Glossary

Jump to

  1. A
  2. B
  3. C
  4. D
  5. E
  6. F
  7. G
  8. H
  9. I
  10. J
  11. K
  12. L
  13. M
  14. N
  15. O
  16. P
  17. Q
  18. R
  19. S
  20. T
  21. U
  22. V
  23. W
  24. X
  25. Y
  26. Z

  1. A

    active travel

    The process of being physically active to make a journey. Common forms of active travel are walking and cycling.

    air pollutants

    Pollutants that include ozone (O3), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), particulate matter (PM10 or 2.5), carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide (SO2) and biological allergens.

    asthma

    A common, chronic inflammatory disease of the air passages that presents as episodes of wheezing, breathlessness and chest tightness due to widespread narrowing of the airways and obstruction of airflow.

  2. B

    built environment

    The built environment refers to the human-made surroundings where people live, work and recreate. It includes buildings and parks as well as supporting infrastructure such as transport, water and energy networks (Coleman 2017).

  3. E

    extreme weather event

    An unusual weather event or phenomenon at the extreme of a ‘typical’ historical distribution, such as a violent storm, exceptionally high levels of rainfall, or a heat wave or drought that is longer or hotter than normal.

  4. F

    Forest Fire Danger Index (FFDI)

    The McArthur Forest Fire Danger Index uses dryness (a product of rainfall and evaporation), wind speed, temperature and humidity to indicate the degree of danger of fire in Australian forests.

  5. I

    Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)

    The United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change.

  6. N

    natural environment

     A setting that includes all vegetation and animal species (including micro-organisms), habitats and landscapes on earth, but excludes aspects of the environment that result from human activities. The natural environment includes air, water and climate.

  7. P

    PM2.5

    Atmospheric particulate matter (PM) that have a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometres (0.0025millimetres).

  8. R

    respiratory condition

    A chronic respiratory condition affecting the airways and characterised by symptoms such as wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness and cough. Conditions include asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) – which includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis.

  9. T

    thunderstorm asthma

    The triggering of an asthma attack by environmental conditions directly caused by a local thunderstorm.

  10. U

    urban heat islands

    Urban areas that are significantly warmer than surrounding rural or natural areas due to human activities and land uses.

  11. W

    walkability

    A measure of how conducive an area is for walking.