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NRBS - Home Table of Contents		Northern River Basins Study Final Report Glossary A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z References   acutely toxic: a substance that is toxic enough to cause severe biological harm or death within a short time, usually 96 hours or less aesthetic: dealing with those aspects that are perceivable by the senses aesthetic objective (AO): defined under the Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality as the highest recommended level of a particular substance in water that does not cause an objectional taste, smell, etc. to consumers algae: a large group of mainly aquatic one-celled or multi-celled plants, lacking true stems, roots and leaves alkyl benzenes: aromatic compounds associated with gasoline and runoff from roads annual allowable cut: the volume of forest produce that may be harvested on an annual basis from a specified area in accordance with management regulations anoxic: depleted of oxygen; anaerobic aquifer: permeable rock capable of yielding groundwater to wells and springs aromatic compounds: organic compounds incorporating a closed chain or ring nucleus in its structure
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		baseline data: information describing select characteristics of the existing environment, serving as a base against which future changes in the environment can be compared basin plan: a systematic, orderly approach for managing the natural resources of a river basin benthic invertebrates: spineless, insect-like organisms that live in the bottom sediments of lakes and rivers benthos: the plant or animal life whose habitat is the bottom of a sea, lake or river benzothiazoles: highly toxic compounds used chiefly as rubber softeners or as a dyestuff intermediates bioaccumulation: a process by which substances are ingested and retained by organisms, either from the environment directly or through the consumption of food containing the chemicals biochemical oxygen demand (BOD): the quantity of dissolved oxygen used in the breakdown of organic matter by bacteria and in the oxidation of minerals such as ferrous iron biofilm: a thin layer of slime-like material made up of algae, fungi and bacteria
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		bioindicators: living organisms used to monitor changes in an ecosystem biology: the study of life biomagnification: a cumulative increase in the concentration of a persistent substance in successively higher levels of the food chain biomarker: a physiological measure used to indicate a toxic event in an animal bitumen: a general term for various tar-like solid and semi-solid hydrocarbons bleached kraft pulp mill: an industrial plant that manufactures pulp from wood, using a process that relies on strong and highly alkaline chemicals to break down wood chips and whiten pulp; chlorine is often employed as a bleaching agent in this process bloom: an unusually large number of organisms per unit of water, usually algae, made up of one or a few species
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		calibration: the adjustment or correction of a measuring device or mathematical model, so that the measurement of model output contains the least possible error when compared against a standard or known result carcinogen: a cancer-causing substance carnivore: any strictly flesh-eating organism; a secondary consumer in the food chain cerebral palsy: a group of health-related syndromes that affect the motor control centres of the brain and are characterized by a form of paralysis manifested by spastic movements chemithermomechanical pulp (CTMP) mill: an industrial plant that manufactures pulp from wood, using a process that combines heat, mild chemicals and mechanical action to break down wood chips into a soft pulp chironomid: midge; an animal in the family Chironomidae chloracne: a disfiguring skin disease caused by exposure to certain chlorinated compounds chlordane: a colourless, viscous and toxic liquid that is used as an insecticide chlorinated resin acids: substances derived from wood to which chlorine is attached
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		chlorine dioxide: a chlorine-containing chemical increasingly used by pulp mills as a substitute for molecular chlorine to bleach pulp chlorine substitution:in relation to pulp mill technology, the substitution of molecular chlorine with more environmentally sound equivalents to bleach wood pulp (e.g., chlorine dioxide) chloroform: a simple organochlorine compound that may cause cancer and organ damage in high doses chlorophenols: chlorinated organic compounds used predominantly in the production of dyes, and as herbicides or pesticides cholera: a potentially fatal disease characterized by violent vomiting and diarrhea chronic toxicity: toxicity marked by a long duration that produces an adverse effect on organisms; the end result can be death, although the usual effects are sublethal (e.g., inhibition of reproduction or growth) co-management: management shared by more than one individual or party commercial fishery: the catching of fish for sale and profit
