CH 13: Environmental problems

Question 1

mix precipitation with air pollutants

Answer 1

Acid rain

Question 2

The diversity of living organisms on earth

Answer 2

biodiversity

Question 3

Material derived from plants and animals

Answer 3

Biomass

Question 4

exposure to coal dust

Answer 4

Black lung disease

Question 5

free-market, incentives to power plants and other industries for reducing carbon emissions.

Answer 5

Cap and trade programs

Question 6

Particular species that have popular appeal, such as the panda, polar bear, monarch butterfly, and bald eagle, and that are used to draw public attention to larger environmental issues.

Answer 6

Charismatic megafauna

Question 7

Establishes the first-ever federal limits on carbon emissions from U.S. power plants, establishing state-by-state targets for carbon emissions reductions and allowing states flexibility in how to meet these targets.

Answer 7

Clean power plan

Question 8

A well-funded and aggressive misinformation campaign run by the fossil fuel industry and its allies that involves attacking and discrediting climate science, scientists, and scientific institutions.

Answer 8

Climate denial machine

Question 9

People who do not accept the scientific consensus that human-caused global warming and climate change are scientific facts.

Answer 9

Climate deniers

Question 10

Small-scale solar farms designed to support the power needs of a group of households.

Answer 10

Community solar gardens

Question 11

When ocean water becomes too warm, coral will expel algae, causing the coral to turn white.

Answer 11

Coral bleaching

Question 12

The view that maintaining the Earth’s natural systems should take precedence over human needs, that nature has a value independent of human existence, and that humans have no right to dominate the Earth and its living inhabitants.

Answer 12

Deep ecology

Question 13

The conversion of forestland to nonforestland.

Answer 13

Deforestation

Question 14

The degradation of semiarid land, which results in the expansion of desert land that is unusable for agriculture.

Answer 14

Desertification

Question 15

Discarded electrical appliances and electronic equipment.

Answer 15

E-waste

Question 16

The approximate date on which humanity’s annual demand on the planet’s resources exceeds what our planet can renew in a year.

Answer 16

Earth overshoot day

Question 17

A biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving, physical components of the environment such as air, water, soil, and sunlight, that interact to keep the whole ecosystem functioning.

Answer 17

Ecosystem

Question 18

The use or threatened use of illegal force by groups or individuals in order to protect environmental and/or animal rights.

Answer 18

Ecoterrorism

Question 19

The demands that humanity makes on the Earth’s natural resources.

Answer 19

Environmental footprint

Question 20

Also known as environmental racism, the tendency for marginalized populations and communities to disproportionately experience adversity due to environmental problems.

Answer 20

Environmental injustice

Question 21

Hydraulic fracturin involves injecting a mixture of water, sand, and chemicals into drilled wells to crack shale rock and release natural gas into the well.

Answer 21

Fracking

Question 22

Energy produced from the heat deep within the Earth; produced from the slow decay of radioactive particles deep within the inner core of the Earth.

Answer 22

Geothermal energy

Question 23

The increasing average temperature of the Earth’s atmosphere, water, and land, caused mainly by the accumulation of various gases (greenhouse gases) that collect in the atmosphere.

Answer 23

Global warming

Question 24

Also known as clean energy—energy that is nonpolluting and/or renewable, such as solar power, wind power, biofuel, and hydrogen.

Answer 24

Green energy

Question 25

The accumulation of gases in the Earth’s atmosphere, which then acts like the glass in a greenhouse, holding heat from the sun close to the Earth.

Answer 25

Greenhouse effect

Question 26

The increasing average temperature of the Earth’s atmosphere, water, and land, caused mainly by the accumulation of various gases (greenhouse gases) that collect in the atmosphere.

Answer 26

Global warming

Question 27

Also known as clean energy—energy that is nonpolluting and/or renewable, such as solar power, wind power, biofuel, and hydrogen.

Answer 27

Green energy

Question 28

The accumulation of gases in the Earth’s atmosphere, which then acts like the glass in a greenhouse, holding heat from the sun close to the Earth.

Answer 28

Greenhouse effect

Question 29

The gases (primarily carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide) that accumulate in the atmosphere and act like the glass in a greenhouse, holding heat from the sun close to the Earth.

Answer 29

Greenhouse gases

Question 30

College and university funds that are dedicated to financing cost-saving energy-efficiency upgrades and other projects that decrease resource use and minimize environmental impacts.

Answer 30

Green revolving funds (GRFS)

Question 31

The way in which environmentally and socially damaging companies portray their corporate image and products as being “environmentally friendly” or socially responsible.

Answer 31

Greenwashing

Question 32

A largely unconscious belief that humans are the masters of creation rather than just one species among millions. Also known as anthropocentrism.

Answer 32

Human supremacy

Question 33

The first international agreement to place legally binding limits on greenhouse gas emissions from developed countries.

Answer 33

Kyoto protocol

Question 34

Artificial lighting that is annoying, unnecessary, and/or harmful to life forms on Earth.

Answer 34

Light pollution

Question 35

A process of coal mining in which the tops of mountains are dynamited and removed to access coal seams below.

Answer 35

Mountaintop removal

Question 36

Also known as “environmental illness,” a condition whereby individuals experience adverse reactions when exposed to low levels of chemicals found in everyday substances.

Answer 36

Multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS)

Question 37

Opposition by local residents to a proposed new development in their community, also known as NIMBY.

Answer 37

Not in My Backyard” (NIMBY)

Question 38

An international agreement which calls for the countries of the world to work together to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to ward off what could become extinction-level global warming and climate change.

Answer 38

Paris climate accord

Question 39

An international agreement which calls for the countries of the world to work together to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to ward off what could become extinction-level global warming and climate change.

Answer 39

Paris climate accord

Question 40

The perception that a product is obsolete; used as a marketing tool to convince consumers to replace certain items even though the items are still repairable.

Answer 40

Perceived obsolescence

Question 41

The manufacturing of products that are intended to become inoperative or outdated in a fairly short period of time.

Answer 41

Planned obsolescence

Question 42

A grassroots movement of individuals and groups that employs unconventional and often illegal means of protecting wildlife or the environment.

Answer 42

Radical environmental movement

Question 43

Large solar arrays owned by utility companies to contribute to their electricity supply, which is then sold to consumers. Also known as solar parks.

Answer 43

Solar farms

Question 44

A process of coal mining by which large machines are used to remove topsoil and layers of rock to expose coal less than 200 feet underground.

Answer 44

Strip mining

Question 45

The balancing point at which all human beings can live healthy, equitable, and peaceful lives without degrading our natural environment.

Answer 45

Sustainable development

Question 46

Large, naturally occurring deposits of sand, clay, water, and a dense form of petroleum that looks like tar.

Answer 46

Tar sands

Question 47

Oil that results from converting tar sands into liquid fuel. It is known as the world’s dirtiest oil because producing it requires energy, generates high levels of greenhouse gases, and leaves behind large amounts of toxic waste.

Answer 47

Tar sands oil