Energy
Endangered Species
Pollution
Spotted Owl
Sierra Club vs. Morton
100

This source of energy comes from sources that are not depleted when used, such as wind and solar power.

What is renewable energy?

100

This large, striped cat is native to Southeast Asia and is critically endangered due to habitat loss and poaching.

What is a tiger?

100

This colorless, odorless gas is a major contributor to global warming and is released by burning fossil fuels.

What is carbon dioxide?

100

This large owl listed as threatened lives in the mature forests of the West, from the giant old growth of British Columbia and Washington, to California's woodlands.

What is the spotted owl?

100

This federal agency was the defendant in the Sierra Club’s lawsuit over the logging project in Georgia’s national forests.

What is the U.S. Forest Service?

200

This renewable energy source, often used in dams, generates power through the force of moving water.

What is hydroelectric power?

200

This marine animal, which uses echolocation to navigate, is endangered due to pollution and habitat destruction.

What is a dolphin?

200

This type of pollution is caused by the accumulation of plastic waste in the oceans, which harms marine life.

What is plastic pollution?

200

The Spotted Owl controversy highlighted the conflict between conservationists and this industry.

What is the logging industry?

200

This environmental organization was the plaintiff in the case challenging the U.S. Forest Service’s approval of timber harvesting in Georgia’s national forests.

What is the Sierra Club?

300

These prehistoric, non-renewable energy sources have been accredited for the steep rise in carbon dioxide emissions and blamed for playing a role in climate change.

What are fossil fuels?

300

This large African mammal, whose populations have dramatically dropped due to poaching for ivory, was classified as vulnerable.

What is the African elephant?

300

This process refers to the release into the atmosphere that trap heat, contributing to the warming of the Earth’s surface.

What is global warming?

300

The Spotted Owl Controversy took place primarily in this forested region of the United States.

What is the Pacific Northwest?


300

This 1972 U.S. Supreme Court case is significant for determining whether environmental organizations have standing to sue over environmental harm, specifically in relation to the development of the Mineral King Valley.

What is Sierra Club v. Martin?

400

This energy source is electricity generated from heat produced by a controlled reaction in a reactor. It was the cause for the meltdowns at Chernobyl and Fukushima.

What is nuclear energy?
400

This U.S. agency, founded in 1903, is responsible for protecting national endangered species. 

What is the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service?

400

This Asian country ranks in first place as the most polluted nation on Earth with a whopping 79.7 μg/m³ (microgram/cubic meter) based on annual average PM2.5 (particulate matter) concentration.

What is Bangladesh?

400

The Spotted Owl controversy brought attention to these ancient forest ecosystems vital for biodiversity.

What are old-growth forests?

400

The lawsuit in Sierra Club v. Morton was centered on this type of land use, which the Sierra Club argued would harm the environment in Georgia’s national forests.

What is timber harvesting?

500

This 2015 international climate agreement signed in France and aimed at limiting global warming to below 2°C is known by this name.

What is the Paris Climate Accord?

500

This marine mammal, once abundant along the U.S. East Coast, was declared endangered in the 1970s due to hunting, but has made a recovery.

What is the manatee?

500

This banned pesticide, once widely used in agriculture, caused widespread contamination and harm to wildlife.

What is DDT?

500

This law, passed in 1973, became a focal point in legal disputes involving the protection of the spotted owl and other endangered species, requiring federal agencies to avoid courses of action that could hinder their survival.

What is the Endangered Species Act?

500

Although the Sierra Club lost in this case, the ruling helped to pave the way for this later legal concept, which allows organizations to represent the public interest in environmental matters.

What is environmental standing?

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