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		congener: a compound having the same chemical formula as another compound, but a different molecular structure congenital: a physical malformation or abnormality existing at or prior to birth, especially non-inherited defects and diseases that are environmental in origin contaminant: any foreign or unwanted substance conventional drinking water: water that has been purified by a drinking water treatment facility conventional oil: also called petroleum or crude oil, a thick, greenish-brown mineral oil found in permeable rock formations of some areas cumulative effects: the sum total of environmental impacts resulting from a number of individual developments cyst: a bladder or bag-like structure that may contain the resting stage of an organism; a number of organisms (e.g., Giardia, tapeworms, etc.) form cysts as part of their lifecycle
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		database: a collection of information on a particular topic delta: the body of sediment deposited at the mouth of a river detection limit: the lowest concentration of a substance that can be measured with certainty by an analytical process 1,2 dichlorobenzene: a toxic and combustible liquid that can be produced as a by-product of water chlorination, but is also used for a variety of industrial purposes DDE (dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene): a breakdown product of DDT that is often found in eggs or the fat of animals that have been exposed to DDT (see also: DDT) DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane): a toxic insecticide that is now banned in many countries because it persists and accumulates in the living tissues of organisms, especially fish and birds detrivores: organisms that consume refuse (or "detritus") such as dead plant material, feces and animal remains dimethylsulphones: a group of compounds produced by the process of pulp digestion in bleached kraft mills
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		dioxins and furans: Popular names for two classes of chlorinated organic compounds, known as polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs); both dioxins and furans are formed either as by-products during some types of chemical production that involve chlorine and high temperatures or during combustion where a source of chlorine is present. discharge: (1) the rate of flow in a stream or river, or (2) flow of effluent from a point source disinfection: the destruction of disease-causing organisms through the application of specific agents (i.e., disinfectants) such as chlorine dissolved oxygen: molecular oxygen that is in solution in a liquid domestic fishery: the catching of fish for individual needs downstream: away from the source of a stream (i.e., downriver) drainage basin: the land surrounding a water body that contributes surface water to that body drinking water treatment plant: a central facility for purifying drinking water
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		ecology: the study of the interaction among plants, animals and their environment ecoregion: one part of an ecoprovince characterized by regional ecological interactions between the four major environmental components of the ecosystem: air, water, land and biota ecosystem: the interaction between organisms, including humans, and their physical environment ecosystem approach: an approach to ecosystem management that 1) emphasizes the need to collect and synthesize information on ecosystem structure and function; 2) recognizes that different levels within the ecosystem are interrelated and interdependent; and 3)necessitates management strategies that are ecological, anticipatory and ethical ecosystem health / integrity: the adequate structure and functioning of an ecosystem, as described by scientific information and societal priorities ecosystem indicators: a measure (e.g., physical, chemical, biological, sociological, etc.) that provides evidence as to the state of the ecosystem effluent: a waste material (e.g., sewage or industrial discharges) discharged to the environment environmental contamination: the introduction of any foreign or unwanted substance into the environment Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA): appraisal of the likely effects of a proposed project, activity or policy on the environment, both positive and negative epidemiology: a branch of medicine studying the incidence, distribution and control of diseases erosion: the breakdown of rock into smaller particles and its removal by wind, water or ice eutrophic waters: waters with a good supply of nutrients capable of supporting rich organic productions, such as algal blooms eutrophication: the process whereby water bodies become biologically more productive due to an increased nutrient supply ex-situ: out of its original place, used to describe experiments that are not conducted in the field
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		far-field: further than 100 km from a point-source fecal coliform bacteria: organisms associated with the intestines of warm-blooded animals that are used to indicate the presence of feces in water and the potential presence of disease-causing organisms flood plain: lowland and relatively flat areas adjacent to a river channel, formed from sediments deposited by the river during floods flow regulation: the control of natural water flow by means of water diversions, impoundments or withdrawals flyway: a geographic migration pathway for birds, including breeding and wintering areas food chain: a specific nutrient and energy pathway in ecosystems proceeding from producer to consumers; along the pathway, organisms in higher trophic levels gain energy and nutrients by consuming organisms at lower trophic levels food web: the complex intermeshing of individual food chains in an ecosystem Forest Management Agreement (FMA): in Alberta, an agreement between the government and a company regarding timber harvesting access, rights and obligations in a given area frazil ice: a slushy mush of ice spikelets formed by freezing in turbulent waters
