Resource Center: Glossary of Terms
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Algae
Simple, rootless plants that grow in bodies of water in relative proportion to
the amounts of nutrients available. Blue-green algae are primitive algae,
typically found in water high in phosphorus that form scum blooms that
congregate at the water’s surface. Diatoms are algae that have silica in their
cell walls.
ARS
Agricultural Research Service
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Bacteria
Single celled organisms having no cellular nucleus. Pathogenic bacteria are
capable of causing disease. Coliform bacteria are prolific in the intestines of
warm blooded animals and are used as an indicator of fecal waste pollution.
Benthic
Bottom terrain (generally submerged under water) of a surface water body, from
shoreline to greatest depths.
Best Management Practices (BMPs)
Methods, measures or practices to prevent or reduce surface runoff and/or water
pollution, including but not limited to, structural non-structural controls,
operation and maintenance procedures, other requirements and scheduling and
distribution of activities.
BMP
Best management practice
BOD
Biological oxygen demand
Buffer
An area maintained in permanent vegetation and managed to reduce the impacts of
adjacent land use.
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CCWP
Cedar Creek Wildlife Project
CES
Cooperative Extension Service
CFS
Cubic feet per second
Channelization
The practice of straightening a waterway to remove meanders in order to increase
the column and/or rate of discharge. Sometimes concrete is used to line the
sides and bottom of the channel.
Confluence
The flowing together of two or more streams. A point of juncture.
Cryptosporidium
A protozoan of the genus cryptosporidium that is an intestinal parasite in
humans and other vertebrates and some times causes diarrhea that is especially
severe in immuno-compromised (weakened immune system) individuals.
CSO
Combined Sewer Overflow
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Detention/Retention Basin
Impoundment constructed to detain/retain stormwater for extended periods of time
and allow for the retention of pollutants in the pond through deposition of
sediments and attached pollutants.
Discharge
1. Release of water at a given point into a water body. 2. The rate and volume
of flow of water such as in a stream, generally expressed as cubic feet per
second.
Dissolved Oxygen (DO)
Amount of oxygen gas dissolved in a given quantity of water at a given
temperature and atmospheric pressure. It is usually expressed as a concentration
in parts per million or as a percentage of saturation.
DNR
Department of Natural Resources
DO
Dissolved oxygen
Downcutting
Process of the stream channel bottom being rapidly and excessively eroded
creating a deeply incised stream channel.
Drinking Water Standards
In the U.S. National Primary Drinking Water Regulations ((NPDWRs or primary
standards) are legally enforceable standards that apply to public water systems.
Primary standards protect health by limiting the levels of contaminants in
drinking water.
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Ecosystem
The system formed by the interaction of a community of organisms with their
environment.
Ecosystem Management
The careful and skillful use of ecological, economic, social, and managerial
principles in managing ecosystems to produce, restore, or sustain ecosystem
integrity and desired uses, products, and services over the long term.
EPA
Environmental Protection Agency
Erosion
The wearing away of land surface by water or wind which occurs naturally from
weather or runoff, but is often intensified by human activities.
ET
Evapo-transpiration
Eutrophic
Habitats, particularly soils and water, that are rich in nutrients and plant
growth. Eutrophic waters generally have high sedimentation at their bottoms. The
lower levels of eutrophic waters have very low levels of dissolved oxygen.
Eutrophication
The aging process by which lakes, estuaries, or water bodies are fertilized with
nutrients. Natural eutrophication changes the character of a lake or water body,
very gradually. Cultural eutrophication is the accelerated aging of a lake or
water body resulting from human activities. The process by which nutrients
increase in the water body, increasing algal growth. Then as algal blooms die
off and fall to the bottom, their decay depletes the water body of dissolved
oxygen, which in turn reduces the ability of the water body to support fish and
other aquatic life.
Evapotranspiration
The total loss of water to the atmosphere by evaporation from land and water
surface and by transpiration from plants.
Exotic (or invasive) Species
An organism that is out of its naturally occurring range and environment, and
occupying the habitat of native species.
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Filter Strip
A linear strip of land maintained to slow the velocity of runoff
and filter sediment.
Filtration
The mechanical process which removes particulate matter by
separating water from solid material, usually by passing it through sand. .
Flooding
Occurs when the total volume of surface water runoff and baseflow
entering a stream channel exceeds the capacity of the channel resulting in
out-of-bank flow.
Floodplain
That portion of a stream valley adjacent to the channel that is
created by erosion and sediment deposited from the stream and covered with water
when the stream overflows its banks at flood stage. Also, the nearly level land
situated on either side of a channel that is subject to overflow flooding.
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GIS
Geographic information system
GLC
Great Lakes Commission
Grassed Waterway
Grass established in a shaped drainageway to prevent gullies from forming.
