Environmental Science and Policy Review

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering waste management, agricultural practices, soil science, pesticide impacts, climate change dynamics, and environmental economics based on the provided lecture transcript.

Open dumping

The most basic and often earliest form of waste disposal, requiring little transportation but potentially releasing hazardous material into the environment.

Sanitary landfill

Engineered facilities where waste is dumped in layers, compacted daily with dirt, and lined with clay or plastic to protect the environment.

E-waste

Electronics that have been discarded as waste, often exported from developed to developing nations where they can cause heavy metal poisoning.

Hazardous waste

Discarded material containing substances known to be fatal, toxic, carcinogenic, teratogenic, ignitable (flash point < $60^\circ C$), corrosive, or explosive.

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)

The federal legislation that provides the legal designation for hazardous waste and establishes management standards like cradle-to-grave tracking.

Superfund sites

Places considered by the EPA to be seriously contaminated with identified hazardous wastes, managed under CERCLA.

Brownfields

Contaminated properties that have been abandoned or are not being used to their full potential because of pollution concerns.

Bioremediation

A process where microorganisms are used to detoxify hazardous substances.

Phytoremediation

The usage of specialized plants to remove toxins from the ground.

Extensification

Increasing the amount of land used for agriculture.

Intensification

Increasing the yields from existing agricultural lands.

Monocropping

Growing a single crop year after year on the same land, characteristic of modern industrial agriculture with low biodiversity.

Undernourishment

The consumption of insufficient calories, leading to a lack of energy and potential muscle wasting.

Malnourishment

A diet lacking in one or more essential nutrients, such as iron, Vitamin A, or iodine.

Metabolic syndrome

A triad of obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease often associated with overeating.

Norman Borlaug

Known as the "Father of the Green Revolution" for developing higher-yielding cultivars through hybridization.

Cisgenic

Genetic engineering involving the transfer of genes between organisms that could naturally breed or hybridize.

Transgenic

Genetic modification where genes from unrelated organisms are introduced into a target species.

CRISPR-CAS9

A technology used for gene editing that allows for cheap and precise modification of individual genes or sequences.

Loam

An ideal agricultural soil mixture consisting of roughly 40% sand, 40% silt, and 20% clay.

Bioturbation

The working and mixing of soils by organisms, which increases gas and water flow.

Desertification

Soil degradation resulting from intensive agriculture and overgrazing in marginal lands, leading to the expansion of deserts.

Conservation tillage

A method where parts or all of the field are left undisturbed after harvest, such as leaving stems and roots in place.

Terracing

The creation of step-like platforms on steep slopes to slow water runoff and trap soil.

Bioaccumulation

The process by which substances like DDT are accumulated inside animal bodies rather than being passed through the digestive tract.

Biomagnification

The concentration of toxins like DDT through food chains, resulting in higher doses for organisms at higher trophic levels.

Pest resurgence

A phenomenon where resistant individuals survive a pesticide and repopulate with more resistant offspring, also known as the pesticide treadmill.

Weather

The short-term, localized conditions of the troposphere at a given location and instant in time.

Climate

The long-term average patterns and variability of weather conditions over an extended region, typically representing 30 years of data.

Albedo

The percentage of incoming solar radiation reflected by a surface without being absorbed.

Forcings

Causes or drivers of climate change, which can be exogenous (solar output) or endogenous (fossil fuel emissions).

Feedbacks

Processes that either amplify (positive) or diminish (negative/stabilizing) the effects of a climate forcing.

Carbon sinks

Places where biological, chemical, or physical processes take up more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than they release.

Ocean acidification

The process where excess atmospheric $CO_2$ dissolves in seawater to form carbonic acid ($H_2CO_3$), reducing available carbonate ions for marine life.

Economics

The study of how people allocate scarce resources that have alternative uses to fulfill unlimited wants.

Negative externalities

Consequences of production or consumption, like pollution, that are not reflected in the market price of a good.

Sustainability

Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Inelastic product

A good that people will buy regardless of price changes because it is essential, such as gasoline.

Natural capital

Ecosystem services such as water filtration, soil creation, and nutrient cycling that provide value to society.

Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI)

An economic metric that adjusts GDP by subtracting costs of crime and pollution while adding values for non-monetary benefits like volunteer work.

IPAT Equation

A formula ($I = P \times A \times T$) used to determine environmental impact based on Population, Affluence, and Technology.

Cap and Trade

A market-based system where governments set a limit on emissions and issue tradable permits to companies.