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		geomorphology: the physical shape and configuration of landforms giardiasis ("beaver fever"): a waterborne intestinal disease caused by giardia, a flagellated protozoan; giardia is commonly found in feces-contaminated water glacial till: unstratified, poorly sorted material deposited directly by ice; consisting of clay, silt, sand, gravel and boulders gross pathology: pathology dealing with the "naked eye appearance" of diseased tissues and organs (see also pathology) groundwater: water that occupies pores and crevices in rock and soil, below the surface and above a layer of impermeable material Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality (GCDWQ): recommended limits on the levels of various physical, chemical, microbial and radiological parameters in drinking water, as established by the federal government for the protection of human health or other reasons
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		habitat: the environment in which a population or individual occurs, including the particular characteristics of that place (e.g., climate, food availability, etc.) that make it especially well-suited to that species halogen: one of the family of chemical elements including fluorine, chlorine, bromine and iodine halogenated hydrocarbon: one of a group of halogen derivatives of organic hydrogen and carbon-containing compounds headwaters: the upper reaches of a drainage system heavy metal: a metallic element of high atomic weight (e.g., gold, platinum and lead) herbicide: a chemical used to destroy or deter plant growth herbivores: strictly plant-eating animals; primary consumers in the food chain home range: the general area of an organisms' normal activity hydraulic: pertaining to fluids in motion, or to the power exerted by water conveyed through pipes or channels hydrocarbons: chemical compounds composed only of hydrogen and carbon (e.g., fossil fuels are often referred to as hydrocarbon fuels) hydrogen peroxide: a chemical compound with the formula H2O2, commonly used as an oxidizing or bleaching agent hydrograph: a graph indicating the flow (discharge), stage (level), velocity, or other characteristics of flowing water at a given location over time hydrology: the science of water, its properties, phenomena, laws and distribution hypoxia: the failure of oxygen to gain access to, or to be utilized by the body
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		ice jam: an accumulation of broken river or sea ice caught in a narrow channel inconnu: a game fish belonging to the family Salmonidae found in Alaska and northwest Canada indicator species: an animal species used to indicate the presence or absence of any particular factor, such as heavy metals inorganic: referring to a substance that is neither plant nor animal in origin in-situ: in its original site or position, commonly used to describe "in the field" instream flow needs: the quantity of water that must remain in a river or stream to either protect aquatic or riparian ecosystems or satisfy human activities interim maximum acceptable concentration (IMAC): a temporary guideline prescribed under the Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality for those substances for which there is insufficient information to form a reliable maximum acceptable concentration (see also maximum acceptable concentration)   land drainage: the removal of water from wet or waterlogged land to render it suitable for cultivation, building development, etc. leachate: a liquid that has filtered slowly through a solid and dissolved parts of the solid; also, leakage from a landfill site lindane: a toxic pesticide that is now under restricted use in many countries loading: a quantity of a particular chemical entering the environment, calculated over time (e.g., tonnes per month) luvisolic soils: soil developed on a wide range of parent materials under mixed deciduous-coniferous forests in moderately well-drained to imperfectly drained sites
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		macroinvertebrate: invertebrate that can be seen with the naked eye mainstem: the primary path of a river maximum acceptable concentration (MAC): defined under the Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality as the highest concentration of a chemical that will not result in a significant risk to consumer health over a lifetime of consumption mean: average of a series of values median: value dividing a series into two equal parts: those of greater and those of lesser value mercury: a liquid metallic element that may damage the nervous system if ingested or inhaled, and whose organic compounds are poisonous metallothionein: a group of proteins that are produced when animals are exposed to heavy metals such as cadmium and mercury. methylmercury: a toxic form of organic mercury often found in recently submerged areas microorganism: a living organism that is too small to be seen with the naked