| A | B |
|---|
| algal bloom | A rapid increase in the population of algae in an aquatic system such as the ocean. |
| carbon emissions trading | A government-regulated approach to control pollution by making companies pay more money if they produce too many carbon emissions. |
| drought | An extended period of months or years when a region has less water than usual. |
| fauna | All the animal life in a particular region or destination. |
| flora | All the plant life in a particular region or destination |
| glacial retreat | When a glacier decreases in size and is replaced by moraines, or the rocks and debris left over from a glacier. Moraines are used by scientists to determine how much the glacier has shrunk. |
| glacier | A large, slow-moving mass of ice formed from compacted layers of snow that slowly deforms and flows in response to gravity, high pressure, and temperature changes. |
| global climate change | the gradual warming of the earth most scientists believe to be the result of human-made emissions of greenhouse gases. |
| greenhouse gases | Gases, such as carbon dioxide and methane, that produce a greenhouse effect by holding the sun’s heat within the atmosphere, the way a greenhouse holds heat nearer to plants |
| HAB | Abbreviation for “harmful algal bloom.” |
| hurricane | A tropical cyclone, or storm system, characterized by a large low-pressure center and numerous thunderstorms that produce strong winds, flooding rain, and storm surges. |
| polar ice cap | A high latitude region of the earth that is covered in ice. Scientific research suggests that the extent of the polar ice cap is diminishing, which many attribute to global warming. |
| red tide | A layperson’s term for a natural phenomenon known to scientists as a harmful algal bloom, or HAB. HABs can create large-scale marine mortality and have been associated with various types of shellfish poisonings. Warmer water temperatures due to climate change may be one factor that has led to an increase in red tides that affect coastal communities in recent years. |
| sea-level rise | The average sea level around the world is trending upwards. This is happening for several reasons, including regional geological movements and global climate change. This rate is increasing mainly as a result of human-induced global warming; measurements from the period 1993–2003 indicated a mean rate of 3.1 mm/year, as opposed to around 1.8 mm per year for the past century. Many scientists believe that global warming will continue to increase sea level for at least the coming century. |
| vector-borne disease | An illness transmitted to humans or other animals by an insect or other arthropod. Global climate change may lead to increased temperatures and humidity, which may cause a higher level of vector-borne disease |
| wetland | An area of land whose soil is saturated with moisture either permanently or seasonally |
