APES - Entire Year

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

Point Source

Distinct location from which pollution is directly produced

Nonpoint Source

Diffuse area that produces pollution; large number of relatively small contributors to pollution spread over large area

Homeostasis

Ability to experience relatively stable internal conditions within an organism’s body; organisms have an ideal range tolerance that allows them to maintain _____

Lead

Water passing through pipes

Arsenic

Mining, contamination of water sources

Mercury

Burning coal, incinerating garbage/medical/dental waste; deposition in waterways

Pesticides

Agricultural industries

Pharmaceuticals and hormones

Untreated wastewater in streams, rivers

Military Compounds

Perchlorates enter air, water, soil near rocket launching sites; consumption of contaminated food, water

Industrial Compounds

Industrial dumping into rivers

Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs)

Used to manufacture plastic and insulate electrical transformers

Neurotoxins

Chemicals that disrupt nervous systems of animals

Carcinogens

Chemicals that cause cancer

Mutagens

Carcinogens that cause damage of the genetic material of a cell

Teratogens

Chemicals that intefere with the normal development of embryos or fetuses

Allergens

Chemicals that cause allergic reactions/trigger unnecessary immune response

Endocrine disruptors

Chemicals that interfere with the normal functioning of hormones in an animal’s body

Wastewater

Water produced by livestock operations, sewage & gray water

Vacuum pumps

Contain spill within an area (plastic barriers) & use giant vacuums to suck up oil off surface of water; absorbent materials used in shallow water

Dispersals

Chemicals that break up & disperse oil before it reaches shorelines; can sometimes be toxic to marine life

Burning

Light it on fire; burns away large amounts quickly, also dangerous and destructive

Genetically engineered bacteria

Use bacteria that consume oil as an energy source to “eat” oil spill; needs more research

Levee

An enlarged bank built up on each side of a river to prevent flooding

Dikes

Structures built to prevent ocean waters from flooding nearby land; common in places with large areas of land below sea level

Dams

A barrier that runs across a river or stream to control the flow of water

Fish Ladder

Stair-like structures with water flowing over them, allowing migrating fish to get around a dam

Aqueduct

Canals, ditches or pipes used to carry water from one location to another; typically remove water and transport to a place where it is needed

Desalination

Process for obtaining fresh water by removing the salt from salt water

Distillation

Boil water, capture steam, condense steam to yield pure water; salt is left behind in the boiling process

Reverse Osmosis

Water forced through thin, semipermeable membrane at high pressure

Wetlands and Mangroves

Areas with standing water or water-saturated soil

Eutrophication

Excess nutrients from human activities get into waterways, cause nutrient pollution that alters food web & harms water quality

Algal Blooms

Too much N/P in water source causes increased fertility & abundance of algae → some algae produce harmful toxins that poison water source; algae eventually dies/decomposes (uses up a lot of oxygen); water source becomes oxygen deficient (hypoxic)

Oxygen Sag Curve

The relationship of oxygen concentrations to the distance from a point source of decomposing sewage or other pollutants

Thermal pollution

Occurs when humans cause a substantial change in the temperature of a water body

Thermal shock

Dramatic change in temperature that can kill many species

Persistence

The length of time a chemical remains in the environment; depends on factors like pH, whether it’s in water or soil, how it gets degraded; measured in half-lives

Persistent organic pollutant

Synthetic carbon-based molecules that break down very slowly

PCBS

Once used to manufacture plastic & insulate electrical transformers

PFAS

Synthetic organic chemicals used to create nonstick surfaces as well as stain/fire/water resistant items

Routes of exposure

Ways in which individuals might come in contact with an environmental hazard or harmful chemical

Solubility

How well a chemical can dissolve in a liquid

Bioaccumulation

Selective absorption & concentration of a chemical within an organism over time

Biomagnification

Increase in chemical concentration in animal tissues as the chemical moves up the food chain

Solid waste

Waste produced by humans that is not liquid/gas & does not pose a toxic hazard to humans/other organisms

