e as fuel) without
planting new growth.

Desertification - the spread of desert-like conditions in arid or semi-
arid areas, due to overgrazing, loss of agriculturally productive
soils, or climate change.

Dredging - the practice of deepening an existing waterway; also, a
technique used for collecting bottom-dwelling marine organisms (e.g.,
shellfish) or harvesting coral, often causing significant destruction
of reef and ocean-floor ecosystems.

Drift-net fishing - done with a net, miles in extent, that is generally
anchored to a boat and left to float with the tide; often results in an
over harvesting and waste of large populations of non-commercial marine
species (by-catch) by its effect of "sweeping the ocean clean."

Ecosystems - ecological units comprised of complex communities of
organisms and their specific environments.

Effluents - waste materials, such as smoke, sewage, or industrial waste
which are released into the environment, subsequently polluting it.

Endangered species - a species that is threatened with extinction
either by direct hunting or habitat destruction.

Freshwater - water with very low soluble mineral content; sources
include lakes, streams, rivers, glaciers, and underground aquifers.

Greenhouse gas - a gas that "traps" infrared radiation in the lower
atmosphere causing surface warming; water vapor, carbon dioxide,
nitrous oxide, methane, hydrofluorocarbons, and ozone are the primary
greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere.

Groundwater - water sources found below the surface of the earth often
in naturally occurring reservoirs in permeable rock strata; the source
for wells and natural springs.

Highlands Water Project - a series of dams constructed jointly by
Lesotho and South Africa to redirect Lesotho's abundant water supply
into a rapidly growing area in South Africa; while it is the largest
infrastructure project in southern Africa, it is also the most costly
and controversial; objections to the project include claims that it
forces people from their homes, submerges farmlands, and squanders
economic resources.

Inuit Circumpolar Conference (ICC) - represents the 145,000 Inuits of
Russia, Alaska, Canada, and Greenland in international environmental
issues; a General Assembly convenes every three years to determine the
focus of the ICC; the most current concerns are long-range transport of
pollutants, sustainable development, and climate change.

Metallurgical plants -