Download Watershed Glossary

CL
A
N
TE
R
T HI
K
EAN
W
Watershed
Glossary
Acid precipitation: All forms of precipitation that
have an acidity lower than normal rainfall (pH 5.6).
Aeration: The process of working the soil to
improve air exchange (by coring, spiking, or
slicing, for example) without destroying the
existing turf cover. Also known as cultivation.
Algae (phytoplankton): 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 bodies that
congregate at the waters surface.
Algae bloom: An unusual or excessive abundance
of algae.
Animal wast: Scat
Auto fluids: Gasoline, oil, antifreeze.
Decomposition: The process of breaking down
organic residues, or mixtures of organic residues
and soil, that have been piled, moistened, and
allowed to decompose.
Detention ponds: A man-made pond which holds
water, which has entered storm drains, prior to its
release into a lake or river.
Dissolved oxygen: Oxygen dissolved in water.
Divide: A ridge of land that separates two areas
that are drained by different rivers.
Dormancy: Resting stage of a grass plant during
which almost all visible signs of life are halted
(usually in response to hot or dry summer
conditions).
Drainage basin: The region drained by a river
system.
Compost: A black, soil-like material resulting
from organic residues, or mixtures of organic
residues and soil, that have been piled, moistened,
and allowed to decompose.
Earth material: Soil, dirt or rocks.
Condensation: The process of a substance
changing from a gas to a liquid, usually as a result
of cooling.
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.
Environmental stressor: Pollutants
Eutrophic lake: A nutrient-rich lake usually
shallow - with large amounts of algae or rooted
plants, and with limited oxygen in the bottom layer
of water.
Eutrophication: The aging process by which
lakes are fertilized with nutrients. Natural
eutrophication changes the character of a lake
very gradually. Cultural eutrophication is the
accelerated aging of a lake resulting from human
activities.
Evaporation: The process of asubstance changing
from a liquid to a gas by exposure to the air or
heat.
Evapo-transpiration: The process of transferring
moisture from the earth to the atmosphere by
evaporation of water and transpiration from plants.
Fertilizer: Any organic or inorganic material of
natural or synthetic origin that is added to soil to
supply one or more elements essential for healthy
plant growth.
Fungicide: A type of pesticide used to control
plant diseases.
Grated storm sewer: Storm drains that have bars
on them to keep larger debris from washing into
the storm sewer.
Ground water: Water found under the ground, in
the zones of soil and bedrock.
Heated or cooled water: Artificially warm or cool
water released into the watershed by industry.
Herbicide: A type of pesticide used to control
weeds.
Hydrologic cycle: The process of water traveling
from the clouds, to the earth, into the ground and
back again.
Impervious surface: Waterproofground cover (a
roof, parking lot, or road, for example) that does
not permit infiltration of water and that increases
the volume and speed of runoff after a rainfall.
Inorganic chemicals: Chemicals made from
neither organic life nor the products of organic
life.
Insecticide: A type of pesticide used to control
insects.
Lawn renovation: The process of revitalizing or
repairing a lawn to a healthy or stable condition.
Macroinvertebrate: Animals without backbones
that can be seen without the aid of a microscope.
Mesotrophic lake: Lake condition in which
nutrient levels are between eutrophic and
oligotrophic levels. A mesotrophic lake has fairly
good water quality and may be used for
recreational activities.
Non-point source pollution: Nutrient and
pollution sources not discharged from a single
point; for example, runoff from agricultural fields,
feedlots, or urban streets.
Nutrients: Elements or compounds essential to
growth and development of living things; for
example, nitrogen, potassium or phosphorus.
Oligotrophic lake: A relatively nutrient-poor lake,
typically clear and deep with bottom water high in
dissolved oxygen.
Organic waste: Waste produced from organic life
or the products of organic life.
Sedimentation: The act or process of depositing
sediments.
Organisms: Living beings.
Sediments: Rocks, dirt, or other solid matter
carried and left by water, glaciers or wind.
pH: A measure that indicates the relative acidity
or alkalinity of a substance. The pH scale ranges
from 0 (most acid) to 14 (most basic), with a pH of
7 being neutral.
Percolation: To drip or drain through small holes
or spaces.
Pesticide: Agent used to destroy pests.
(herbicide = weed killer, fungicide = disease
control, insecticide = insect control)
Petroleum products: An oily liquid that is found
beneath the surface of the earth. Petroleum is made
into gasoline, kerosene, oil for heating buildings,
plastic, and many other products.
Plant litter: Leaves, twigs, grass clippings from
plants.
Pollution: The process of contaminating air, water,
and land with impurities to an undesirable level,
resulting in a decrease of benefits from the environment.
Precipitation: The falling of water in the form of
rain, sleet, hail, or snow.
Reconnaissance: A general look at the composition and condition of an area of interest. A scavenger hunt for clues or evidence that something has
happened or of the condition of something.
Runoff: Water that drains or flows off the surface
of the land.
Soil compaction: The pressing together of soil
particles into a dense soil mass, often resulting
in shallow root growth, poor water and nutrient
infiltration, and low soil oxygen levels.
Solution: A mixture of two or more substances.
Stenciled storm sewers: Storm drain that has a
stenciled message about water draining directly
into a body of water and asking people not to
pollute it.
Storm drain: A street drain which collects stormwater runoff after and conveys the water to a nearby
lake or river.
Storm water runoff: Rain water that cannot soak
into soil and runs over surfaces such as streets,
driveways, and rooftops. Storm water runoff picks
up pollutants as it moves.
Surface Water: All water on the surface of the
earth, as distinguished from ground water: lakes,
ponds, streams, rivers, oceans, and puddles.
Thatch: An intermingled organic layer of dead and
living grass roots, shoots, and stems that develops
between the upper green vegetation and the soil
surface.
Transpiration: Loss of moisture from a plant,
primarily through pores (stomata) on leaf surfaces.
Transpiration is part of the water cycle.
Trash: Garbage that has not been disposed of
properly.
Tributary: A river or stream that flows into a larger
river.
Ungrated storm sewer: A storm sewer that has no
bars to prevent debris from being washed into the
storm sewer.
Unstenciled storm sewer: Storm drain that has
no stenciled message about water draining directly
into a body of water and asking people not to
pollute it.
Water Cycle: The continuous circulation of
water in systems throughout the planet, involving
condensation, precipitation, runoff, evaporation,
and transpiration.
Water quality: The state of lake water, determined
by a combination of productivity, chemistry,
cleanliness, and recreational potential.
Water vapor: Water diffused as a vapor in the
atmosphere, especially at a temperature below the
boiling point.
Watershed: The surrounding land area that drains
into a lake, stream, river, or river system.
Wetland: Any land that tends to be regularly
wet or flooded such as bogs, swamps, marshes or
estuaries.
Yard waste: Brush, leaves and grass clippings.