intermediate disturbance because too much disturbance causes local extinction (extirpation) and at low levels of disturbance competitive species exclude others. …
Igneous rocks that have a silica content between the extremes of the mafic and felsic rocks, and weather down to produce quite fertile soils. Intermediate between basic and acidic rocks. …
Technology that can be made at an affordable price, by ordinary people, using local materials, in ways that minimize damage to people and the environment. Also known as appropriate technology . …
Radioactive waste that contains higher levels of radioactivity than low‐level waste, and less than high‐level waste. …
Occurring from time to time. Also known as episodic . …
River flow that is irregular and only occurs after heavy rain or snow melt. Contrast ephemeral flow, perennial flow. …
A stream that flows only at certain times of the year when it receives water from upstream, from heavy rain or snow melt. …
US legislation that authorized funding for highways, highway safety, and mass transportation between 1991 and 1997 , when it expired, but much of the programme was carried forward by the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century. …
A low‐lying area (basin) between mountain ranges, such as a graben. …
An engine in which the fuel burns inside the engine itself, as opposed to a steam engine in which fuel is burned in a separate furnace. Most vehicles use gasoline as fuel, and emit air pollutants such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, and reactive hydrocarbons. …
The direct cost (monetary or otherwise) that is met by those who use a resource. …
The energy which a substance possesses because of the motion and configuration of its atoms, molecules, and subatomic particles. …
In accounting, the process of including in financial balance sheets the cost factors which were previously either not calculated (for example the cost of environmental damage) or met by society at large (for example the health costs associated with pollution). See also externality. …
The movement (migration) of people or animals within a country or defined region. Contrast international migration. …
In greenhouse gasemissions trading, internal trading is trading within a company which allows the company to trade emission permits between its business units in order to maximize cost‐effective emission control. …
Any body of surface water that is under the exclusive control of a coastal nation, including bays, estuaries, and rivers. Contrast international waters, interstate waters. …
A United Nations agency that was formed in 1957 , is based in Vienna, Austria, and is responsible for supervising the use of nuclear material, developing safety standards, preventing the proliferation of nuclear weapons, and promoting the peaceful use of nuclear energy. …
A major international conference organized by the United Nations that met in Cairo, Egypt in September 1994 , and discussed the global dimensions of population growth and change. The conference agreed goals for 2015 that are designed to improve individual and family well‐being and enhance the status of women. The goals include universal access to family planning and primary school education, …
An international conference organized by the United Nations which built on the success of the World Population Conference in Bucharest 1974 , was attended by representatives from 150 countries, provided a further impetus for the World Population Plan of Action, and was a key milestone in the development of the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) held in Cairo. …
An international convention that covers the prevention of pollution of the marine environment by ships, from operational or accidental causes. The convention was modified by a protocol in 1978 . …
An international convention that was signed in Washington, DC in December 1946 , and is designed to safeguard whale stocks for future generations. It set up the International Whaling Commission and introduced regulations concerning: the conservation and utilization of whale resources, relating to protected and unprotected species; open and closed seasons; open and closed waters; the designation o…
An international convention that provides a global framework for international cooperation in combating major incidents or threats of marine pollution. …
An international convention that prohibits the use of harmful organotins in antifouling paints used on ships, and establishes a mechanism to prevent the potential future use of other harmful substances in antifouling systems. …
An international convention that affirms the right of a coastal state to take such measures on the high seas as may be necessary to prevent, mitigate, or eliminate danger to its coastline or related interests from pollution by oil or the threat of such pollution, after a maritime accident. …
An intergovernmental organization concerned with marine and fisheries science. It was established in Copenhagen in 1902 to promote the exchange of information on the sea and its living resources and to promote and coordinate marine research between member countries. …
A non‐governmental organization that was founded in 1932 to bring together scientists in international scientific endeavours in order to help members address major international, interdisciplinary issues. …
In greenhouse gasemissions trading, under the Kyoto Protocol, a method by which emissions credits or permits can be transferred between countries through Joint Implementation, Clean Development Mechanisms, and international emissions trading. Also known as international permit . …
