Banks - Banks are the sides of a river or stream between which the water normally flows.

Channel - A channel is an area that contains flowing water confined by banks.

DRO - Development Review Overlay; an additional layer of code put into the Land Development Code to protect specific areas within the city

Effluent - Effluent is wastewater (like sewage water or factory runoff) that flows from a factory or other facility.

Eutrophication - Excessive nutrients in a lake or other body of water, usually caused by runoff of nutrients (animal waste, fertilizers, sewage) from the land, which causes a dense growth of plant life; the decomposition of the plants depletes the supply of oxygen, leading to the death of animal life. 

Floodplain Storage Compensation - An artificially excavated, hydraulically equivalent volume of floodplain storage sufficient to offset a reduction in floodplain storage resulting from filling or construction within the local regulatory floodplain. Such floodplain storage compensation shall be within the same watershed and shall be provided on the same property or at an alternative site if the administering agency so approves.

"Floyds Fork" vs "Floyd's Fork" - While it is painful to drop the apostrophe, both USGS and MSD don't utilize an apostrophe in the official naming of this waterway. Even though the fork was named after John Floyd, apparently the Fork does not belong to him. Thus, this website will utilize the grammatically incorrect naming :).

Headwaters - Headwaters are streams and rivers (tributaries) that are the source of a stream or river.

LDC - Land Development Code

Metro Council - 26 elected representatives for Louisville that vote on many items including LDC changes and zoning changes

Oxbow - An oxbow is  formed when the river changes path because of soil erosion, leaving an abandoned stream channel, cut off from the rest of the river.

PC - Nine people appointed by the mayor responsible for reviewing all major subdivisions along Floyds Fork and enforcing the DRO/ZOD within the LDC

Planning Commission - responsible for reviewing all major subdivisions along Floyds Fork and enforcing the DRO within the LDC

Planning Committee - members of Metro Council that review zoning changes and textual amendments to the LDC

Riparian - Riparian means located by the banks of a river, stream, or other body of water.

Riverbed - A riverbed is the bottom of the river (or other body of water).

Runoff - Runoff is water that drains into a river (or other body of water) from uncontrolled streams, drains, or sewage lines. There is runoff from agricultural irrigation water, snowmelt, storms, etc.

Sediment - Sediment is small particles of soil or rocks that are transported by water or the wind.

Siltation - Siltation is the deposit or accumulation of very tiny soil particles (silt).

Source - The source is the beginning of a stream or river

SFFAS - South Floyds Fork Area Study (encompasses Floyds Fork within South Jefferson County from Shelbyville Rd to Bullitt County)

Top of Bank - break, change in the vertical plain where their is a significant change to horizontal plain along the edge of the bank

Tributary - A tributary is a river or stream that flows into another stream, river, or lake.

Trunk - The trunk is the main course of river.

Turbidity - refers to how clear the water is. 

USGS - United States Geological Survey

Watershed - A watershed is the term given to the land that drains water into a particular stream, lake, or river.

ZOD - Zoning Overlay District