eye Ministers: in the context of this report and unless otherwise specified, "Ministers" refers specifically to the Ministers representing Environment Canada, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, Alberta Environmental Protection and the Northwest Territories Department of Renewable Resources mitigation measure: an activity that lessens or offsets an effect or impact mixed function oxygenases (MFOs): a group of hormones found in the liver that serve as a natural defence against toxic compounds monitoring: the process of checking, observing, or keeping track of something for a specified period of time or at specified intervals municipality: a town, city or district having a charter of incorporation or possessing self-government muskeg: wetland in boreal forests, typified by sphagnum moss which accumulates to form peat, and black spruce mutagenic: causing heritable alteration of the genetic material within living cells
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		near-field: within 100 km of a point source discharge nephelometric turbidity unit (NTU): a measure of the cloudiness of a solution non-conventional drinking water: water that has not been processed by a drinking water treatment facility, but may be treated by alternative methods (e.g., boiling, filtering, etc.) non-point source: a pollution source by which contaminants are discharged over a widespread area or from a number of small inputs rather than from distinct, identifiable sources northern river basins: within the context of the Northern River Basins Study, the watershed, including all land and freshwater, within the confines of the combined drainage areas of the Peace, Athabasca and Slave Rivers nutrients: chemicals necessary for the growth and reproduction of plants; the major plant nutrients include carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus   oil sands: a surface or near-surface sand or sandstone containing a high percentage of very viscous hydrocarbons organic: describing material originating from living organisms, or chemicals based on carbon and hydrogen organism: any living animal or plant organochlorines: organic compounds containing chlorine
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		part per "X": part per million (ppm): one part in 1,000,000 parts part per billion (ppb): one part in 1,000,000,000 parts part per trillion (ppt): one part in 1,000,000,000,000 parts part per quadrillion (ppq): one part in 1,000,000,000,000,000 parts pathogen: any disease-producing substance or microorganism pathology: branch of medical science dealing with the essential nature of disease, especially the changes to the structure and function of tissues and organs periphyton: algae living on rocks or sediments at the bottom of a river or lake persistent toxic substances: substances that kill, injure or impair organisms, and endure a long time in the environment pesticide: a chemical used to destroy, deter or mitigate unwanted plants or animals pH: a measure of acidity; on a scale of 1 to 14, solutions with a pH less than 7 are acidic, those with a pH greater than 7 are basic, and those with a pH of 7 are neutral photosynthesis: the synthesis of living cells of organic compounds from simple inorganic compounds using light energy physiography: a general description of nature and natural phenomena point-source: any discernible, confined and discrete conveyance, such as a pipe, ditch, channel, tunnel, conduit, well, discrete fissure, container, rolling stock, landfill leachate collection system or vessel from which pollutants are discharged pollution prevention: within the context of Board recommendations, the elimination or virtual elimination of the generation, use and discharge of persistent toxic substances that tend to accumulate in the environment polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB): one of a group of chlorinated substances that are often linked to cancer, reproductive disorders and liver disfunction polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH): one of a class of hydrocarbon compounds containing more than one aromatic ring structure; e.g., naphthalene predator: an animal that preys on others as a food source productivity: the rate of organic matter production by organisms for maintenance; usually measured as the increase in growth or carbon content over a time interval progradation: the outward advance of a shoreline resulting from the nearshore deposition of sediments by a river
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		radionuclide: a radioactive element contained in a radioactive compound raw water: surface or groundwater that is available as a source of drinking water but has not received any treatment reaeration: recharging of dissolved gases in water reference site: an area used as a control in a scientific experiment reservoir: an artificial lake created behind a dam for storing water or producing hydroelectric power respiration: breathing; the use of oxygen to provide energy riparian: related to, living in, or located on the bank of a river or lake river reach: a relatively uniform Section of a river river stage: the level of the water surface runoff: the portion of the total precipitation on an area that flows away into surface streams
