This glossary gives a general description of many terms and acronyms used within our courses.
We've also added many terms which may be of further interest.
Browse the glossary using this index
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3 Pillars of Sustainability: The 3 pillars of sustainability are environmental quality, social justice and well being, and economic prosperity. If an activity is carried out that ignores one of these 3 pillars then it cannot be considered sustainable. For example a large construction project may provide shelter for people and economic growth for an area but if this is at the expense of the natural environment and pollution occurs then this is unsustainable as that pollution could cause harm to the local people, to wildlife, and eventually to the economy through having to clean the pollution up |
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Abiotic Resources: Resources which are considered abiotic and therefore not renewable. Zinc ore and crude oil are examples of abiotic resources. |
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Abnormal operations: Any activity/situation that is distinctly different to normal operating conditions but which is intended and under control.
Examples might include start-up and shutdown processes of major equipment overhauls. It is important that the environmental aspects of such situations are evaluated and environmental management applied to them. |
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Acid Rain: Rain that is acidic due to the emissions of gases of nitrogen oxide and sulphur dioxide that reacts with water vapour in the atmosphere to cause acid water droplets
 Image source: WikiCommons |
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Acidification: The process whereby air pollution, mainly Ammonia, Sulphur dioxide and Nitrogen oxides, is converted into acid substances. |
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Action Research: The collecting of information to bring about social change, eg. to get data to expose environmental dangers and recommend actions for change. |
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Active Waste: Any waste which has the potential to undergo physical, chemical or biological changes when disposed of to landfill e.g. timber, plastic, paper, municipal waste etc |
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Adaptable Buildings: Buildings that can be easily remarketed, retrofitted, or reconfigured to better meet the changing needs of occupants, maintenance, and the larger community. |
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Advanced Sustainable Performance Index (ASPI): ASPI Eurozone lists the top 120 Euro zone companies in terms of sustainable development performance. These companies are rated by the French agency Vigeo, according to 6 socially responsible criteria. |
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Afforestation: Afforestation is planting seeds or trees to make a forest on land which has not been a forest recently, or which has never been a forest. |
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