Flood, levee, and erosion control glossary - P
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Palisade
A barrier.
Particulate Materials
Materials in the atmosphere that can
reduce visibility, cause harm to human health, and soil the surfaces on which
they settle. These materials can include dust, pollen, ash, and smoke. If
inhaled, these materials can be deposited in the human respiratory system and
may damage human health.
Parts Per Billion (ppb), Parts Per Million (ppm)
Units
commonly used to express contamination ratios, as in establishing the maximum
permissible amount of a contaminant in water, land, or air.
Pasture Land
Grassy areas for raising and feeding livestock.
Photo courtesy of USDA NRCS. |
Photo of Pasture Land. |
Pathological Condition
Abnormal anatomic or physiological
condition.
Peak Discharge
The maximum instantaneous rate of flow
during a storm, usually in reference to a specific design storm event.
Peer Review
Written, critical response to a study, data,
or report provided by scientists and other technically qualified professionals.
Perched Aquifer
An aquifer containing unconfined
(unpressurized) ground water held above a lower body of ground water by an
unsaturated zone; often a result of clay lenses in the soil strata.
Perched Beach
A beach retained above the otherwise normal
profile level by a submerged sill.
Perched Groundwater
Water which accumulates beneath the
earth's surface but above the main water bearing zone (or aquifer).
Percolating Water
Water that passes through rocks or soil
under the force of gravity.
Percolation
The downward movement of water through soil
and rock. The terms infiltration and percolation are often used
interchangeably.
Perennial Plant
A plant that normally lives three or more
years.
Perennial Stream
A stream that normally contains flowing water at all times.
Perimeter Footing
A wall made of concrete that projects
downward from the edge of a concrete slab into the earth.
Permanent Flood Proofing
Permanent protection would be
provided against flooding which does not depend upon any judgment, flood
forecast, or action to put flood protection measures into effect.
Permeability
A measure of how well the spaces in the soil
or rock are connected. Used to determine the ease with which rock, soil, or
sediment will transmit a fluid. The property of soil or rock that allows water
to pass through it.
Permeability Rate
The rate at which water will move
through a saturated soil.
Permeability, Soil
The quality of a soil horizon that
enables water or air to move through it. The permeability of a soil may be
limited by the presence of one nearly impermeable horizon even though the
others are permeable.
Permeable Materials
Materials that allow liquids to move
through them easily. Gravel, sand, sandstone, or fractured rock such as
limestone are permeable materials because they have large connected spaces that
allow ground water to flow through.
Permeable Soils
Soil materials with a sufficiently rapid
infiltration rate so as to greatly reduce or eliminate surface and stormwater runoff.
These soils are generally classified as SCS hydrologic soil types A and B.
Pesticides
A general term used to describe chemical
substances (e.g., chlordane, DDT, and kepone) that are used to destroy or
control insect or plant pests. Many of these substances are manufactured and do
not occur naturally in the environment. Others are natural toxins that are
extracted from plants and animals.
pH
A measure ranging from 0 to 14 that describes the
acidity or alkalinity of a substance based on hydrogen ion activity. A pH of
7.0 is neutral, values below 7.0 are acid, and above 7.0 are alkaline.
Photodegradable
Materials that are not resistant to
ultraviolet radiation and therefore break down relatively quickly when exposed
to sunlight.
Phytoplankton
Minute plant life (e.g., algae), usually
containing chlorophyll, that passively drifts or weakly swims in a water body.
Phytoplankton Bloom
A sharp increase in the population of
phytoplankton, often occurring in the spring, summer, or fall in different areas
of an estuary.
Pier
An upright support member of a building that is
designed and constructed to function as an independent structural element in
supporting and transmitting building and environmental loads to the ground.
Piezometers
Small-diameter wells used to measure
groundwater levels.
Pile
An upright support member of a building that is
usually long and slender in shape, driven or jetted into the ground by
mechanical means, and primarily supported by friction between the pile and the
surrounding earth. A long, heavy timber, pipe, or section of concrete or metal
to be driven or jetted into the earth or seabed to serve as a support for a
bulkhead.
Pile, Sheet
A pile with a generally slender flat cross section to be driven into the ground or seabed and meshed or interlocked with like members to form a diaphragm, wall, or bulkhead. Same as sheet piling.
Piping
The passage of water through an embankment of earth
that begins extremely slowly with gradual wetting of the earth and proceeds to
increase gradually in flow until flood protection failure occurs. Flow of
groundwater through subsurface conduits in the bank.
Planting Season
The period of the year when planting or
transplanting is considered advisable from the standpoint of successful
establishment.
Plugging
Act or process of stopping the flow of water,
oil, or gas into or out of a formation through a borehole or well penetrating
that formation. Establishing turfgrass using plugs of sod.
Plume
A body of contaminated groundwater flowing from a
specific source.
PMR
Abbreviation for Physical Map Revision.
Point Bar
The bank in a bend that has built up because of
sediment deposition.
Point Source
Refers to a source of pollutants from a
single point of conveyance, such as a pipe. For example, the discharge from a
sewage treatment plant or factory is a point source.
Point-Source Pollution
Direct pollution from industries
and sewage; also called single-point-source pollution.
Pollutant
Any chemical or biological substance in a form
that can be incorporated into, onto, or be ingested by aquatic organisms,
consumers of aquatic organisms, or users of the aquatic environment. Generally,
any substance introduced into the environment that adversely affects the
usefulness of a resource or the health of humans, animals, or ecosystems.
