Carbon emissions
See Greenhouse gas emissions
Carbon footprint
The quantified amount of carbon dioxide (or CO2e) released into the atmosphere as a result of the activities of a particular individual, organization, or community.
Carbon neutral
A situation where the amount of carbon dioxide or CO2e released into the air equals the amount of CO2e removed from the air. For example: by planting trees or offsetting through renewable energy production. This could be achieved by an individual, company, or group.
Chemical recycling
The operations that aim to chemically degrade collected plastic waste into its monomers or other basic chemicals. The output could then be reused for polymerization into new plastics for the production of other chemicals or as an alternative fuel.
Circular economy
An industrial economy that promotes resource efficiency as an alternative to the traditional linear economy of “take, make, use, dispose” production. The circular economy aims to extract maximum value from each resource used, at each stage in its lifecycle, then to recover and reuse these materials at the end of the resources’ serviceable life.
Climate change
Climate change is a large-scale, long term shift in the planet’s weather patterns and/or natural temperatures. A recent increase of global average temperature leading to changing weather patterns has been attributed majorly to humankind’s use of fossil fuels, releasing greenhouses gases into the atmosphere. Although the exact impact humans are having on the environment is disputed, it is widely agreed that anthropogenic (human-led) climate change has been occurring since the industrial revolution (early 19th Century).
Closed loop (systems)
A business model or process that completely reuses or recycles all materials. For example: A closed loop water system will continuously cycle the same water to cool materials, and a closed loop recycling system is a concept that has zero waste.
CO2e
Stands for Carbon Dioxide equivalent, and is the standard unit for measuring carbon footprints. It standardizes emissions by expressing the impact of other greenhouse gases in terms of the amount of CO2 that would have equal impact.
Compostable
A product that is compostable is one that can be placed into a composition of decaying biodegradable materials, and eventually turns into a nutrient-rich material. If something is industrially compostable, it means it will only compost under certain temperatures/conditions created in an industrial environment.
Curbside collection
The collection of recyclable household materials that are left at the curbside for collection by the local council or other collection services.