APES - Unit 9

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)

Chemicals that can be used for cooling refrigerators and air conditioners

Montreal Protocol

Commitment by 24 nations to reduce CFC production by 50% by the year 2000; prioritized protection of the global biosphere over short-term economic self-interest

Global change

Change that occurs in the chemical, physical , and biological properties of the planet

Global climate change

Global change that is focused on changes in average weather that occurs in an area over a period of years or decades

Greenhouse effect

Absorption of infrared radiation by atmospheric gases and reradiation of the energy back toward Earth; allows life on Earth to exist

Greenhouse warming potential

Allows comparisons of global warming impacts of different gases; the larger the GWP number, the more that particular gas warms the Earth compared to CO2 over the same time period; provides a common unit of measure for GHGs

Ocean Acidification

Increases in ocean CO₂ creates more carbonic acid and lowers the pH of the ocean

Kyoto Protocol

1997, international agreement that sets goal for global emissions of GHGs from all industrialized countries to be reduced by 5.2% below 1990 levels by the year 2012; US did not sign the agreement

Clean Air Act

US Supreme Court ruled that EPA had authority to regulate GHGs as a part of the Clean Air Act; automakers increased fuel efficiency and reduce GHG emissions

Paris Climate Agreement

Pledge by 126 countries to keep global warming <2*C above pre-industrial levels