Reducing the degree or intensity of, or eliminating, pollution, as a water pollution abatement program
Glossary » A
ABATEMENT
ABSORPTION
(1) The entrance of water into the soil or rocks by all natural processes, including the infiltration of precipitation or snowmelt, gravity flow of streams into the valley alluvium into sinkholes or other large openings, and the movement of atmospheric moisture. (2) The uptake of water or dissolved chemicals by a cell or an organism (as tree roots absorb dissolved nutrients in soil).
ACCESS
The way for a person to enter a lake usually with a boat. Types of accesses include: easement access, funnel access, lake access and public access.
ACCLIMATIZATION
The adaptation by an organism to new physical and/or environmental conditions. With respect to water, it is frequently used in reference to the ability of a species to tolerate changes in water temperature, degradation of water quality, or increased levels of salinity.
AERATION
The act of adding oxygen. In Lake management it is adding oxygen to the water to stabilize the oxygen for beneficial bacteria, fish and other life forms.
AEROBIC
Occurring in the presence of oxygen or requiring oxygen to live. In aerobic respiration, which is the process used by the cells of most organisms, the production of energy from glucose metabolism requires the presence of oxygen.
ALGAE
Simple single-celled, colonial, or multi-celled, mostly aquatic plants, containing chlorophyll and lacking roots, stems and leaves. Aquatic algae are microscopic plants that grow in sunlit water that contains phosphates, nitrates, and other nutrients. Algae, like all aquatic plants, add oxygen to the water and are important in the fish food chain. Algae is either suspended in water (plankton) or attached to rocks and other substrates (periphyton). Their abundance, as measured by the amount of chlorophyll a (green pigment) in an open water sample, is commonly used to classify the trophic status of a lake. Algae are a essential part of the lake ecosystem and provides the food base for most lake organisms, including fish. Phytoplankton populations vary widely from day to day, as life cycles are short.
ALKALINITY
Measure of the ability of a solution to neutralize acids, which can limit dangerous pH swings caused by the introduction of highly acidic or basic substances, the affects of which can be compounded by the consequent loss of plant, algal, and other aquatic life.
ANAEROBIC
Occurring in the absence of oxygen or not requiring oxygen to live. Anaerobic bacteria produce energy from food molecules without the presence of oxygen.