Ground Water
Water that occurs in the subsurface and fills or saturates the
porous openings, factures and fissures of under-ground soils and rock units.
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Habitat
A place where the physical and biological elements of ecosystems
provide a suitable environment and the food, cover, and space resources needed
for plant and animal livelihood.
Headwaters
The uppermost tributaries of a stream or river; often refers to
first order streams.
HUC
Hydrologic unit code
Hydrology
The study of the properties, distribution, circulation, and effects
of water on the Earth’s surface, soil, and atmosphere.
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IDEM
Indiana Department of Environmental Management
IDNR
Indiana Department of Natural Resources
Impaired Stream
A stream or other surface water body determined by field
assessment to no longer meet the state water quality standards for its
designated protected use.
Impervious Surface
Ground cover that does not allow, or minimally allows, for
infiltration of water (e.g., roofs, paved parking lots, and roads) and which
increases the volume and speed of runoff after a rainfall.
Infiltration
Movement of surface water into the soil, where it is absorbed by
plant roots, evaporated into the atmosphere, or percolates downward to recharge
ground water.
Intermittent Stream
A defined channel in which surface water is absent during
a portion of the year, as ground water levels drop below the channel bottom.
IPFW
Indiana University – Purdue University
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Loading
The total amount (generally measured in pounds or kilograms per acre
per year) of material (sediment, nutrients, oxygen-demanding material, or other
chemicals or compounds) brought into a lake, stream or water body by inflowing
streams, runoff, direct discharge through pipes, ground water, the air (aerial
or atmosphere deposition) and other sources over a specific period of time
(often annually).
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Macroinvertebrate
Invertebrate animal (without back bones) large enough to be
observed without the aid of a microscope or other magnification.
Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL)
The designation given by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to water-quality standards promulgated
under the Safe Drinking Water Act. The MCL is the greatest amount of a
contaminant that can be present in drinking water without causing a risk to
human health.
Meander
A circuitous winding or bend in the river.
MRBC
Maumee River Basin Commission
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Native Species
A naturally occurring plant or other organism that is within
its range and normal environment.
Nitrate
A salt of nitric acid; a common water pollutant.
Nonpoint Source
Nutrient and pollution sources not discharged from a single
point, e.g. runoff from agricultural fields, feedlots, residential lawns, septic
leach fields, or urban streets, etc.
NPS
Nonpoint source
NRCS
USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service
NSERL
National Soil Erosion Research Laboratory (West Lafayette, Indiana)
Nutrient
Elements or compounds essential to growth and development of living
things (e.g., nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus).
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Parts Per Million (PPM)
A common basis of reporting water analysis. One part
per million (PPM) equals one pound per million pounds of water. One part per
billion (PPB) equals one pound per billion pounds of water.
Pathogen
Microorganism which can cause disease. .
Percolation
1. The slow seepage of water into and through the ground. 2. The
slow seepage of water through a filter medium 3. The movement, under hydrostatic
pressure, of water through the interstices of a rock or soil.
pH
A measure of the relative acidity or alkalinity of water. Water with a pH
of 7 is neutral; lower pH levels indicate increasing acidity, while pH levels
higher than 7 indicate increasingly basic solutions.
Phosphate
Salt of phosphoric acid, often found in fertilizers.
Point Source Pollution
Water pollution coming from a single point, such as a
sewage-outflow pipe.
Pollution
The process of contaminating air, water and land with impurities to
a level that is undesirable and results in a decrease in usefulness of the
environment for beneficial purposes.
PPB
Parts per billion
PPM
Parts per million
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QAPP
Quality Assurance Project Plan
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Recharge
The replenishment of ground water through the infiltration of
rainfall, other surface waters, or land application of water or treated
wastewater.
Retention
The prevention of direct discharge of stormwater runoff into
receiving waters by temporary containment in a pond or depression; examples
include systems which discharge by percolation to ground water, exfiltration,
and/or evaporation process and which generally have residence times of less than
three days.
Retention Time
The length of time that water, nutrients, or other chemical
substances remain in a lake, impoundment or standing pool. .
Riffle
Shallow section of a stream or river with rapid current and a surface
broken by gravel, rubble, or boulders.
Riparian
Pertaining to anything connected with or immediately adjacent to the
banks of a stream or other body of water.
Riparian Forest Buffer
An area of trees, usually accompanied by shrubs and
other vegetation, adjacent to a body of water and managed to maintain the
integrity of stream channels and shorelines to 1) reduce the impact of upland
sources of pollution by trapping, filtering, and converting sediments,
nutrients, and other chemicals, and 2) supply food, cover, and thermal
protection to fish and other wildlife.
Riprap
Stones of varying size used to dissipate energy or stabilize a soil
surface.
