Glossary of Terms

Carbon Dioxide (C02) - a naturally occurring gas that is also a by-product of burning fossil fuels and biomass. C02 is released into the atmosphere during land-use changes and other industrial processes and is the principal human- caused greenhouse gas that affects the Earth's radiative balance.

Carbon Footprint - the total amount of greenhouse gases that are emitted into the atmosphere each year by a person, family, building, organization, or company. A person's carbon footprint includes greenhouse gas emissions from fuel that an individual burns directly, such as by heating a home or riding in a car. It also includes greenhouse gases that come from producing the goods or services that the individual uses, including emissions from power plants that make electricity, factories that make products, and landfills where trash gets sent.

Carbon Neutral - refers to offsetting or sequestering (capturing) as much carbon as is emitted thereby achieving net-zero carbon dioxide emissions. An example is the practice of intentional reforestation or replanting trees after land has been cleared for development.

Carbon Offset - tradable “rights” or certificates linked to activities that lower the amount of carbon dioxide (C02) in the atmosphere. By buying these certificates, a person, group, or business can fund projects that fight climate change instead of taking actions to lower their own carbon emissions. An example of a carbon offset project is reforestation.

Carbon Sinks - any reservoir, natural or otherwise, that accumulates and stores carbon for an indefinite period and thereby lowers the concentration of CO2 from the atmosphere. Globally, the two most important carbon sinks are forests/vegetation and the oceans.

Circular Economy - A circular economy is a model of production and consumption that involves sharing, leasing, reusing, repairing, refurbishing and recycling existing materials and products for as long as possible. It is a change to the linear economy model in which resources are mined, made into products, and then become waste. A circular economy reduces material use, redesigns materials, products, and services to be less resource intensive, and recaptures “waste” as a resource to manufacture new materials and products.

Climate Change - any significant change in the measures of climate to include major changes in temperature, precipitation, or wind patterns that occur over several decades or longer. Though there have been previous periods of climatic change, since the mid-20th century and over the last 50 years, humans have had an unprecedented impact on Earth's climate system and have caused change on a global scale.

Composting - a natural process in which macro- and micro-organisms break down organic materials such as leaves, grass, and vegetable scraps to form a rich, soil-like substance. The resulting compost is a dark, rich, organic material that when added to soil, provides nutrients to plants, conserves water, and prevents soil erosion.

Deforestation - the clearing, destroying, or otherwise removal of trees through deliberate, natural, or accidental means. The loss of trees and other vegetation contributes to air pollution, climate change, desertification, soil erosion, fewer crops, flooding, increased greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, loss of habit life (80% of land animals and plant species live in forests), and many other negative impacts. Just four commodities—beef, soy, palm oil, and wood products—drive the majority of tropical deforestation.

Desertification - the process by which fertile land becomes degraded desert, typically as a result of drought, deforestation, or unsustainable agriculture practices that include over tilling soil, monoculture (repetitive single crops), livestock production (over-cultivation, overgrazing, forest conversion), and overuse of chemical fertilizers and pesticides.

Drawdown - Drawdown is the future point in time when levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere stop climbing and start to steadily decline. This is the point when we begin the process of stopping further climate change and averting potentially catastrophic warming. It is a critical turning point for life on Earth.

Eco-Friendly Lifestyle - an awareness of one's interdependent relationship with the natural world expressed through daily living choices and behaviors that promote sustainable and healthy planetary life. These choices include the conservation and preservation of natural resources; green purchasing that promotes fair trade, low waste, toxic free, biodegradable, and organic practices; and waste management that involves reducing, reusing, recycling, and composting waste.

Ecosystems - a geographic area where plants, animals, and other organisms, as well as weather and landscapes, interact to produce a stable system through the cyclic exchange of materials.

Global Warming - the long-term heating of Earth's climate system due to human activities, primarily fossil fuel burning, which increases heat-trapping greenhouse gas levels in the Earth's atmosphere.

Greenhouse Gas - any gas that absorbs infrared radiation in the atmosphere resulting in trapped heat that contributes to global warming. Examples of greenhouse gases are carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and hydrofluorocarbon.

Habitat - the natural home or environment of an animal, plant, or other organism. With a growing global population and human overconsumption, the world's forests, swamps, plains, lakes, and other habitats continue to disappear as they are harvested and cleared to make way for agriculture, housing, roads, pipelines and the other hallmarks of industrial development.

Hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) - a potent greenhouse gas produced synthetically and used primarily as refrigerants. HFCs capacity to warm the atmosphere is 1,000 to 9,000 times greater than that of carbon dioxide, depending on their exact chemical composition.

LED light bulbs - LED is the acronym for Light Emitting Diode -an energy-efficient light bulb that uses 85%-90 % less energy and lasts 15-20 times longer than traditional incandescent bulbs.