A line of longitude that lies generally 180? east and west of the prime meridian (Greenwich Meridian); the date is one day earlier to the east of the line. …
An international programme of the United Nations, between 1990 and 2000 , that sought to harness the political resolve, experience, and expertise of each country in order to reduce the loss of life, human suffering, and economic losses caused by natural hazards. Some scientists point out that many of the Idndr targets complement the objectives of Agenda 21, although few planners and decision‐…
The international trading of greenhouse gas permits (assigned amount units), under the Kyoto Protocol, which allows developed countries to meet their assigned amounts. See also emissions trading. …
An intergovernmental organization that was formed in 1973 by major oil‐consuming nations in order to manage the security of energy supply, economic growth, and environmental sustainability through energy. …
Up‐to‐date information on international environmental treaties, and on which countries have signed up to which treaties, can be found online at the FBI World Factbook web site (http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/appendix/appendix-c.html), on which this appendix is based. opened for signature 1 December 1959 entered into force 23 June 1961 objective to ensure that Antarctica is …
A major international programme of research that began in the early 1980s and was designed to describe and understand the interacting physical, chemical, and biological processes that regulate the Earth's environmental systems. It was established by the International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU) in 1986 , and its activities are focused on a series of core projects, which are the Internati…
A composite index of economic and social well‐being that can be used to show changes in human well‐being, based on a number of key variables including life expectancy, daily calorie intake, clean drinking water, infant immunization, secondary school enrolment, GDP per capita, rate of inflation, communications technology, political freedom, and civil rights. …
A non‐governmental research organization located near Vienna in Austria, that conducts interdisciplinary scientific studies on environmental, economic, technological, and social issues in the context of the human dimensions of global change. …
A non‐governmental organization based in Winnipeg, Canada, that advances policy recommendations on international trade, economic instruments, climate change, and natural resource management in order to make development sustainable. …
An independent binational organization established by the Boundary Water Treaty of 1909 , whose purpose is to help prevent and resolve disputes relating to the use and quality of boundary water between Canada and the USA. …
An intergovernmental body that is concerned with setting international standards in the marine environment, particularly to improve maritime safety and to prevent marine pollution. The IMO is responsible for a number of UN conventions on marine pollution?the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter ( 1972 ), the International Convention for the Prevent…
The movement (migration) of people or animals across a national border, from one country to another. Contrast internal migration. …
A network of national standards institutes from 145 countries. See also ISO 9000 , ISO 14001. …
An international organization made up of autonomous family planning associations (FPAs) in over 180 countries around the world, which are concerned with family planning and sexual and reproductive health. …
An international scientific organization that was founded in 1928 for the study of Quaternary geology, climate, biology, and anthropology. …
The open seas outside the territorial waters of any individual nation. Contrast internal waters, interstate waters. …
An international organization that was set up under the International Convention for the Regulation of Whales in 1946 in order to regulate the whaling industry and conserve whales. …
A period during which the climate is relatively dry, lasting for decades or longer, between pluvials. …
Estimating values between known numerical values, for example in order to draw an isopleth. Contrast extrapolation. …
1 An explanation of the meaning of data. 2 The provision of scientific and academic information about a site or area in formats (such as fixed signs) that are meaningful to non‐specialists and help people to understand and appreciate the natural and cultural heritage. …
Competition for resources between individuals of different species in a given community. Contrast intraspecific competition. …
A brief period of glacial retreat (deglaciation) caused by warming within a glacial stage. Contrast stade. …
A relatively short phase (50?200 years) of warmer climate within a glacial period; cooler and shorter than an interglacial. …
Pollution (such as acid rain) that moves across the borders between states within a country. Contrast trans‐frontier pollution. …
Bodies of surface water that flow across or form part of state or international boundaries, such as the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River. Contrast internal waters, international waters. …
The space between two or more objects, such as the pore spaces between the individual grains in a soil or rock. …