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		salmonellosis: any infection caused by salmonella bacteria; usually manifested as food poisoning and causing severe diarrhea and cramping sediment oxygen demand (SOD): the rate that dissolved oxygen from the water column is consumed by chemical and biological processes at or near the riverbed, such as respiration by benthic organisms, degradation of organic matter and chemical oxidation sediment: material such as sand, silt and clay that is suspended in moving water but will settle to the bottom in still water seismic lines: strips where the land surface has been bulldozed for the purpose of seismic exploration of petroleum reserves; survey crews travel along these strips to map the underlying geological structure by measuring return vibrations sensory: of sensation or the senses sewage treatment plant (STP): municipal or domestic treatment facilities where sewage undergoes a process to remove or alter its original bacterial content shigellosis: also known as bacillary dysentery, acute diarrhea acquired by person-to-person contact usually through eating contaminant food or drinking contaminated water silt: fine sediments deposited by water snowmelt: water resulting from melting snow snye: a side channel in a river or creek solenetzic soils: moderately well-drained to imperfectly drained soils developed on saline parent material in cool sub-humid to sub-arid climates under grassland vegetation species: a group of individuals that share certain identical physical characteristics and are capable of producing fertile offspring spring freshet: the annual spring rise in the water level of streams in cold climates as a result of the influx of water from melting snow stakeholder: any individual or group that affects, or is affected by, management decisions in a specific area summerfallow: land left unsown, usually for a season, to conserve moisture in the soil and allow accumulation of nitrogen surface water: water that remains at, or close to the land surface (e.g., a river) suspended solids: small particles of solids distributed through water
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		terpenes: a class of hydrocarbons found especially in plant oils, resins or balsams terrestrial ecosystem: an interactive relationship among all land plants and animals (including humans) and the non-living environment terrestrial: land-based 2,3,7,8-TCDD (2,3,7,8-tetrachlordibenzo-p-dioxin): the most toxic form of a group of chlorinated organic compounds generally referred to as dioxins; chlorine bleaching of wood pulp is one source of this compound (see also: dioxins and furans) 2,3,7,8-TCDF (2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzofuran): the most toxic form of a group of chlorinated organic compounds generally referred to as furans; chlorine bleaching of wood pulp is one source of this compound (see also: dioxins and furans) thermomechanical pulp (TMP) mill: an industrial plant manufacturing pulp from wood that uses heat and mechanical action to break down wood chips into soft pulp total dissolved solids: a measure of the concentration of solids dissolved in water total nitrogen: the sum of all forms of nitrogen (both dissolved and particulate) in water total phosphorus: the sum of all forms of phosphorus (both dissolved and particulate) in water toxaphene: the generic name for chlorinated camphene; an amber, waxy solid with a mild odour of chlorine and camphor that is toxic by ingestion, inhalation and skin absorption; most uses of toxaphene are now banned toxic: a substance or concentration of a substance that is harmful to a living organism toxicology: the branch of medical science devoted to the study of poisons, including their mode of action, effects, detection and counter-measures tributary: a stream that joins, feeds or flows into a lake or larger stream trihalomethanes: a general term given to a group of substances that contain three halogens (chlorine, fluorine, bromine or iodine) trophic level: functional classification of organisms in a community according to feeding relationships; the first trophic level includes green plants, the second level includes herbivores, and so on turbidity: the cloudiness in a fluid caused by the presence of finely divided, suspended material typhoid fever: an infectious fever characterized by an eruption of red spots on the chest and abdomen and severe intestinal irritation   upstream: towards the source of a river (i.e., upriver)
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		waterborne diseases: those transmitted by the ingestion of contaminated water whereby the infectious agent is passively carried in the water supply watershed: the area that supplies water to a stream by surface or groundwater runoff weir: a dam across a stream raising the level of water above it References: Anonymous,. 1990. Webster s New World Encyclopedia. Prentice Hall General Reference, New York. Agriculture Canada. 1986. The Canadian System for Soil Classification, 2nd ed. 164 pp. Alberta-Pacific Forest Industries Inc. 1989. Alberta Pacific Forest Industries Inc. Environmental Impact Assessment. Bleached Kraft Mill Main Report. Alberta, Canada. Allaby, M., ed. 1984. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Ecology. Oxford University Press, New York. Allaby, M. 1989. MacMillan Dictionary of the Environment, 3rd ed. New York University Press, New York, U.S.A. 423 pp. American Water Works Association. 1990. Water Quality and Treatment: A Handbook of Community Water Supplies, 4th ed. McGraw Hill Inc. New York. 455 pp.
