Word Example sentence Meaning

acid rain noun Burning fossil fuels in one country rain that contains harmful chemicals
can cause acid rain in other that collect in the atmosphere when
countries. fossil fuels are burned

ban verb Our school has banned plastic To not allow something (eg. smoking,
bottles because they're so bad for alcohol, plastic bags, protest marches,
the environment. etc.)

carbon dioxide (CO2) Trees and plants absorb carbon a gas that's released when carbon is
noun dioxide and release oxygen into burned (for example coal or oil), or
the air. when people or animals breathe out

carbon footprint noun Traveling by air, driving a car, or a measurement of the amount of
using coal-generated electricity carbon dioxide a person adds to the
will make your carbon footprint atmosphere
bigger.

carcinogen noun Cigarette smoke contains a a substance that has been linked to
number of carcinogens. causing one or more types of cancer

carpool verb I carpool to work with two of my to share a car instead of driving one
neighbors who also work alone
downtown.

clear-cut verb Forests never recover fully after to destroy a forest by cutting down all
being clear-cut. the trees

clearcutting (also Did you know that clearcutting is a forestry or logging practice in which
clear-felling) noun the worst way to use a forest's most or all trees in an area are cut
resources? down

climate change noun Do you really think you know global changes in temperature, wind
more about climate change than patterns, rainfall, etc. mainly caused by
a real climate scientist? the burning of fossil fuels like coal and
oil

compost verb Since we started composting to put organic waste like vegetable
we've reduced our garbage by peels, uneaten food, grass clippings and
half. leaves into a large container that
breaks it down into healthy soil

commute verb Imagine how much pollution you to travel from home to work and back
cause by commuting by car for
two hours a day?
conservation noun Conservation wasn't a big issue the protection and preservation of
until the book Silent Spring was natural environments and resources
published in 1966.

consume verb Americans consume more than to use things like energy, fuel,
their share of the earth's materials, food, water, etc.
resources.

contaminated adj. Their contaminated milk powder carrying harmful bacteria or toxins that
made lots of babies really sick. can cause disease or death

developing country We moved our factory to a a poor nation that's gradually becoming
noun developing country because of richer and more advanced
cheap labor and weak
environmental laws.

domestic waste (also How much domestic waste does rubbish or garbage from a house or
household waste) your family produce every day? apartment
noun

donate verb If you donate money to to give money or goods to an

Greenpeace, you'll be helping organization you want to help or
endangered animals. support

dump verb You can be sent to jail for to put waste in the wrong place (eg. put
dumping hazardous waste, you toxic waste into a river)
know.

eco-community or Our kids want to live in that eco- a community with environmentally-
ecovillage noun community near the forest. friendly buildings, clean technology and
renewable energy like solar and wind

endangered species Every year more animals are animals or plants in danger of
noun listed as endangered species. becoming extinct or disappearing in the
near future

energy-efficient adj. Those energy-efficient light bulbs able to use less energy (esp. of vehicles,
are much cheaper these days. appliances, buildings, etc.)

environmentalist Fossil fuel companies have tried a person who protects the natural
noun to damage the image of world and educates others about
environmentalists and climate environmental problems
scientists.

ecosystem noun All those plants, insects and birds the complex system of relationships
in your garden are part of an between living things and their
ecosystem. environment
emit verb Cars emit harmful pollutants into To release or project something (eg.
the atmosphere. light, sound, smoke, gas, radiation, etc.)

extinct adj. Lots of Australian animals have no longer existing or lost forever (of an
become extinct since the British animal, bird, or plant species)
took control.

fertilize verb If you are going to fertilize your to add chemicals or organic material to
lawn, make sure to use an organic the soil so that plants grow better
fertilizer.

food chain noun We need to know where each the order in which organisms in an
species fits in the food chain. ecosystem eat one another

fossil fuel noun Burning fossil fuels is a major a fuel like oil or coal formed from very
cause of global warming. old plant and animal fossils

global warming (also Rising sea levels, melting ice caps higher air and sea temperatures are
climate change) noun and coral reef bleaching are partly caused by man-made increases
caused by global warming. in greenhouse-gas levels

green adj. If you want to save the planet, concerned with protecting the natural
join one of the green political environment and the planet
parties.

greenhouse gas noun The more greenhouse gases we a gas in the atmosphere that stops heat
produce, the worse climate from escaping into space
change will get.

habitat noun Lots of animals will become the place in which a species normally
extinct if their natural habitats lives
are destroyed.

hazardous waste They increased their profits by dangerous substances that need careful
noun dumping hazardous waste into disposal (e.g. toxic or nuclear waste)
the ocean.

minimize verb Taking public transport instead of to reduce as much as possible

driving a car minimizes your
impact on the environment.

pesticide noun Can't we find a pesticide that's a chemical that's sprayed on crops to
safe? stop insects from destroying them

pollutant noun The Environmental Protection a substance or material that damages

Agency checks levels of the natural environment
pollutants.
pollute verb Fumes from factories pollute our to release waste substances into the
air. air, water, and soil

pollution noun All the pollution around here the contamination of the environment,
comes from factories and mines. esp. by industrial waste products and
chemicals like pesticides

preserve verb We need stronger laws in order to to keep something in its original state
preserve our forests.

protect verb It's really important to protect to keep from harm

our water supply.

protest verb Environmentalists will protest if to show you disagree with something,
the loggers try to destroy the esp. as part of a group of protesters
forest.

recycle verb The green bin are for things that to make something new from materials
can be recycled like paper and that have been used before
glass.

reduce verb You can reduce your household to use less or make something smaller
waste by buying products with
less packaging.

reforestation noun Plant twenty trees in our the planting of trees and plants to help
reforestation project and you'll a damaged or destroyed forest recover
get into our dance party for free!

renewable adj. We're producing cheaper can be used without running out, esp.
renewable energy these days. of energy sources like solar and wind

renewables noun If you want to make money, forms of energy that can be replaced
invest in renewables. naturally, such as hydro-electricity,
solar energy and wind power

rely on verb We won't have to rely on power to depend on (or need) someone or
companies if we use solar and something
wind power instead.

reuse verb We try to reuse things like plastic to use again

bags and bottles.

self-sufficient adj. We're going to live in a self- able to function, or produce all that's
sufficient farming community. needed, without outside help
smog noun The smog was so bad that we had a thick dirty cloud at ground level
to wear air-filter masks. caused by pollutants reacting to
sunlight

throw away verb Don't throw away your grass to get rid of something you don't want
clippings; leave them on your
lawn.

toxic adj. After the mine released toxic Deadly or poisonous (of waste,
waste into the river, all the fish chemicals, pollutants, etc.)
died.

toxin (toxic chemical) Smoke from factories often a poisonous substance that damages
noun contains dangerous toxins. health or the environment

use up verb We are using up the earth's to use something until there's none left
natural resources faster than
ever.

waste verb Don't waste toilet paper; use one to use more than necessary, or to use
or two sheets instead of three or inefficiently
four.

wildlife noun I love taking pictures of wildlife in animals, birds, insects, etc. living
the forest. naturally in the wild

zero-emission adj. Zero-emission vehicles like releasing no greenhouse gases like

electric cars are much cheaper carbon dioxide or methane
now.