Environmental Science

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energy efficiency

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Is using less energy to provide the same level of energy service. For example, insulating a home allows a building to use less heating and cooling energy to achieve and maintain a comfortable temperature.

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entropy

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A measure of the loss of information in a transmitted signal or message.

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energy resources

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Are discovered to be hydro, solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, coal, crude oil, natural gas, and ocean-wave motion and are used to produce power.

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fuels

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Material such as coal, gas, or oil that is burned to produce heat and power.

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fossil fuels

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A natural fuel such as coal or gas, formed from dead and decaying organisms trapped underneath layers of sediments or rocks

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nuclear fuel

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Nuclear fuel is any material that can be consumed to derive nuclear energy, by analogy to chemical fuel that is burned to derive energy. Nuclear fuels are the most dense sources of energy available to humans.

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biofuels

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A fuel derived directly from living matter.

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renewable energy sources

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Is energy generated from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable. (Naturally replenished)

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non-renewable energy sources

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Is a natural resource which cannot be produced, re-grown, regenerated, or reused on a scale which can sustain its consumption rate. These resources often exist in a fixed amount, or are consumed much faster than nature can recreate them.

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electricity

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1) A form of energy resulting from the existence of charged particles (such as electrons or protons), either statically as an accumulation of charge or dynamically as a current. 2) The supply of electric current to a house or other building for heating, lighting, or powering applicances.

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base load demand (on energy requirements)

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Is the energy normally required, on average, for typical use over a period of time, the owner we need to operate households, factories and businesses every day.

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peak energy demand

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Is the highest usage- for example, when everyone turns on their air conditions on a hot day.

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ultra-violet radiation

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The radiation found in the Suns rays beyond the violet part of the visible spectrum. It can be harmful to both plant and animal life.

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infra-red radiation

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The heat energy that is emitted from all solids, liquids and gases. In the context of the greenhouse issue, the term refers to the heat energy emitted by the Earths surface and its atmosphere.

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visible light

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Electromagnetic radiation that can produce a visual sensation. E.g. the light was filtered through a soft glass window.

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atmosphere

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The envelope of gases surrounding the earth or another planet.

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troposphere

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The lowest region of the atmosphere, extending from the earth’s surface to a height of about 6-10 km (the lower boundary of the stratosphere).

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the greenhouse effect

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Warming that results when solar radiation is trapped by the atmosphere; caused by atmospheric gases that allow sunshine to pass through but absorb heat that is radiated back from the warmed surface of the earth.

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the enhanced greenhouse effect

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The natural greenhouse effect has been enhanced by anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases. Increased concentration of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide and other photo chemically important gases caused by human activities such as fossil fuel consumption.

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global warming

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1)The gradual increase in the overall temperature of the earth’s atmosphere due to the greenhouse effect caused by increased levels of carbon dioxide, chorofluorocarbons, and other pollutants. 2) Long-term significant change in the climate of an area or of the earth, usually seen as resulting from human activity.

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albedo

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The proportion of the incident light or radiation that is reflected by a surface, typically that of a planet or moon.

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carbon sinks

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Processes that remove more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than they release. Land and the sea can act as carbon sinks.

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emission trading

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Emissions trading is an administrative approach used to control pollution by providing economic incentives for achieving reductions in the emissions of pollutants.