Municipal solid waste

Everyday items used and thrown away; collected by municipal authorities (i.e. garbage collectors) in cities/towns

Waste stream

Flow of solid waste that is recycled, incinerated, placed in a landfill or disposed of in another way

Electronic waste

Small fraction of MSW; many contain toxic materials that can leach out into environment; many not designed to be dismantled/repaired (more difficult to recycle)

Open landfills

Large holes in ground for waste; not regularly covered with soil

Closed landfills

Burying waste with soil

Leachate

Liquid containing elevated levels of pollutants due to having passed through the solid waste of a landfill

Sanitary landfills

Facility designed to hold MSW with as little environmental contamination as possible

Tipping fees

Fee charged for waste delivery; truck tip solid waste into landfill or incinerator

Incineration

Burning waste materials to reduce volume/mass; sometimes can generate electricity/heat

Ash

Residual inorganic material that does not combust during incineration

Waste-to-energy

Utilizing heat produced during incineration process as an energy source

Hazardous waste

Liquid, solid, gaseous, or sludge waste material that is harmful to living things

Brownfields

Contaminated industrial/commercial sites that may require environmental cleanup before they can be developed or expanded

Source Reduce

Waste management that promotes cutting waste by reducing the use of potential waste materials in the early stages of design & manufacture

Reuse

Using a product or material that would otherwise be discarded; item can be used longer before becoming waste

Recycle

Process that converts items destined to become MSW into raw materials that are then used to produce new objects

Closed loop

Recycling a product into the same product

Open loop

Recycling a product into a different product

Composting

Breakdown of organic materials into organic matter

Life-cycle analysis

System that examines materials used/released throughout lifetime of a product

Integrated waste management

Approach that employs a variety of strategies to reduce costs and environmental impact of MSW

Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD)

The amount of oxygen microorganisms need to break down organic materials in water

Cultural eutrophication

Increase in the fertility of a body of water as a result of anthropogenic inputs of nutrients

Fecal coliform bacteria

Microorganisms living in the intestines of mammals & birds; indicator species for harmful microorganisms associated with freshwater contamination from sewage

Septic system

Small simple treatment system often found in rural homes

Septic tank

Large container for wastewater from the household

Sludge

Solid waste material from wastewater; settles out over time

Septage

Layer of fairly clear water in the middle of the septic tank

Leach field

Underground pipes; drain septage into surrounding soil for final filtration

Tertiary treatment

Physical & chemical treatments that break down nutrients released in when organic matter is broken down

Dose-Response Studies

Studies that expose animals/plants to different amounts of a chemical and then looks for a variety of possible responses (mortality, behavior, reproduction)

Acute Studies

Short term study

Chronic Studies

Long term study

LD50

the dosage concentration that kills 50% of the individuals in a study

Sublethal Effects

dosage that doesn’t kill an organism but does impair behavior, physiology, or reproduction

ED50

Dosage that causes 50% of individuals to show harmful but nonlethal effects

No-Observed-Effect Level (NOEL)

Highest dosage that causes no lethal or sublethal effects

Environmental Hazard

Anything in the environment that can potentially cause harm

Quantitative Risk Assessment

Based on actual data, calculated with this equation: risk = (probability of being exposed to hazard)x(probability of harm from exposure)

Innocent Until Proven Guilty Principle

A principle based on the belief that a potential hazard should not be considered an actual hazard until the scientific data definitively demonstrate that it actually causes harm

Precautionary Principle

A principle based on the belief that when a hazard is plausible but not yet certain, we should take actions to reduce or remove the hazard

Stockholm Convention

A 2001 agreement among 127 nations concerning 12 chemicals to be banned, phased out, or reduced

REACH

A 2007 agreement among the nations of the European Union about regulation of chemicals; the acronym stands for registration, evaluation, authorization, and restriction of chemicals

Qualitative Risk Assessment

Based on perception and feelings; no numerical value; vary based on each individual

Retrospective studies

Monitoring groups of people who have been exposed to environmental hazards then comparing them to unexposed groups