in alphabetical order
- caucus: -- one of the 18 designated government or interest groups in the WRIA-1 Planning program
- clearcut logging: -- cutting almost all the trees from a parcel or block of land
- COB: -- City of Bellingham
- COG (sic: see WCOG)
- diversion: -- a small hydraulic engineering structure that captures some water in a stream and sends it somewhere else, in a ditch or tunnel
- DNR: -- Department of Natural Resources, State of WA
- DOE: -- Department of Ecology, State of WA (also Ecy)
- DOH: -- Department of Health, State of WA
- DOT: -- Department of Transportation (State of WA)
- erosion: -- the moving of soil or rock from one place to another by flowing water
- ground-water: -- water which is underground, in soil or rocks, at any depth
- surface-water: -- water which is on the surface of the ground
- herbicide aerial spraying: -- putting chemicals onto properties by aircraft to kill "undesirable" plants
- I&I: -- Infiltration and Inflow -- water that gets into a sanitary sewer pipeline, but should not have
- IG's: -- the Initiating Governments of the WRIA1 program (WC, COB, PUD1, LummiNation, NooksackTribe)
- Geneva: -- a UGA of the City of Bellingham, in the Lake Whatcom watershed, south shore
- PUD1: -- Public Utility District #1
- Lummi Nation: -- native american soveriegn nation, recognized by treaty with the US Government
- Nooksack Tribe: -- native american tribe, acknowledged by administrative act of the US Government
- Lake Louise Connector road: -- proposed new road between the existing Lake Louise road and Yew Street Road
- Middle Fork: -- branch of the Nooksack River
- South Fork: -- branch of the Nooksack River
- North Fork: -- branch of the Nooksack River
- MOA: -- Memorandum of Agreement
- MOU: -- Memorandum of Understanding
- PAH: -- polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (or sometimes polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbon (aka PNA))
- PCB: -- polychlorinated biphenyl - an especially toxic petroleum product formerly used in electrical transformers
- potable; potable water: -- water safe to drink, commonly: "drinking water".
- PU: -- the Planning Unit (all 18 caucusses)
- runoff: -- water which flows over a surface (roofs, pavement, land)
- second sewer line from Sudden Valley: -- proposed pipeline along Lake Louise road
- sewer system: -- pipelines and other facilities such as pumps which collect and move sewerage water
- staff team: -- employees of the IG's
- sub-soil: -- shallow geological formations
- Sudden Valley: -- a very large subdivision which has a managing Association, on the South shore of Lake Whatcom
- surface-water treatment facilities: -- engineering structures which take in possibly-polluted runoff and put out cleaner water
- tech team: -- a group of individuals selected from the caucusses to develop or review a product of the WMP
- UGA: -- an Urban Growth Area - specific designation within the Growth Management Act
- urban infrastructure : -- roads, power, communications, water and sewer systems
- urbanization: -- changing from rural to urban land use, by installing urban infrastructure
- watershed: -- the topographic basin whose runoff water flows to an identified discharge point - a "bowl with an outlet"
- WC: -- Whatcom County
- WMP: -- Watershed Management Plan (or Program)
- WCOG: -- Whatcom Council of Governments (has been WCCOG or COG)
- WD10: -- Water District #10 -- water and sewer utility serving Sudden Valley, and other regions not within a city.
- WRIA: -- Water Resource Inventory Area - there are 63 covering the State of Washington
- WRIA-1: -- Water Resource Inventory Area Number 1 - the Nooksack River watershed basin and associated basins including Lake Whatcom, California Creek, Dakota Creek and Sumas River.
- WRIA-3: -- Water Resource Inventory Area Number 3 - the Skagit River watershed basin and associated basins.
- Y-Road-east: -- (about 3495 Y Road) a lightly supervised County-owned trenched landfill that had who-knows-what dumped into in for over a decade. Shut in a hurry in the 80's by the County, before safety-regulations came into effect.
- Y-Road-west: -- (about 3400 Y Road) a nearly unsupervised open gully that had who-knows-what dumped into in for decades.
The Initiative Group
Our bottom-line principles are: Protect the water supply in perpetuity -- maintain ecological viability of the lake for natural species -- distribute the financial burden fairly among those benefitting -- take immediate action if prudent -- take definitive action -- avoid actions which cut off future options.
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