The zone of the shore that lies between the high and low water marks, which is submerged at high tide and exposed at low tide. …
The zone of converging trade winds along the equator, which causes rising air currents, low atmospheric pressure, and often a continuous band of clouds or thunderstorms. It provides the upward motion in the Hadley cell. …
In ecology, unable to withstand adverse environmental conditions such as shade or drought. Contrast tolerant. …
Competition for resources between members of the same species within a community. Contrast interspecific competition. …
A soil that is untypical of its climate zone because it has been strongly affected by more local factors such as topography and parent material. Contrast zonal soil, azonal soil. See also soil order. …
Inside, or belonging to something by its very nature. Also known as inherent . Contrast extrinsic. …
Ethical values or rights that exist as an intrinsic characteristic of a particular thing or class of things simply because of their existence. Also known as inherent value . Contrast acquired value, extrinsic value, instrumental value. …
A species that has been brought into an area where it does not naturally occur, outside its known historic range, usually by humans, and which is able to survive and reproduce. Also known as alien, exotic species, or non‐native species . See also invasive species, native species. …
A body of igneous rock that is formed by the injection of molten magma into pre‐existing rocks beneath the Earth's surface. Also known as a pluton . …
Molten magma that is forced into cracks between layers of other rock. Also known as plutonic . Contrast extrusive. …
The process of being covered with standing or slow‐moving water. See also flood. …
An aggressive introduced species which spreads and dominates its new location, competing with and often replacing native species and proving difficult to remove. Also known as invader . See also introduced species. …
A detailed list of items, such as the register of sources and sinks of greenhouse gases in a particular country. …
An increase in air temperature with height. This can cause a layer of warm air in the atmosphere that prevents the rise of relatively cool air, which traps pollutants beneath it and can cause an air pollution episode. See also advection inversion. …
An animal that has no backbone or spinal column. Examples include arthropods, insects, and molluscs. See also macroinvertebrate, microinvertebrate. Contrast vertebrate. …
In an artificial environment outside a living organism. Contrast in vivo. See also cryopreservation. …
Enclosed grassland that is located close to a farm. …
A non‐metallic halogen element that is required by humans in small amounts for healthy growth and development, and is often used in medicine as an antiseptic. It kills bacteria and prevents algal growth, is found naturally in seawater, and is necessary in small quantities for reef invertebrates such as corals and clams. …
An atom or group of atoms that has acquired an electric charge by the loss or gain of one or more electrons. …
A reversible chemical reaction between a solid and a solution by means of which ions of the same charge may be exchanged between the two. …
A common method for making hard water softer, based on adding calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide which increases pH to a level at which metalsprecipitate out. …
A force that holds together two electrically charged atoms (ions). …
A measure of the concentration and charge of ions in solution, which affects the solubility of compounds. …
High‐energy radiation (with wavelengths shorter than those of visible light, e.g. gamma rays, X‐rays, or ultraviolet) that is capable of causing ionization in the matter through which it passes and can damage living tissue. See also irradiation. …
The outer parts of the atmosphere, between about 60 and 1000 kilometres above the Earth, above the mesosphere. …
An equation (I = P ? A ? T) that was developed by Paul Ehrlich and John Holdren in 1972 to describe how impact (I) or environmental change is a function of population size (P), affluence (A), and technology (T). Although the I = PAT formula is a useful way of studying the relationship between factors that govern environmental change, critics have pointed to two important weaknesses in this …
Inventoried roadless area in US national forest lands, defined under the Roadless Area Review and Evaluation survey. …
Brilliant spots or borders of colours (most often red and green) that can be seen in high‐ or medium‐level clouds (particularly in thin cirrus clouds), which are caused by diffraction of light by small cloud particles. …
The prehistoric period of human culture which began in Europe around 1000 bc (after the Bronze Age), during which iron was the main material used for making tools and weapons. …
A malleable metal that occurs naturally and is the fourth most abundant element in the Earth's crust. It is a trace element (micronutrient) for plants and an essential nutrient for humans. …
A sedimentary rock that has a high iron content, usually more than 15%, as iron sulphide, oxide, carbonate, or silicate. …
A compound, whose proper name is iron (III) oxide, that consists of iron combined with oxygen, which forms the rust that is visible on iron or steel left exposed to oxygen and moisture in the air. See also laterization. …
Soil in which iron compounds have been washed from the upper horizon and deposited as a hardpan in a lower horizon. See also indurated. …
