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CESSWI TERMS Definitions Latest Update
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CESSWI TERMS Definitions LatestUpdate
Absorption - ANSWER Absorption of particles of gas or liquid into a
liquid or solid material.
Adsorption - ANSWER The process by which a liquid or gas
adsorbate is adsorbed by an adsorbent, forming a film on the
adsorbent's surface. (aka it sticks to the surface).
Aerobic Digestion - ANSWER The breakdown of wastes by
microorganisms in the presence of dissolved oxygen.
Algae - ANSWER One-celled or multi-celled plamts that are either
suspended in water or attached to submerged rocks or other
materials. Their abundance is measured by the amount of chlorophyll
a within a water sample.
Ambient Water Quality - ANSWER Water quality of a waterbody
measured immediately upstream (or outside) of the influence of a
particular source of pollutants or pollutant parameters during
average flow conditions.
Aenaerobic Digestion - ANSWER A series of processed in which
microorganisms breakdown biodegradable material in the absence
of oxygen.
Anti-Degradation - ANSWER An EPA policy designed to prevent
deterioration of existing levels of good water quality.
Arid Area - ANSWER Any area receiving less than 10 inches of
rainfall per year.
Armor - ANSWER Artificial surfacing of bed, banks, shore, or
embankment to resist erosion or scour.
Arroyo - ANSWER Waterway of an ephemeral stream deeply carved
,in rock or ancient alluvium.
Artesian Waters - ANSWER Percolating waters confined below
impermeable formations with sufficient pressure to spring or well up
to the surface.
Assessed Value - ANSWER The dollar value assigned to a property
for the purposes of tax assessment.
Backfill - ANSWER Earth used to fill a trench or excavation.
Baffle - ANSWER A pier, vane sill, fence, wall or mound constructed
in a basin or in the bed of a stream to parry, deflect, check or
redistribute the flow, or to float on the surface to deflect or dampen
cross currents or waves.
Bank - ANSWER The lateral boundary of a stream confining water
flows. The bank of the left side of a channel looking downstream is
called the left bank.
Bank Protection - ANSWER Revetment, or other armor protecting a
bank of a stream from erosion, includes devices used to deflect the
forces of erosion away from the bank.
Base Flood - ANSWER The flood or tide having a 1 percent chance
of being exceeded in any given year (100-year flood). The "base
flood" is commonly used as the "standard flood: in Ferderal Flood
Insurance studies (see Regulatory Flood).
Base Floodplain - ANSWER The area subject to flooding by the base
flood.
Base Flow - ANSWER The flow contributing to a creek by ground
water. During dry periods, base flow constitutes the majority of
stream flow.
Basin - ANSWER (1) The surface area tributary to a stream or lake.
(2) Space above or below ground capable of retaining or detaining
water or debris.
,Bay - ANSWER An indentation of bank or shore, including erosional
cuts and slipouts, not necessarily large.
Beach - ANSWER The zone of sedimentary material that extends
landward from the low water line to the place where there is marked
change in material or form, or to the line of permanent vegetation
(usually the effective limit of storm waves). The seaward limit of a
beach, unless otherwise specified, is the mean low water line. A
beach includes foreshore and backshore.
Bed - ANSWER The earth below any body of water, limited laterally
by bank or shore.
Bed Load - ANSWER Sediment that moves by rolling, sliding, or
skipping along the bed and is essentially in contact with the stream
bed.
Bedding - ANSWER The foundation under a drainage structure.
Beneficial Uses - ANSWER As referred to in the State Water Quality
Standards, beneficial uses are activities that range from recreational
to agricultural uses, depending on the source of the water.
Benthic - ANSWER Of or relating to or happening on the bottom
under a body of water.
Berm - ANSWER (1) A bench or terrace between two slopes. (2) A
nearly horizontal part of the beach or backshore formed at the high
water line by waves depositing material. Some beaches have no
berms, other have one or several.
Best Management Practice (BMP) - ANSWER (1) Ameasure that is
implemented to protect water quality and reduce the potential for
pollution associated with stormwater runoff. (2) Any program,
technology, process, sizing criteria, operating method, measure, or
device that controls, prevents, removes, or reduces pollution.
Bioaccumulation - ANSWER A general term for the accumulation of
substances, such as pesticides (DDT is an example), methylmercury,
, or other organic chemicals in an organism or part of an organism.
The accumulation process involves the biological sequestering of
substances that enter the organism through respiration, food intake,
epidermal (skin) contact with the substance, and/or other means.
The sequestering results in the organism having a higher
concentration of the substance than the concentration in the
organism's surrounding environment.
Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) - ANSWER Chemical
procedure for determining the uptake rate of dissolved oxygen by the
biological organisms in a body of water. It is not a precise
quantitative test, although it is widely used as an indication of the
quality of water. BOD can be used as a gauge of the effectiveness of
wastewater treatment plants. It is listed as a conventional pollutant in
the U.S. Clean Water Act.
Biological Monitoring and Biological Indicators - ANSWER Surveys
of aquatic biota in a waterbody where the organisms (plants,
macro-invertebrates, and fish) serve as indicators of the quality and
characteristics of that waterbody.
Bioretention - ANSWER A structural BMP using landscape features
such as plants, soil andmulches to provide onsite treatment of
stormwater runoff.
Block - ANSWER Precast prismatic unit for riprap structure.
Blue-green algae - ANSWER Algae that can cause problems in lakes
because some produce chemicals that are toxic to animals, including
humans. They often form thick floating mats of blue-green scum as
they die.
Bluff - ANSWER A high, steep bank composed of erodible materials.
Boil - ANSWER Turbulent break in a water surface by upwelling.
Boom - ANSWER Floating log or similar element designed to
dampen surface waves or control the movement of drift.
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