WATER TERMS

term	description
WALT	A unit of powder indicating the rate at which work is done. The faster an agent can do work the more powerful it is, therefore, the higher its wattage.
WASTE HEAT	Heat that escapes to the atmosphere during combustion processes. Minimizing and recapturing waste heat is a valuable energy conserving strategy. For example, in homes there is heat in graywater, flues from wood-burning stoves, and heat pump fluids that can be captured for other uses such as preheating domestic hot water.
WASTE WATER TREATMENT	Water that is discharged from homes and businesses from sinks, toilets, washers, showers, etc. It is treated through a series of separation and aeration processes. A small amount of chlorine is added to Austin's wastewater before it enters the Colorado River.
WATER BUDGET	This is the calculated amount of water a household should use based on the type and number of fixtures, landscape requirements, and size of family. ECSD's Water Conservation Program can assist in developing the budget.
WATER CONSERVING IRRIGATION SYSTEM	Drip irrigation, soaker hoses, bubblers, and low-trajectory spray heads for water distribution; zoning irrigation for different water-demand plant types; electronic timers with five-day programming and rain override devices; irrigation schedules for early morning watering every five to seven days; soil moisture sensors.
WATER CYCLE	The process by which water travels in a sequence from the air (condensation) to the earth (precipitation) and returns to the atmosphere (evaporation). It is also referred to as the hydrologic cycle.
WATER FLOW	The rate of flow of water measured in volume and time.
WATER LAW	A law that has been instigated to control the right to the use of water.
WATER LEVEL	The water surface elevation of a particular water body.
WATER LOSSES	Water which is unavailable or lost from a particular containment system.
WATER POLLUTION	Industrial and institutional wastes, and other harmful or objectionable material in sufficient quantities to result in a measurable degradation of the water quality.
WATER QUALITY	A term used to describe the chemical, physical, and biological characteristics of water with respect to its suitability for a particular use.
WATER QUALITY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM	The Commission's overall program for attaining and maintaining water quality consistent with the state standards, as authorized under the Texas Water Code, the Texas Administrative Code, ad the Clean Water Act, Sections 1~, 2050), 208,303(e) and 314.
WATER QUALITY STANDARD	A plan for water quality management containing four major elements water use; criteria to protect uses; enforcement plans, implementation plans; . An anti-degradation statement is sometimes prepared to protect existing high quality waters.
WATER RIGHT	A legally protected right, granted by law, to take possession of water occurring in a water supply and to divert the water and put it to beneficial use.
WATER SPREADING	The retention of water behind dams or in basins; maintenance of flow in ditches or stream channels, or infusion of water into wells and shafts to develop influent seepage.
WATER SUPPLY	Any quantity of available water.
WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM	The system for the collection, storage, treatment and distribution of potable or other kinds of water from the sources of supply to the consumer.
WATER TABLE	The upper surface of a zone of saturation; the upper surface of the ground water.
WATER WHEEL	A device such as an turbine or similar engine to transform the energy of flowing water into mechanical power.
WATER WITCH	A person who predicts the presence of underground water with hand-held tools such as forked twigs or metal rods. The United States Geological Survey and the National Water Well Association do not advise against using a water witch to search for ground water, but say that there is no scientific basis for the belief in water witchery.
WATER YEAR	The 12-month period, usually October 1 through September 30. The water year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends and which includes 9 of the 12 months. Thus, the year ending September 30,1979 is called the1979 Water Year.
WATERCOURSES	Depressions formed by runoff moving over the surface of the earth; any natural course that carries water.
WATERFALL	A sudden, nearly vertical drop in a stream, as it flows over rock.
WATERMASTER	An employee of a water department who distributes available water supply at the request of water right holders and collects hydrographic data.
WATERSHED	The area of land that contributes surface runoff to a given point in a drainage system.
WATERSHEDS ASSESSMENTS PROGRAM	The program implementing the assessments mandated by the Texas Clean Rivers Act (SB818).
WAVE	A regular movement on a surface or within a material when energy travels through it. On the surface of an ocean or body of water, it is usually in the form of a curving swell or ridge.
WAVE MACHINE	A device used for converting the energy of ocean waves into electrical energy. It can also make waves at a water recreation site for swimming or surfing.
WEATHER	The composite condition of the near earth atmosphere, which includes barometric pressure, wind, humidity, clouds and precipitation. Weather variations over a long period create the climate.
WELL DRILLERS	Individuals who have the equipment and ability to drill or dig wells.
WELL LOGS	A record that is kept during well drilling of the various formations and rock materials and the depths at which they are encountered.
WET COOLING	A type of cooling system which uses the evaporation of water to help dissipate excess heat.
WETLANDS	An area (including swamp, marsh, bog, prairie pothole, or similar area) having a predominance of hydric soils that are inundated or saturated by surface or groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support and that under normal circumstances supports the anaerobic condition that supports the growth and regeneration of hydrophytic vegetation. The term Òhydric soilÓ means soil that, in its undrained condition, is saturated, flooded, or pended long enough during a growing season to develop an anaerobic condition that supports the growth and regeneration of hydrophytic vegetation. The term hydrophytic vegetation means a plant growing in water or a substrate that is at least periodically deficient in oxygen during a growing season as a result of excessive water content. The term wetland does not include irrigated acreage used as farmiand; a man-made wetland of less than one acre; or a man-made wetland not constructed with wetland creation as a stated objective, including but not limited to an impoundment made for the purpose of soil and water conservation which has been approved or requested by soil and water conservation districts.
WIND	Moving air.
WIND MACHINE	A machine that generates electricity by the wind turning a generator-connected wind propeller. Austin is not a prime area for wind machines due to low annual wind speeds. However, new models that perform at lower wind speeds are becoming available.
WINDWALLS	These are small outside walls on a building set perpendicular to an exterior wall with windows on the side of the wingwall. A negative pressure zone is created by the wingwalls stimulating air movement through the windows.
WORK PLAN	A document outlining the proposed scope of work, including a time schedule id cost expenditures, from the river authority or designated local government to perform a service.
WASTE WATER	Water for which disposal is more economical than use at the time and point of its occurrence. Waste water to one user may be a desirable supply to the same or another user at a different location. It may be waste water because of its quality, quantity, or the time of its occurrence.
WATER	The liquid that descends from the clouds as rain; forms streams, lakes, and seas, and is a major constituent of all living matter; is an odorless, tasteless, colorless, very slightly compressible liquid.
WATER WELL REPORT	A report which a water well contractor or landowner who is constructing his own well submits to a water resources department. It includes the location and dimensions of the well, its flow, a record of geologic materials encountered in drilling, the temperature of the ground water, and other data.

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