Methane (CH4) - Per the United Nations Economic Commission, "Methane is a powerful greenhouses gas with a 20-year global warming potential 80 times that of CO2. Measured over a 20-year period, that ratio grows to 84-86 times. About 60% of global methane emissions are due to human activities. The main sources of anthropogenic methane emissions are the oil and gas industries, agriculture (including fermentation, manure management, and rice cultivation), landfills, wastewater treatment, and emissions from coal mines. Fossil fuel production, distribution and use are estimated to emit 110 million tons of methane annually.

Nitrous Oxide (N2O) - a powerful greenhouse gas with a global warming potential of 298 times that of carbon dioxide (CO2). Major sources of nitrous oxide include soil cultivation practices, especially the use of synthetic fertilizers, fossil fuel combustion, nitric acid production, and biomass burning.

Overshoot (ecological) - Ecological overshoot is the phenomenon which occurs when the demands made on a natural ecosystem exceed its regenerative capacity. Overshoot is a product of excessive consumerism occurring predominately in developed nations where natural resources are being consumed faster than they can be naturally replenished.

Paris Climate Agreement - a landmark international accord that was adopted by nearly every nation on Earth in 2015 to address climate change and its negative impacts. The agreement aims to substantially reduce global greenhouse gas emissions in an effort to limit the global temperature increase in this century to 2, preferably to 1.5 degrees Celsius, above preindustrial levels. The agreement includes commitments from all major emitting countries to cut their climate pollution and to strengthen those commitments on or before 2050.

Permaculture - the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive systems which have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems. It is the harmonious integration of the landscape with people providing their food, energy, shelter and other material and non-material needs in a sustainable way as defined and formulated by Bill Mollison, an Australian researcher, author, scientist, teacher and biologist. Permaculture originally came from "permanent agriculture", but was later adjusted to mean "permanent culture."

PFAS - polyfluoroalkyl substances also known as "forever chemicals," are a group of man-made chemicals that include PFOA, PFOS, Gen X, and an estimated 5,000 types of PFAS that remain largely unregulated by the federal government. PFAS have been manufactured and used by industries worldwide since the 1940s, and are found in products such as non-stick cook ware, fast food containers, stain and water resistant coatings, and flame retardants. PFAS don’t break down easily, can accumulate in the environment and in the human body, and can lead to adverse human, plant, and animal health effects.

Recycle - to reprocess a resource so it can be used again. Recycling extracts valuable materials from items that might otherwise be considered trash and turns them into new products as well as conserves natural resources required to make and transport them. An example of recycling is collecting aluminum cans, melting them down, and using the aluminum to make new cans or other aluminum products. Common recyclable resources include paper, glass, aluminum, plastic, cardboard, and food waste.

Reduce - lowering your consumption or buying less. Reducing consumption can apply to physical objects as well as natural resources, such as gas, electricity and water. Cutting back on unnecessary purchases lowers the rate at which materials are used, but also effectively lowers the energy, gas, and transportation costs that are accrued when an item is made and sold. An example of reducing waste is switching from paper billing, magazines, newspapers, and books to the on-line version thereby reducing paper consumption, deforestation, and greenhouse gas emissions.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Compost (3RC) - the waste management hierarchy that indicates the order of priority for action to reduce and manage waste. Reuse - refers to finding new uses for items rather than throwing them away; donating or buying previously used products; and using reusable items such as cloth versus paper or plastic grocery bags. Reuse precedes recycling in the waste management hierarchy because it saves the energy required to dismantle and re-manufacture products.

Resiliency - a capability to anticipate, prepare for, respond to, and recover from significant multi-hazard threats with minimum damage to social well-being, the economy, and the environment.

Sustainable - a development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. In the 21st century, it refers generally to the capacity for Earth's biosphere and human civilization to co-exist. There are three pillars of sustainability: social equity, environmental protection, and economic viability. These principles are also informally used as people, planet, and profit.

Federal, State, & Local Government

Speak up for the environment! Contact your government officials and ask them to support the things you care about. They are there to represent you and your concerns matter.

Offices:

United States President - 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW. Washington, DC 20500. (202) 456-1414

North Carolina Governor - 20301 Mail Service Center Raleigh, NC 27699-0301. (919) 814-2000

North Carolina Senator Budd - 222 Sunset Avenue, Suite 101, Asheboro, NC 27203. (336) 610-3300

North Carolina Senator Tillis - 1694 E Arlington Blvd #B, Greenville, NC 27858. (202) 224-6342

Fayetteville, North Carolina Mayor - 433 Hay Street Fayetteville, NC 28301. (910) 433-1992

Fayetteville, North Carolina City Council Members - 433 Hay Street Fayetteville, NC 28301. (910) 433-1635