Definitions - s

A solid waste disposal area that protects the environment from leachate.

Any organism, esp a fungus or bacterium, that lives and feeds on dead organic matter.

A type of vertical axis wind turbine that uses half-drum shaped blades to catch the wind and turn a shaft. These generally produce high torque but at low speed, so good for water pumping but they are occasionally used for producing electricity.

The principles and empirical processes of discovery and demonstration considered characteristic of or necessary for scientific investigation, generally involving the observation of phenomena, the formulation of a hypothesis concerning the phenomena, experimentation to demonstrate the truth or falseness of the hypothesis, and a conclusion that validates or modifies the hypothesis.

A Second Order Consumer is a consumer in a food chain that consumes the First Order Consumers. They in turn can be consumed by a Third Order Consumer and so on.

Wastewater tanks in which floating wastes are skimmed off and settled solids are removed for disposal.

Underground tank for treatment of wastewater from a home in rural and suburban areas. Bacteria in the tank decompose organic wastes and the sludge settles to the bottom of the tank. The effluent flows out of the tank into the ground through a field of drainpipes.

Settled Science is a phrase often encountered in newspapers and press reports, usually associated with climate change articles and reports. Settled Science is used to indicate that the science of climate change is 'settled' and therefore further discussion on the point is pointless as the underlying science is so strong as to not require any more discussion.

The real problem is that proper science is never 'settled' rather it moves and advances as new findings are made, even when what was effected was considered solid fact (like the Earth being flat and the center of the universe). Therefore to say any science is settled is a gross misrepresentation of the process, rather the results of current science can be said to at best to be in 'general agreement' for a theory or law that has been around for many years (i.e. it has survived many competing theories or ideas). In this regard, given the relative infancy of climate science compared to the other science fields, it is hard to say anything is in long term general agreement; rather there are several competing theories or mind sets in play that come and go as more research is done.

Carbon Pollution refers to the human produce Co2 that is meant to be harming the environment.

Oil obtained from bituminous shale, most often by a technique called fracking.

Building whose occupants experience acute health and/or comfort effects that appear to be linked to time spent therein, but where no specific illness or cause can be identified. Complaints may be localized in a particular room or zone, or may spread throughout the building.

Smart Eco refers to the usage of computerization and ecologically focused system design to create locally grouped and controlled environments that have a reduced impact on the global environment. Examples of Smart Eco Design include: computer controlled irrigation systems that monitor weather conditions to minimize water usage; consumer appliances that are aware of power availability and adjust accordingly, and environmental controls that use passive design techniques to maintain a stable temperature.

A smart eco home is one which is designed to minimize its environmental impact through its lifetime. This includes the process of building and material selection. 

Smart grid is an umbrella term to describe new energy grid technologies that provide utilities, grid operators, and energy consumers with real time information on energy use and the ability to automatically manage energy supply and demand.

For example, advanced smart grids allow energy firms to reduce demand on the grid by automatically turning off non-essential appliances, such as washing machines or electric car rechargers, during periods of peak demand.

The technology also provides energy users with real time information on how much power being used at a given time, and enables grid operators to more easily draw on energy from micro-generation technologies, such as solar panels or small wind turbines.

Also known as the "energy internet", smart grids are regarded as essential to improving energy efficiency and supporting the roll out of electric cars and micro-generation technologies.

A smart meter is a form of electricity consumption meter that is able to measure your electricity usage in multiple time bands and is computer based. Also they will usually support 'feed in' measurement of locally generated electricity back into the electrical supply grid; i.e. any spare electricity generated by solar panels.

Used widely as a major ingredient in cosmetics, skin care products, toothpaste, shampoos and other foaming products. Industrial uses of SLS include garage floor cleaners, engine degreasers and car wash soaps. SLS is also used in testing-labs as the standard skin irritant to compare the healing properties of other ingredients.

According to the American College of Toxicology, both SLS and SLES can cause malformation in children's eyes. Other research has indicated SLS may be damaging to the immune system and may cause potentially carcinogenic nitrates and dioxins to form in the bottles of shampoos and cleansers by reacting with commonly used ingredients found in many products. Also, large amounts of these nitrates may enter the blood system from just one shampooing. Studies have indicated that SLS easily penetrates through the skin and enters and maintains residual levels in the heart, the liver, the lungs and the brain.

The average amount of solar radiation that reaches the earth's upper atmosphere on a surface perpendicular to the sun's rays; equal to 1353 Watts per square meter or 492 Btu per square foot.

A Solar Conversation is basically the act of fitting Solar system to a property to utilize the Sun directly, such as fittings Solar Panels and Solar water heating. In addition this could cover fitting indirect solar systems, such as roof space heat recovery systems.

The use of solar thermal energy or solar electricity to power a cooling appliance. Photovoltaic systems can power evaporative coolers ("swamp" coolers), heat-pumps, and air conditioners.

Carbon is the chemical element with symbol C and atomic number 6. As a member of group 14 on the periodic table, it is nonmetallic and tetravalent—making four electrons available to form covalent chemical bonds. There are three naturally occurring isotopes, with 12C and 13C being stable, while 14C is radioactive, decaying with a half-life of about 5730 years. Carbon is one of the few elements known since antiquity. The name "carbon" comes from Latin language carbo, coal.

See the full entry on wikipedia

A solar grove is basically a set of solar panel arrays  so installed as to allow the ground under them to be used as shade. For instance with an open car park this allows electricity to be generated whilst keeping the cars below cool, so saving on air conditioning costs for each car.

A solar hot water system consists of a collector, heat transfer circuit and hot water storage system. These can either be combined into one system or into 3 separate components depending on your exact needs. There are many different commercial suppliers.

