CIE IGCSE Environmental Management - Key Terms

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts from the CIE IGCSE Environmental Management syllabus, focusing on rocks, minerals, energy, agriculture, water, oceans, natural hazards, atmospheric pollution, and human population.

The rock cycle

A representation of the changes between the three rock types and the processes causing them.

Igneous rocks

Made when liquid magma cools to form solid rock.

Magma

Molten rock below the surface.

Lava

Molten rock when it reaches the surface.

Extrusive igneous rock

If the rock cools quickly, small crystals are formed e.g. basalt.

Intrusive igneous rock

If the rock cools slowly, large crystals are formed e.g. granite.

Sedimentary rocks

Formed by the weathering of existing rocks at the Earth’s surface; fossils may be present.

Sediments

Small particles of rocks that accumulate into layers and get pressurized.

Metamorphic rocks

Formed from existing rock when heat and/or pressure causes changes in the rock crystals without melting it.

Prospecting

A process of searching for minerals by examining the surface of the rocks.

Remote sensing

A process in which information is gathered about the Earth’s surface from above.

Geochemical analysis

Analyzing the chemical properties of rocks (by taking samples).

Geophysics

Method to identify mineral ores present in rocks using their physical properties.

Surface mining

Includes open-cast (open-pit, open-cut) and strip mining.

Open-pit mining

Used when a valuable deposit is located near the surface; building materials such as sand, gravel and stone are removed from open pits called quarries.

Strip mining

Used to mine a seam of mineral; the overburden (overlying rock and soil) is removed as a thin strip; mainly used to mine coal.

Sub-surface mining

Includes deep and shaft mining.

High-grade ores

Ores that yield more of the required chemical elements.

Low-grade ores

Ores that yield less of the required chemical elements.

Supply and demand

Relation between how much of a commodity is available and how much is needed or wanted by the consumers.

Bioaccumulation

Organisms absorb ions and retain them in their body, reaching concentrations higher than that in water.

Biomagnification

The concentrations increase higher up in the food chain and cause the death of top consumers.

Bioremediation

A process of removing pollutants from waste using living organisms.

In situ treatment

Treatment of contaminated waste where it’s left.

Ex situ treatment

Removal of contaminated waste from a site to a treatment plant.

Landfilling

The waste is tipped into a hole; from time to time it is leveled off and compacted.

Sanitary landfilling

As in landfilling, the waste is used to fill the hole, but alternating layers of waste and sand are used.

Sustainable resource

A resource that can be continuously replenished e.g. agriculture, forestry, etc.

Sustainable development

Development that meets the needs of the present, without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Fossil fuels

Carbon-based fuels, formed over many millions of years ago from the decay of living matter.

Turbine

A machine, often containing fins, that is made to revolve by gas, steam, or air (it is connected to a generator).

Generator

A machine that converts mechanical energy into electrical energy.

Fracking

Obtaining oil or gas from shale rock by splitting them open using water, sand, and chemicals.

MARPOL (Marine Pollution)

International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships.

Precipitation

Moisture that reaches the surface in the form of rain, sleet, snow, or hail; rain is the most common type.

Surface run-off

Precipitation that flows over the ground surface, eventually finding its way into streams and rivers.

Interception

Precipitation that doesn’t reach the Earth’s surface due to being obstructed by trees and plants.

Infiltration

Precipitation soaks into sub-surface soils and moves into rocks through cracks and pore spaces.

Through-flow

Downslope movement of water through the soil, roughly parallel to the ground surface.

Ground water flow

Slow horizontal movement of water through rock.

Evaporation

Water from oceans, seas, and other water bodies is changed from water droplets to water vapor (invisible gas) in the atmosphere due to heat.

Transpiration

Evaporation or diffusion of water from plant leaves.

Condensation

Water vapor converted back into liquid (water droplets) or solid (particles of ice) due to a decrease in temperature with increasing height by air currents, e.g., clouds.

Surface water

Water in lakes, rivers and swamps.

Ground water

Water in the soil, and in rocks under the surface of the ground.

Aquifers

Water stored in porous rocks under the ground.

Artesian aquifer

An aquifer in which the water is under pressure; water from a well sunk into an artesian aquifer will rise to the surface without the need for a pump.

Potable

Safe to drink.

Reservoirs

An artificial lake used as a source of water supply, usually created behind a dam or by the side of a river (bank-side reservoir).

Service reservoir

A reservoir where potable water is stored e.g. Water tower and Cistern.

Desalination

Removal of salt from seawater.

Physical water scarcity

Not enough water to meet both human demands and those of ecosystems to function effectively.