NRBS - Home Table of Contents Top of Page		Bishop, C. and D.V. Weseloh. 1990. Contaminants In Herring Gull Eggs From The Great Lakes. SOE Fact Sheet No. 90-1. Burlington, Ontario: Environment Canada, Canadian Wildlife Service. Considine, D.M., 1976. Van Norstrand's Scientific Encyclopedia., 5th ed. Van Norstrand Reinhold Company, Toronto Coolet, D.G. 1973. Better Homes and Gardens Family Medical Guide. Better Homes and Gardens Books, New York. Crouch, J. E. 1985. Functional Human Anatomy,. 4th edition. Lea & Febiger, Philadelphia. Federal-Provincial Subcommittee on Drinking Water of the Federal-Provincial Advisory Committee on Environmental and Occupational Health. 1993. Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality,. 5th ed. Ottawa, Ontario. 24 pp. Government of Canada. 1991. The State of Canada's Environment - 1991. Ottawa, Ontario. Hale, W.G. and J.P. Margham., 1988. Collins Reference Dictionary of Biology. Collins, London. Hayward, A.L. and J.J. Sparkes. 1984. The Concise English Dictionary, 5th ed. Omega Books, London, England. 1348 pp. Krebs, C.J. 1985. Ecology, The Experimental Analysis of Distribution and Abundance, 3rd ed. Harper & Row Publishers, New York. McGraw-Hill. 1994. Concise Encyclopedia of Science and Technology, 3rd edition. McGraw-Hill, Toronto, Canada. Mitchell, L.G., Mutchmore, J.A. and W.D. Dolphin. 1988. Zoology. The Benjamin / Cummings Publishing Company, Inc., Toronto. Mitchell, P. and E. Prepas, eds. 1990. Atlas of Alberta Lakes. The University of Alberta Press. Edmonton. 675 pp. Morris, C. 1992. Academic Press Dictionary of Science and Technology. Academic Press, Toronto. Province of British Columbia, Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks and Environment Canada. 1993. State of the Environment Report for British Columbia. 127 pp. Society of American Foresters, 1983. Terminology of Forest Science Technology Practice and Products. F.C. Ford-Robertson, Editor. The Multilingual Forestry Terminology Series No. 1. Addendum Number One. Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary. 1975. G.&C. Merriam Company, Springfield, Massachusetts. U.S.A. 1535 pp. Uvarov, E.B. and A. Isaacs., 1988. The Penguin Dictionary of Science, 6th ed. Penguin Books, London. Whittaker, R.H. 1975. Communities and Ecosystems,. 2nd ed. MacMillan Publishing Co., Inc., New York. World Health Organization. 1993. Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality. Volume 1: Recommendations, 2nd ed. Geneva. 188 pp.

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