Algae – Simple rootless plants that grow in sunlit waters in proportion to the number of available nutrients. They can affect water quality adversely by lowering the dissolved oxygen in the water.
Carbon footprint – A measure of the impact our activities have on the environment, especially climate change, often reported as the units of tonnes (or kg) of carbon dioxide each of us produces over a given period.
Carbon monoxide (CO) – A colourless, odourless gas that can be harmful when inhaled in large amounts. CO is released when something is burned. The greatest sources of CO to outdoor air are cars, trucks, and other vehicles or machinery that burn fossil fuels.
Dioxins – Highly toxic chemicals that can be formed in small amounts from forest fires or volcanoes but more often are produced unintentionally from industrial activities and from incinerating waste and burning fossil fuels.
Dumping – Disposing of waste illegally by not using bins or official recycling centres, civic amenity sites or landfills.
Emissions – In the context of the atmosphere, gases or particles released into the air that can contribute to global warming or poor air quality.
Hazardous waste – Waste that poses a risk to human health or the environment and needs to be handled and disposed of carefully. Examples include oil-based paints, car batteries, weed killers, bleach and waste electrical and electronic devices.
Incinerator – A furnace that is designed to burn waste at very high temperatures under controlled conditions and is licensed by national regulatory authorities. Most modern and efficient incinerator generates heat and energy from burning waste.
Inversion – An atmospheric condition where a layer of cooler air is trapped near the ground by a layer of warmer air above.
Landfill – A site that is specially designed to dispose of waste and operates with a licence granted by local authorities, monitors landfills around the country for emissions.
Oil spill- The harmful release of oil into the environment, usually through water, which is very difficult to clean up and often kills birds, fish, and other wildlife.
Waste management- The management of waste collection, handling, processing, storage, and transport from where it is produced to where it is finally disposed of.
