front 1 carbon footprint | back 1 how much carbon dioxide is produced because of a person's activities or lifestyle EXAMPLE: I reduced my carbon footprint by buying an electric car and by putting solar panels on my house. These things do not create carbon dioxide. |
front 2 convert | back 2 (verb) to change the appearance, form, or purpose of something EXAMPLE: When you recycle a plastic bottle, it can be converted into carpeting or into fabric for clothes. |
front 3 disposable container | back 3 a bottle or box that is used once and is thrown away EXAMPLE: I love ordering take-out food, but I don't like the way the food comes in disposable containers. I hate all that trash! |
front 4 natural resource | back 4 a material that exists in nature and can be used by people EXAMPLE: Water, wood, and coal are examples of natural resources, which people can use. |
front 5 significant | back 5 important or noticeable EXAMPLE: A significant drawback of driving a gas-powered vehicle is the production of carbon dioxide. |
front 6 conserve | back 6 (verb) to not waste something EXAMPLE: Let's conserve energy! Turn off lights when you leave the room and turn the thermostat down to 65 degrees when you go to bed. |
front 7 dump | back 7 (verb) to put something down or drop it in a careless way EXAMPLE: The factory did something horrific. It dumped toxic chemicals in the river. This killed thousands of fish! |
front 8 environmentally friendly | back 8 good for the environment EXAMPLE: An environmentally friendly thing to do is riding a bike instead of driving. |
front 9 excuse | back 9 (verb) to forgive someone or something EXAMPLE: My neighbor said something really rude to me. Later she excused her behavior by telling me she had had a headache. I don't think that reason is good enough. She owes me an apology. |
front 10 facility | back 10 a building where a particular activity happens EXAMPLE: The recycling facility is where they recycle plastic, glass, and paper. |
front 11 guilt | back 11 a feeling you have because you did something wrong EXAMPLE: The man often felt guilt when he spent money on cigarettes. |
front 12 incinerator | back 12 a device for burning things that are no longer wanted EXAMPLE: Before recycling became popular, trash was often burned in an incinerator. |
front 13 landfill | back 13 the place where trash is buried in the ground EXAMPLE: After they pick up the trash at my home, they take it to the landfill. |
front 14 material | back 14 a physical substance that things can be made from EXAMPLE: Wood is an example of a building material. Fabric is material we use to sew clothes. Oil is the raw material we use to make plastic. |
front 15 planet | back 15 an extremely large, round mass that moves in a circular path around the sun EXAMPLE: Earth, Venus, and Jupiter are examples of planets. |
front 16 recycle (verb) recycling (noun) | back 16 to collect and sort trash so it can be used again EXAMPLE: On their walk at the park, the boys collected trash. They were able to recycle the plastic and glass bottles. The rest had to be thrown in the trash. |
front 17 reuse | back 17 (verb) to use something again EXAMPLE: We reuse our grocery bags. |
front 18 sort | back 18 (verb) to separate things into groups EXAMPLE: Please sort this silverware. Put the spoons in one pile, the forks in another pile, and the knives in a third pile. |
front 19 tap water | back 19 water that comes from a faucet EXAMPLE: We can reduce our carbon footprint by drinking tap water instead of bottled water. In the United States, tap water is clean and safe to drink. |
front 20 overconsumption | back 20 using too much EXAMPLE: Dining at a buffet restaurant can lead to overconsumption. You can take as much food as you want! |