Pollution Plume
An area of a stream or aquifer containing
degraded water resulting from migration of a pollutant.
Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs)
A group of closely
related and manufactured chemicals made up of carbon, hydrogen, and chlorine.
PCBs can persist for a long time in the environment and they can bioaccumulate
and biomagnify in aquatic food webs. PCBs are suspected of causing cancer in
humans. They are an example of an organic contaminant.
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs)
A class of
chemical compounds composed of fused six-carbon rings. PAHs are commonly found
in petroleum oils (e.g., gasoline and fuel oils) and are emitted from various
combustion processes (e.g., automobile exhausts, electric companies).
Polyhaline/Euhaline Waters
Waters having salinity greater
than 18 ppt.
Pond
A body of water usually smaller than a lake, encircled by vegetation, and
generally shallow enough for sunlight to reach the bottom. Rooted plants can
grow in any spot within the pond creating a habitat for various forms of animal
life.
|
Photo of a Pond. |
Ponding
Accumulation of standing water in low spots.
Ponding occurs where there is impermeable soil that prevents water
infiltration.
Photo courtesy of USACE. |
Photo of Ponding. |
Pores
The spaces in a gravel aquifer.
Porosity
Degree to which soil, gravel, sediment, or rock
is permeated with pores or cavities through which water or air can move.
Post
A long, upright support unit for a building that is
set in predug holes and backfilled with compacted material. Each post usually
requires bracing to other units. Posts are also known as columns, although
posts are usually made of wood.
Post-Construction Storm Water Management
The SWPPP shall
describe the control practices to reduce pollutants in storm water discharges
after all construction phases have been completed at the site. These must be
consistent will all local post-construction storm water management requirements,
policies, and guidelines. The discharger must consider site-specific and
seasonal conditions when designing the control practices. Operation and
maintenance of control practices after construction is completed shall be
addressed, including short- and long-term funding sources and the responsible
party.
Potable Water
Water that is safe for drinking and cooking.
ppm
Abbreviation for p arts-per-million; a common basis for reporting water
analysis. One ppm equals one unit of measurement per million units of the same
measurement. The equivalent to microgram per gram (m g/g) or milligrams per
liter (mg/L).
ppt
Abbreviation for parts per thousand (used as a measurement of
salinity).
Precipitation
Moisture that falls from the atmosphere as
rain, snow, sleet, or hail. Precipitation varies in amount, intensity, and form
by season and geographic location.
Principal Aquifer
The aquifer in a given
area that is the important economic source of water to wells for drinking,
irrigation, etc.
Principles and Standards/Principles and Guidelines
"The Principles and
Standards for Planning of Water and Related Land Resources" is a
Presidential policy statement issued in September 1973 which established a
framework for improved planning for the use of water and related land resources
based on the objectives of National Economic Development and Environmental
Quality. The "Principles and Standards" were revised and issued as
the "Economic and Environmental Principles and Guidelines for Water and
Related Land Resources for Implementation Studies."
Probable Maximum Flood
The most severe flood that may be
expected from a combination of the most critical meteorological and
hydrological conditions that are reasonably possible in the drainage basin. It
is used in designing high-risk flood protection works and siting of structures
and facilities that must be subject to almost no risk of flooding. The probable
maximum flood is usually much larger than the 100-year flood.
Profile
A graph or plot of the water surface elevation against distance along
a channel. Also termed "flood profile" if drawn for a specific flood
or level of flooding.
Propagation of Waves
The transmission of waves through water.
Protected Area
That area protected from flooding by a flood proofing measure such as a levee or floodwall.
Provisionally Accredited Levee (PAL)
A levee credited with providing 1%-annual-chance flood protection on an effective flood map; however, FEMA is awaiting data and/or documentation that shows the levee’s compliance with NFIP regulations. The area landward is shown as Zone X (shaded) except for areas of residual flooding, which are shown as Special Flood Hazard Area - SFHAs.
Provisionally Accredited Levee (PAL)
A levee that FEMA has previously credited with providing 1-percentannual-chance protection on an effective FIRM or DFIRM, for which FEMA is awaiting data and/ or documentation that will show the levee’s compliance with Section 65.10 of the NFIP regulations. A PAL is shown on a DFIRM as providing 1-percentannual-chance flood protection, and the area landward of the levee is shown as Zone X (shaded) on a flood map except for areas of residual flooding such as ponding areas which will be shown as a Special Flood Hazard Area - SFHA.
PRP
Abbreviation for Preferred Risk Policy.
Public Trust Doctrine
The doctrine based on the common law principle that
certain lands and waters are so important to the public that private ownership
or other impediments to public uses should not be permitted. Under the Public
Trust Doctrine, the coastal states generally hold title to the foreshore, open
tidal waters, and submerged land under tidal waters seaward of the mean high
water line as trustee for the public and must administer the use of these lands
in the public interest.
Proctor Curve
Curve showing the relationship between the
density and water content of soil for a given compaction; also called
compaction curve.
Productivity
The conversion of light energy and carbon
dioxide into living organic material.
Protected Area
That area protected from flooding by a flood
proofing measure such as a levee or floodwall.
Public Water System
A system that provides piped water for
human consumption to at least 15 service connections or regularly serves 25
individuals.
Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTWs)
A waste-treatment
works owned by a state, unit of local government, or Indian tribe, usually
designed to treat domestic wastewaters.
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