| Warm front
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| A long, wedge-shaped boundary caused when a warmer advancing air mass slides over neighboring cooler air parcels.
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| Waste stream
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| The steady flow of varied wastes, from domestic garbage and yard wastes to industrial, commercial, and construction refuse.
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| Waste-to-energy (WTE)
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| A process of combustion of solid wastes that also generates electrical energy.
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| Water cycle
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| The recycling and reutilization of water on Earth, including atmospheric, surface, and underground phases and biological and nonbiological components.
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| Water droplet coalescence
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| A mechanism of condensation that occurs in clouds too warm for ice crystal formation.
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| Water-holding capacity
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| The ability of a soil to hold water so that it will be available to plants.
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| Waterlogging
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| Water saturation of soil that fills all air spaces and causes plant roots to die from lack of oxygen; a result of overirrigation.
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| Water table
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| The top layer of the zone of saturation; undulates according to the surface topography and subsurface structure.
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| Watershed
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| The total land area that drains directly or indirectly into a particular stream or river. The watershed is generally named from the stream or river into which it drains.
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| Water vapor
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| Water molecules in the gaseous state.
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| Watt
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| Unit of power indicating rate at which electrical work is being performed.
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| Wave power
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| Energy derived from sea waves.
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| Weather
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| Description of the physical conditions of the atmosphere (moisture, temperature, pressure, and wind).
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| Weathering
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| Changes in rocks brought about by exposure to air, water, changing temperatures, and reactive chemical agents.
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| Wet cleaning
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| A water-based alternative to dry cleaning that avoids the use of hazardous chemicals.
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| Wet cooling tower
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| Device used for cooling water from power plants. Hot water flows through rising air, which draws off heat. Cool water is then returned to the system.
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| Wetlands
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| Ecosystems of several types in which rooted vegetation is surrounded by standing water during part of the year. See also swamp, marsh, bog, fen.
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| Wetland systems
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| A biological aquatic system (usually a restored wetlands) to remove nutrients from treated sewage wastewater and return it, virtually pure, to a river or steam. Wetland systems are sometimes used when using treated wastewater for irrigation is not feasible.
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| Wilderness
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| An area of undeveloped land affected primarily by the forces of nature; and area where humans are visitors who do not remain.
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| Wilderness Act
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| Legislation of 1964 recognizing that leaving land in its natural state may be the highest and best use of some areas.
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| Wilderness area
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| An area established by the US Congress under the Wilderness Act (1964) where timber cutting and use of motorized vehicles are prohibited. Most art located in national forests.
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| Wildlife
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| Plants, animals, and microbes that live independently of humans; plants, animals, and microbes that are not domesticated.
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| Wildlife refuges
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| Areas set aside to shelter, feed, and protect wildlife; due to political and economic pressures, refuges often allow hunting, trapping, mineral exploitation, and other activities that threaten wildlife.
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| Windbreak
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| Rows of trees or shrubs planted to block wind flow, reduce soil erosion, and protect sensitive crops from high winds.
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| Windrows
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| Piles of organic material extended into long rows to facilitate turning and aeration to enhance composting.
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| Wind energy
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| Energy captured from the wind to generate electricity or pump water. An indirect form of solar energy.
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| Wind farms
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| Large numbers of windmills concentrated in a single area; usually owned by a utility or large-scale energy producer.
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| Wind generators
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| Windmills that produce electrical energy.
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| Wind turbines
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| ¡§windmills¡¨ designed for the purpose of producing electrical power.
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| WIPP (waste isolation pilot plant).
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| A facility built by the department of energy in New Mexico to receive defense-related nuclear wastes.
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| Wise Use movement
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| A coalition of ranchers, loggers miners, industrialists, hunters, off-road vehicle users, land developers, and others who call for unrestricted access to natural resources and public lands.
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| Withdrawal
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| A description of the total amount of water taken from a lake, river, or aquifer.
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| Woodland
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| A forest where tree crowns cover less than 20 percent of the ground; also called open canopy.
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| Work
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| The application of force through a distance; requires energy input.
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| Workability
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| With reference to soils, the relative ease with which a soil can be cultivated.
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| World Bank
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| A branch of the United Nations that acts as a conduit to handle loans to developing countries.
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| World conservation strategy
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| A proposal for maintaining essential ecological processes, preserving genetic diversity, and ensuring that utilization of species and ecosystems is sustainable.
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| World ocean
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| The interconnected world seas and oceans.
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| World view
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| A set of assumptions that a person holds regarding the world and how it works.
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