Glossary

Terms for Architecture, Green Building & Energy

This glossary includes more than 300 solar terms, as well as hundreds of additional sustainable design and construction terms.

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Acid Rain

Definition: The precipitation of dilute solutions of strong mineral acids formed by the mixing in the atmosphere of various industrial pollutants - sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, primarily - with naturally occurring oxygen and water vapor. The precursors, or chemical forerunners, of acid rain formation result from both natural sources, such as volcanoes and decaying vegetation, and man-made sources, primarily emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) resulting from fossil fuel combustion. In the United States, roughly 2/3 of all SO2 and 1/4 of all NOx come from electric power generation that relies on burning fossil fuels, like coal.

Acid rain is particularly damaging to lakes, streams, and forests and the plants and animals that live in these ecosystems.