Chapter 7-9 Vocab 8.ESS.1 Flashcards
(20 cards)
Deforestation
Large -scale cutting and/or burning of forest
Global warming
Rise in Earth’s average surface temperature during the past 100 years
Greenhouse gas
A gas in the atmosphere that absorbs Earth’s outgoing infrared radiation
Greenhouse effect
Natural process that occurs when certain gases in the atmosphere absorb and reradiate thermal energy from the Sun
Bioindicator
Organism that is sensitive to environmental conditions and one of the first to respond to changes
Nonpoint-source pollution
Cannot be traced to one location
POINT-SOURCE POLLUTION
Can be traced to one location
Water quality
Chemical, biological, and physical status of a body of water
Carrying capasity
Largest number of individuals of a given species that Earth’s resources can support and maintain for a long period of time
Population
All the members of a species living in a given area
Resource
Natural source of supply or support
Dessertification
Development of desertlike conditions due to human activities and/or climate change
Reclamation
The process of restoring land disturbed by mining
REFORESTATION
Planting trees to replace trees that have been cut or burned down
Runoff
Portion of precipitation that moves over land and eventually reaches streams, rivers, lakes and oceans
Urban sprawl
Development of land near a city to build houses and other buildings
Acid precipitation
Rain or snow that has a lower pH than that of normal rainwater
Air quality index (aqi)
Scale that ranks levels of ozone and other air pollutants
Particulate matter
Mix of solid and liquid particles in the air, including smoke, dust and dirt
Photochemical smog
Type of air pollution that occurs when nitrogen and carbon compounds, released by the burning of fossil fuels, react in sunlight