Economic water scarcity

Caused by a lack of investment in water infrastructure or insufficient human capacity to satisfy the demand of water in areas where the population cannot afford to use an adequate source of water.

Sewage

Waste matter that is rich in organic matter, thus microbial organisms can thrive in it.

Agrochemicals

Pesticides, herbicides and fertilisers.

Bioaccumulation

Accumulation of a toxic chemical in the tissue of a particular organism.

Eutrophication

Increase in nutrients, such as nitrates and phosphates, in a water body causes algae bloom (rapid growth of algae).

Improve sanitation

Separates human excreta from contact with humans, achieved by toilets and latrines.

Sewage outfall

Waste water from homes and industries is taken to a sewage treatment plant in sewers.

Screening tank

Large objects are removed from the waste using a coarse grid.

Screening tank

Large objects are removed from the waste using a coarse grid.

Cholera

Intestinal infection that causes severe diarrhea that may lead to dehydration and eventually death.

Water-bred disease

The carrier breeds in water and spreads the disease by biting its victims.

Malaria

A life-threatening disease which is transmitted through the bite of an infected Anopheles mosquito (vector) that carries the Plasmodium parasite; once bitten, the parasite reaches your bloodstream.

Sand, gravel and crushed rock mining

Physical damage caused to seabed and associated habitats if care is not taken; fine particle clouds that are produced resettle and interfere with photosynthesis, they also act as a source of heavy metals that can enter food chains.

Bulk carriers

Ships that transport of food such as rice and wheat.

Container ships

Ships where the entire load is carried in lorry-sized containers, known as containerization.

Tankers

Ships that transport of fluids, especially liquefied petroleum gas and liquefied natural gas; transport of vegetable oils and wine.

Refrigerated ships

Ships that transport of perishable items such as vegetables, fruits, fish and dairy products.

Roll-on/roll-off ships

Ships that transport of vehicles, together with their loads, that can be driven on and off the ship.

Coastal trading vessels

Vessels used for trade between places that are close together, especially in island groups.

Ferries

Used mainly for the movement of foot passengers, sometimes with their cars, mainly between islands or between mainland and islands.

Cruise ships

Ships used for pleasure voyages where the facilities on the ship are a crucial part of the trip.

Ocean liner

Ships used to transport people from one port to another.

Surface currents

Movement of the surface water of the sea in a constant direction.

Prevailing wind

The direction from which the wind nearly always blows in a particular area.

Upwelling

Areas where minerals at the ocean floor are brought up to the surface by currents.

Overfishing

When the number of fish that is caught is greater than the rate at which the fish reproduce, leading to a fall in fish numbers in an area.

El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO)

The change in the prevailing winds that leads to change in the pattern of currents in the oceans of the South Pacific; warm nutrient-poor water comes into the region from the equator.

Mariculture

Aquaculture practiced in marine environments e.g. closed section of an ocean, tanks, ponds and raceways filled with seawater.

Trawl net

Net that catch all types of unwanted species and damage the seabed during their use.

Drift net

Net that drifts with the current and are not anchored; often used in coastal waters.

Seine net (including purse seine)

Net that hangs like a curtain in the water; a variant called the surrounding net is often used.

Dredge net

Net dragged along the seabed, mainly to catch shellfish and other types of fish living in the mud; they dig into the seabed with teeth or water jets.

Richter

The volume of Earthquakes is measured using a seismometer on the scale.

Earthquake

A sudden shaking of the ground caused by movements of the Earth’s crust.

Epicenter

The point on the Earth's surface directly above the focus of an earthquake.

Seismic waves

Vibrations caused by an earthquake.

Seismometer

An instrument that records the intensity, duration, and direction of ground movements; measure the magnitude (strength) of an Earthquake.

Magnitude

Measure of energy release during an earthquake.

Intensity

Measures the amount of damage an earthquake causes.

Mercalli scale

Scale that measures intensity.

Volcano

Any opening on the Earth’s surface where magma comes out; a mountain or hill with a crater through which molten rock, gas, and rock fragments erupt.

Magma

Molten rock under the surface of the Earth.

Lava

Molten rock that has reached the Earth's surface.

Vent

An opening in the Earth’s surface through which molten rock and gases erupt.

Crater

A bowl-shaped depression at the top of a volcano.

Tropical cyclone

Violent and destructive swirling wind; a localised and highly destructive weather system producing winds of up to 500 km per hour.

Climate

The atmospheric condition which is characterised the average temperatures and rainfall occur over a long period; typical or average weather conditions.

Weather

The conditions in the atmosphere on any particular day.