See Solar Water heating, how it works and the options available article for more information.

Solar Panel Efficiency is a percentage measure of how Solar Energy from the Sun hitting a solar panel is ideally converted into useful electrical power. This is often given assuming perfect conditions; i.e. no shade, maximum sun and cool. In practice the actual rate of conversion can be somewhat different due to:

• Shading - even partial shading can have a dramatic effect on the energy produced.
• Heat - the hotter a solar panel becomes the less efficient it is at converting solar energy into electrical energy.
• Sun Strength - akin to shading, but if the Sun is behind clouds or low in the sky you will get dramatically less power.
  

Solar Power Generation is the act of using a system that is powered by the Sun to produce typically electrical power.

Carbon Footprint refers to the the total greenhouse gas emissions that result from a person, organization, product or service over a given time.

It tends to act as an umbrella term for any attempt to measure greenhouse gas emissions and as a result can refer to simply the emissions that result from a single activity, such as flying; the emissions that result from an organization or building over the course of a year; or the full lifetime emissions of a product or organization, including emissions from the supply chain or disposal of resources.

While carbon footprints colloquially refer to the amount of CO2 emitted, the UK Carbon Trust endorses a wider definition and considers all six of the Kyoto Protocol greenhouse gases - Carbon dioxide, Methane, Nitrous oxide, Hydro fluorocarbons, Perfluorocarbons, and Sulfur hexafluoride - when measuring a carbon footprint.

The amount of solar insolation a site receives, usually measured in kWh/m2/day, which is equivalent to the number of peak sun hours.

Carbon is the chemical element with symbol C and atomic number 6. As a member of group 14 on the periodic table, it is nonmetallic and tetravalent—making four electrons available to form covalent chemical bonds. There are three naturally occurring isotopes, with 12C and 13C being stable, while 14C is radioactive, decaying with a half-life of about 5730 years. Carbon is one of the few elements known since antiquity. The name "carbon" comes from Latin language carbo, coal.

See the full entry on wikipedia

A device designed to receive solar radiation and convert it into thermal energy. Normally, a solar thermal collector includes a frame, glazing, and an absorber, together with the appropriate insulation. The heat collected by the solar thermal collector may be used immediately or stored for later use.

A Solar Water Pump is a water pump which is solely powered by Solar Panels, so as a result only runs during the day. This typically used for raising water into a holding tank to then allow water to distributed by gravity as needed, such as water from a well or river.

A method of separation used to purify vegetable oils.

Items such as household hazardous waste, bulky wastes (refrigerators, pieces of furniture, etc.) tires, and used oil.

Energy generated by a stand-alone system is stored in batteries and then subsequently used. Also known as “off-grid,” these systems are not connected to the utility grid.

The capacity of a battery, in amp-hours, compared to its weight or volume. Measured in watt-hours per kilogram or watt-hours per litre.

Second layer of the atmosphere, extending from about 19 to 48 kilometers (12 to 30 miles) above the earth's surface. It contains small amounts of gaseous ozone (O3), which filters out about 99 percent of the incoming harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Most commercial airline flights operate at a cruising
altitude in the lower stratosphere.

Particulate matter that consists of compounds of sulfur formed by the interaction of sulfur dioxide and sulfur trioxide with other compounds in the atmosphere. Sulfate aerosols are injected into the atmosphere from the combustion of fossil fuels and the eruption of volcanoes like Mt. Pinatubo. Recent theory suggests that sulfate aerosols may lower the Earth's temperature by reflecting away solar radiation (negative radiative forcing). General Circulation Models which incorporate the effects of sulfate aerosols more accurately predict global temperature variations.

Sun Orientation refers to the alignment of a building or structure with respect to the transit of the Sun across the sky. The orientation determines which walls or windows receive light during the day. This is an important factor in passive solar building design.

You can read more about passive solar and Sun orientation in this article .

Insulating a building to minimize the amount of heat that can escape from (or, in a hot climate, enter) a building.

One of the new generation of glazing technologies, superwindows are double or triple-glazed window sandwiches which contain a center sheet of coated mylar "low-emissivity' film and are filled with argon or krypton gas. This construction and the coatings on the film allows short-wave radiation (visible light) to pass through, but reflects long-wavelength radiation (infrared or heat) so heat can- not pass through. R-values of 4.5 or more are achieved.

Sustainable energy refers to energy sources which are in themselves sustainable; e.g. they are not considered finite.

Typically these consist of: Hydro, solar, wind, biomass, geothermal and tidal.

Note: it is important when considering the technologies that utilize sustainable energy sources that the total lifetime cost is fully considered (e.g. from manufacturer, deployment, ongoing maintenance, to final disposal). Although the energy source many not be finite, the lifetime of operation of the technology to access them is finite and this should be considered. Basically there is no point in picking a sustainable energy source using a technology which requires constant maintenance or replacement, there is no net benefit to the environment or the consumer of the energy (higher costs and less reliable).

Sustainable tourism is where the operator and resort or service provider have made steps to ensure the act of tourism has minimal impact on the local environment and society.

This is often a bit of mixed blessing as sustainable tourism and 'eco tourism' has often been applied to businesses which are not really all that eco at the end of day. So therefore do make the effort to double check all claims and validate any recommendations.

The amount of a naturally self-reproducing community, such as trees or fish, that can be harvested without diminishing the ability of the community to sustain itself.

A swale is a low tract of land, especially one that is moist or marshy. The term can refer to a natural landscape feature or a human-created one. Artificial swales are often designed to manage water runoff, filter pollutants, and increase rainwater infiltration.

See Wikipedia entry

A chemical absorbed by an organism that interacts with the organism and makes the organism toxic to pests.