SMOKE

Particles suspended in air after incomplete combustion.

SNA

See System of National Accounts.

SNAG

A standing dead tree with few branches, or the standing portion of a broken-off tree. Snags may provide feeding and/or nesting sites for wildlife.

SNOW

Precipitation that consists of frozen flakes formed when water vapor accumulates on ice crystals, going directly to the ice phase.

SNOW SURVEY

Process or operation of determining the depth, water content and density of snow at various selected points for the purpose of forecasting subsequent runoff.

SNOWMELT

Net decrease in water equivalent of the snowpack after allowing for increases due to precipitation.

SOCIAL CAPITAL

Social resources (networks, social claims, social relations organizations, etc.) upon which people draw in the pursuit of livelihoods.

SOCIAL COST OF CARBON (SCC)

The net present value of aggregate climate damages (with overall harmful damages expressed as a number with positive sign) from one more tonne of carbon in the form of carbon dioxide (CO2), conditional on a global emissions trajectory over time.

SOCIAL COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS

A systematic and cohesive economic tool to survey all the impacts caused by an urban development project. It comprises not just the financial effects (investment costs, direct benefits like tax and fees, et cetera), but all the social effects, like: pollution, safety, indirect market and legal aspects. The main aim of a social cost-benefit analysis […]