A ambient pollution level
the concentration of a pollutant measured in terms of pollutant quantity per volume of air, water, or soil.
C command-and-control policies
regulation policies that dictate standards or equipment, such as a policy that limits allowable automobile emissions or requires catalytic converters.
cumulative pollutant(s)/pollution
pollutants that do not significantly dissipate or degrade over time.
E economic efficiency
an allocation of resources that maximizes net social benefits; perfectly competitive markets in the absence of externalities are efficient.
emissions standards
regulations that set the maximum amount of pollutants that may be legally emitted by an industrial facility or product.
equimarginal principle
the concept that benefits are maximized when marginal benefits equal marginal costs, or when marginal costs of achieving a given goal by different methods are equalized.
F flow pollutant
a pollutant that has a short-term impact and then dissipates or is absorbed harmlessly into the environment.
G global climate change
the changes in global climate, including temperature, precipitation, and storm frequency and intensity, that result with changes in greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere.
global pollution/pollutant(s)
pollutants that can have global impact such as carbon dioxide and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).
grandfathering
a policy of exempting existing industrial facilities from complying with new environmental standards or regulations.
greenhouse gases
gases such as carbon dioxide and methane whose atmospheric concentrations influence global climate by trapping solar radiation.
I industrial ecology
the application of ecological principles to the management of industrial activity.
internalizing externalities
using approaches such as taxation to incorporate external costs and benefits into market decisions.
L local and regional pollutants
pollutants that cause damage only within the area where they are emitted.
M market-based pollution control
the use of market incentives to control pollution levels, such as pollution taxes or tradable permits.
N nonlinear or threshold effects
effects such as the health damage from a pollutant that do not increase linearly with the quantity of the pollutant.
nonpoint source pollution
pollution difficult to identify as originating from a particular source, such as groundwater contamination from agricultural chemicals used over a wide area.
nonuniformly mixed pollutants
pollutants that have different effects in different areas, depending on where they are emitted.
O optimal pollution (level)
the pollution level that maximizes net social benefits.
P point source pollution
pollution emitted from an identifiable source such as a smokestack or waste pipe.
pollution tax(es)
a per-unit tax based on the level of pollution.
S sink function
the environment’s ability to absorb and render harmless the by-products of human activity.
stock pollutant
a pollutant that accumulates in the environment, such as carbon dioxide and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).
T transferable pollution permits
tradable permits that allow a firm to emit a certain quantity of a pollutant.
U uniformly mixed pollutants
any pollutant emitted by many sources in a region resulting in relatively uniform concentration levels across the region.
W watershed management
the management of a watershed to preserve its ecological integrity; includes the management of agriculture, residential development, industry, and other human activities.
