GLOSSARY
The terms in this glossary were compiled from numerous sources. Some definitions have been modified and may not be the only valid ones for these terms.
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Acre-foot
- A volume of water equal to 1 foot in depth and covering 1 acre; equivalent to 43,560 cubic feet or 325,851 gallons.
- Basic Fixed Sites
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on streams at which streamflow is measured and samples are collected for temperature, salinity, suspended sediment, major ions and metals, nutrients, and organic carbon to assess the broad-scale spatial and temporal character and transport of inorganic constituents of streamwater in relation to hydrologic conditions and environmental settings.
- Bed sediment
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The material that temporarily is stationary in the bottom of a stream or other watercourse.
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Bed sediment and tissue studies
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Assessment of concentrations and distributions of trace elements and hydrophobic organic contaminants in streambed sediment and tissues of aquatic organisms to identify potential sources and to assess spatial distribution.
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Bioaccumulation
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The biological sequestering of a substance at a higher concentration than that at which it occurs in the surrounding environment or medium. Also, the process whereby a substance enters organisms through the gills, epithelial tissues, dietary, or other sources.
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Channelization
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Modification of a stream, typically by straightening the channel, to provide more uniform flow; often done for flood control or for improved agricultural drainage or irrigation.
- Community
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In ecology, the species that interact in a common area.
- Denitrification
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A process by which oxidized forms of nitrogen such as nitrate (NO3-) are reduced to form nitrites, nitrogen oxides, or free nitrogen: commonly brought about by the action of denitrifying bacteria and usually resulting in the escape of nitrogen to the air.
- Dissolved solids
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Amount of minerals, such as salt, that are dissolved in water; amount of dissolved solids is an indicator of salinity or hardness.
- Effluent
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Outflow from a particular source, such as a stream that flows from a lake or liquid waste that flows from a factory or sewage-treatment plant.
- Eutrophication
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The process by which a body of water becomes, either by natural means or by pollution, excessively rich in dissolved nutrients, resulting in extensive algal growth.
- Fish communities
- See Community.
- Front Range
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Eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains, in Colorado, it generally extends from Colorado Springs in the south to the Colorado State Line to the north. When referred to as the Front Range urban corridor in this report, it extends from Denver to Fort Collins along the mountain front.
- Intensive Fixed Sites
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Basic sites with increased sampling frequency during selected seasonal periods and analysis of dissolved pesticides for 1 year. Most NAWQA Study Units have one to two integrator Intensive Fixed Sites and one to four indicator Intensive Fixed Sites.
- Invertebrate
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An animal having no backbone or spinal column.
- Invertebrate density
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The number of individual invertebrates found within a known area.
- Ions
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Elements or molecules that have a positive or negative charge that are responsible for the salinity of stream water and can indicate the source of the water.
- Irrigation return flow
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The part of irrigation applied to the surface that is not consumed by evapotranspiration or uptake by plants and that migrates to an aquifer or surface-water body.
- Land-use study -
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A network of existing shallow wells in an area having a relatively uniform land use. These studies are a subset of the Study-Unit Survey and have the goal of relating the quality of shallow ground water to land use. See also Study-Unit Survey.
- Load
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General term that refers to a material or constituent in solution, in suspension, or in transport; usually expressed in terms of mass or volume.
- Main stem
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The principal course of a river or a stream.
- Maximum contaminant level (MCL)
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Maximum permissible level of a contaminant in water that is delivered to any user of a public water system. MCL's are enforceable standards established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
- Metabolite
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A substance produced in or by biological processes.
- Nonpoint-source contaminant
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A substance that pollutes or degrades water that comes from lawn or cropland runoff, the atmosphere, roadways, and other diffuse sources.
- Nutrient
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Element or compound essential for animal and plant growth. Common nutrients in fertilizer include nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium.
- Occurrence and distribution assessment
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Characterization of the broad-scale spatial and temporal distributions of water-quality conditions in relation to major contaminant sources and background conditions for surface water and ground water.
- Organochlorine compound
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Synthetic organic compounds containing chlorine. As generally used, term refers to compounds containing mostly or exclusively carbon, hydrogen, and chlorine. Examples include organochlorine insecticides, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and some solvents containing chlorine.
- Pesticide
- A chemical applied to crops, rights of way, lawns, or residences to control weeds, insects, fungi, nematodes, rodents or other "pests."
- Point source
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A source at a discrete location such as a discharge pipe, drainage ditch, tunnel, well, concentrated livestock operation, or floating craft.
- Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)
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A mixture of chlorinated derivatives of biphenyl, marketed under the trade name Aroclor with a number designating the chlorine content (such as Aroclor 1260). PCBs were used in transformers and capacitors for insulating purposes and in gas pipeline systems as a lubricant. Further sale for new use was banned by law in 1979.
- Salinity
- The total quantity of dissolved salts, measured by weight in parts per thousand.
- Semivolatile organic compound (SVOC)
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Operationally defined as a group of synthetic organic compounds that are solvent-extractable and can be determined by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. SVOCs include phenols, phthalates, and Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).
- Species
- Populations of organisms that may interbreed and produce fertile offspring having similar structure, habits, and functions.
- Specific conductance
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A measure of the ability of a liquid to conduct an electrical current.
- Study unit
- A major hydrologic system of the United States in which NAWQA studies are focused. Study Units are geographically defined by a combination of ground- and surface-water features and generally encompass more than 4,000 square miles of land area.
- Study-unit survey
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Broad assessment of the water-quality conditions of the major aquifer systems of each Study Unit. The Study-Unit Survey relies primarily on sampling existing wells and, wherever possible, on existing data collected by other agencies and programs. Typically, 20 to 30 wells are sampled in each of three to five aquifer subunits.
- Suspended (as used in tables of chemical analyses)
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The amount (concentration) of undissolved material in a water-sediment mixture. It is associated with the material retained on a 0.45- micrometer filter.
- Suspended sediment
- Particles of rock, sand, soil, and organic detritus carried in suspension in the water column, in contrast to sediment that moves on or near the streambed.
- Synoptic sites
- Sites that are sampled within a selected time period so that samples represent similar hydrographic conditions.
- Taxon (plural taxa)
- Any identifiable group of taxonomically related organisms.
- Tissue study
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The assessment of concentrations and distributions of trace elements and certain organic contaminants in tissues of aquatic organisms.
- Trace element
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An element found in only minor amounts (concentrations less than 1.0 milligram per liter) in water or sediment; includes arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, mercury, nickel, and zinc.
- Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
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Organic chemicals that have a high vapor pressure relative to their water solubility. VOCs include components of gasoline, fuel oils, and lubricants, as well as organic solvents, fumigants, some inert ingredients in pesticides, and some by-products of chlorine disinfection.