A US term for a close relationship between an agency, a congressional committee, and an interest group that can grow into a mutually advantageous alliance. …
Food that has been briefly exposed to radioactivity (usually gamma rays) on purpose, in order to kill insects, bacteria, and mould, and to allow storage without refrigeration. …
Exposure to ionizing radiation for medical purposes, to sterilize milk or other foodstuffs, or to induce chemical changes (such as the vulcanization of rubber). …
In conservation assessment, habitat features, biotopes, or species that cannot be replaced if they are destroyed in some way. …
Not retrievable, impossible to recover; a natural resource (such as a stream, fishery, wetland, or wildlife habitat) which would be lost forever as a consequence of a particular activity. One of the categories of impact that must be included in environmental impact statements in the US under the National Environmental Policy Act. The resource is irretrievable, but the action need not be irreversib…
Not reversible; a category of impact relating to non‐renewable resources, or actions that can be renewed only after a long period of time (such as loss of soil productivity), that must be included in environmental impact statements in the US under the National Environmental Policy Act. …
The application of water to land (by a sprinkler, ditch, or canal), particularly in an arid area, in order to supply the water and nutrients that plants need to grow properly. By 1990 about 15% of all the farmland in the world was irrigated, although the proportions varied from 6% in Africa to 31% in Asia. The total area under irrigation increased by more than a third between 1970 and 1990 , …
The amount of water that is stored in the crop root zone of a soil, compared with the amount of irrigation water that has been applied. …
Surface and subsurface water that leaves a field after irrigation water has been applied, and returns to the normal water cycle. …
A substance that produces an irritating effect when it comes into contact with the skin, eyes, nose, or respiratory system. …
An area of land, smaller than a continent, which is surrounded by water. …
A curved chain of volcanic islands that develops between an ocean trench and a continental landmass, and forms above the subduction zone at a convergent plate boundary. …
The study of the relationship between the area of an island and the number of species that live on it, based on the effect of factors such as rates of colonization, immigration, and extinction, and size, shape, and distance from other inhabited regions. See also equilibrium theory. …
See International Organization for Standardization. …
The international standard for environmental management systems and good environmental practices. See also Eco‐Management and Audit Scheme. …
A set of certification standards for quality management systems. …
A line on a weather map which connects points of equal atmospheric pressure, measured in millibars. …
1 A line on a map which connects points which have the same time or time interval. 2 In geology, a line of equal age on a graph. …
A line on a weather map which connects points of equal rainfall over a given period of time. …
A system that has no exchange of energy or matter across its boundaries. …
A chemical compound that has the same number and kinds of atoms as another compound, but a different structural arrangement of the atoms. …
A line on a map which connects points of a constant value, such as isobar, isochron, isohyet, isotach, or isotherm. Also known as isoline . …
The mechanism by which the lithosphere floats on the asthenosphere, with continents and mountains supported by low‐density ?roots? within the Earth's crust; changes such as loading and unloading by ice or water bodies, cause depression or rebound of the lithosphere. See also plate tectonics. …
The warping of part of the Earth's crust as a response to the redistribution of weight, for example associated with large‐scale glaciation and deglaciation. Also known as isostatic rebound . Contrast eustatic. …
A line on a weather map that connects points of equal wind speed. …
A line on a weather map that connects points of equal temperature. …
At a constant temperature, with height or through time. …
Two solutions, or a cell and a surrounding solution, which contain the same concentration of a dissolved substance. …
One of two or more atoms of the same element that have the same number of protons (and hence the same chemical properties) but a different number of neutrons and thus different atomic weights. …
A technique that is used to reconstruct past climate change, based on detailed analysis of the oxygen isotope composition of ice cores, the remains of marine organisms, and calcite deposits in caves. …
Identical in all directions. Contrast anisotropy. …
See Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act. …
Health problems in humans occurring as a result of cadmium poisoning, which causes softening of the bones and kidney failure. First observed in Japan in 1950 . …
Categories for the management of protected areas which were developed by the IUCN (World Conservation Union) and are widely used around the world. The ten categories are: Category I, Scientific Reserve/Strict Nature Reserve; Category II, National Park; Category III, Natural Monument/Natural Landmark; Category IV, Managed Nature Reserve/Wildlife Sanctuary; Category V, Protected Landscape or Seascap…
