Sec 2-1 glossary of environmental terms Flashcards
Acid Rain
Precipitation with pH levels much below average as a result of the
formation of sulfuric acid in polluted air.
Active layer
The surface layer in a permafrost environment, which is
characterized by freezing and thawing on a seasonal basis
Aggradation
Filling in of a stream channel with sediment, usually associated with
low discharges and/or heave sediment loads.
Alluvial Fan
A fen-shaped deposit of sediment laid down by a stream at the foot
of a slope; very common features in dry regions, where Streams deposit their sediment load as they lose discharge downstream.
Aquifer
Any subsurface material that holds a relatively large quantity of groundwater and is able to transmit that water readily.
Backshore
The zone behind the shore - between the beach berm and the
backshore slope
Backshore slope
The bank or bluff landward of the shore that is comprised of <i>in situ
</i>material
Backswamp
A low, wet area in the floodplain, often located behind a levee.
bankfull discharge
The flow of a river when the water surface has reached bank level.
Baseflow
The portion of streamflow contributed by groundwater; it is a
steady flow that is slow to change even during rainless periods
Bay-mouth bar
A ribbon of sand
deposited across the mouth of a bay.
Berm
A low
mound that forms along sandy beaches; also used to describe elongated mounds constructed along water features and site borders.
Boreal Forest
Subarctic
conifer forests of North America and Eurasia; florlsticaily homogeneous forests dominated by fir, spruce, and tamarack; in Russia, it is called <i>taiga</i>.
Buildable Land Units
Parcels
of various size within a designated project area that are suitable for development as defined by a prescribed development program
Carrying capacity
The level of development density or use an environment is able to
support without suffering undesirable or irreversible degradation.
Choropleth map
A map comprised of areas of any size or shape representing
qualitative phenomena (eg,.soils) or quantitative phenomena (e.g. population); map often has a patchwork appearance
Climate
The representative or general conditions of the atmosphere at a
place on earth; H is more than the average conditions of the
atmosphere, for climate may also include extreme and infrequent
conditions.
Closed Forest
A forest structure with multiple levels of growth from the ground
up; a forest in which undergrowth closes out the area between the
canopy and the ground.
Coastal Dune
A sand dune that forms in coastal areas and is fed by sand from the
beach
Colluvium
An unsorted mix of soil and
mass-movement debris.
Conduction
A
mechanism of heat transfer involving no external motion or mass transport; instead, energy is transferred through the collision of vibrating molecules
Conveyance Zone
The central route of
drainage,
usually a channel and valley, in a drainage basin
Declination
of the sun
The location
(latitude) on earth where the sun on any day is directly overhead; declinations range from 23.27° S latitude to 23.27° N latitude.
Degradation
Scouring and
downcutting of a stream channel, usually associated with high discharges