Runoff
Surface water (usually rainfall) that is not evaporated, transpired,
used, or infiltrated into the ground water system, and thus flows over land to a
surface water body.
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Salinity
The relative proportion of salt in a solution, typically measured in
g/l, or parts per thousand (ppt). Seawater is typically around 335 ppt.
Scour
Local removal of soil, sediment, or other channel material from a
streambed by flowing water. .
Sediment
Fragmented material that originated from weathering rocks and
decomposing organic material that is transported by, suspended in, and
eventually deposited in the streambed.
Sedimentation
Occurs when sediment particles that have been suspended within
flowing water are deposited on the stream bottom or floodplain.
Sheetflow
A flow process associated with broad, shallow water movement on
sloping ground surfaces that is not channelized or concentrated.
SJRWI
St. Joseph River Watershed Initiative
Sludge
Semisolid material such as the type precipitated by sewage treatment.
Mud, mire, or ooze covering the ground or forming a deposit, as on a riverbed.
Source Water
The point at which water springs into being or from which it
derives or is obtained. The point of origin, such as a spring, of a stream or
river.
Spring
A point where ground water emerges (or seeps out) onto the surface of
the ground, often forming the beginning of a stream.
Stormwater
Runoff water that results from a storm (usually rainfall) event.
Stream
Includes all rivers, creeks, brooks, tributaries and other flowing
surface waters within a natural channel. More specifically, a perennial,
intermittent, or ephemeral watercourse having a defined channel (excluding
man-made ditches) which contains flow from surface and/or ground water sources
during at least a portion of an average rainfall year. .
Stream Discharge
Quantity of stream flow per unit of time, generally
expressed as cubic feet per second (CFS).
Stream Order
A numerical system (ranking from headwaters to river terminus)
used to designate the relative position of a stream or stream segment in a
drainage basin.
Streambank
The portion of the channel cross-section that restricts lateral
movement of water at normal water levels.
Surface Water
Water that is on Earth’s surface, such as in a stream, river,
lake, or reservoir. A natural or artificial pond or lake used for the storage
and regulation of water. .
Suspension
The state in which the particles of a substance are mixed with a
liquid but are not dissolved.
Swale
A depression or wide shallow ditch used to temporarily store, route,
infiltrate, filter, or convey runoff.
SWAT
Soil & Water Assessment Tool
SWCD
Soil and Water Conservation District
SWPI
Source Water Protection Initiative
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TDS
Total dissolved solids
TMDL
Total maximum daily load
Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL)
A regulatory process that determines the
volume or quantity of a given pollutant, calculated by watershed computer
modeling, that can be assimilated by a receiving stream or water body on an
average daily basis while maintaining the state designated water quality
standard and designated use of the water body. Where existing pollutant loads to
the receiving water body are in excess of the calculated TMDL, the
responsibility for reducing the excess pollutant loads is allocated among
existing sources of the pollutant to achieve the reductions necessary to
re-attain the designated use of the water body.
TSS
Total suspended solids
Turbidity
Murkiness or cloudiness of water, indicating the presence of suspended
sediments, dissolved solids, natural or man-made chemicals, algae, etc.
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USDA
U.S. Department of Agriculture
USEPA
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
USGS
U.S. Geological Survey
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Water Budget
An accounting of the movement of water through the components of
the hydrologic cycle in a watershed, including precipitation, evapo-transpiration,
surface runoff, ground water recharge, and ground water discharge to stream
baseflow.
Water Quality
A state of water represented by a combination of productivity,
chemistry, cleanliness and recreational potential. .
Water Table
The upper-most level of saturation of pore space or fractures by
subsurface water in an aquifer.
Water Treatment
Systematic purification of water for human consumption.
Watershed
The land area that drains water into a particular stream, river or
lake. It is a land feature that can be identified by tracing a line along the
highest elevations between two areas on a map, often a ridge. Large watersheds,
like the Mississippi River basin, contain thousands of smaller watersheds.
Watershed Management
Coordinated assessment and characterization of watershed
conditions, and planning and implementation of strategies, approaches, tools,
and techniques to protect and enhance the quality and quantity of water
resources while achieving desired land and water uses.
Wetlands
Low-lying areas inundated or saturated by water at a frequency and
duration sufficient to support wetland vegetation (e.g. wetlands include such
areas as swamps, marshes and wet meadows). Wetlands remove pollutants through a
series of chemical, physical and biological mechanisms.
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Zoning
The practice of dividing land into regions or parcels pertaining to
its use or activities within it.
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Sources
Watersheds, An Integrated Water Resources Plan for Chester County,
Pennsylvania and Its Watersheds, September 2002
Healthy Water, Healthy People, Water Quality Educators Guide, The
Watercourse, 2003
Volunteer Stream Monitoring Training Manual, Hoosier Riverwatch, Spring 2005
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