Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

Used in reference to wells, abandonment is a process by which a well is filled and sealed from bottom to top

The reduction or elimination of pollution.

To take up or receive by chemical or molecular action.

Response by an animal that enables it to tolerate a change in a single factor (for example, temperature) in its environment.

A material with pH of less than 7.0

A comprehensive term for the various ways acidic compounds precipitate from the atmosphere and deposit onto surfaces. It can include: 1) wet deposition by means of acid rain, fog, and snow; and 2) dry deposition of acidic particles (aerosols).

Rain with a higher than normal acid range. Caused when polluted air mixes with cloud moisture. The "acid" in acid rain comes from sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides, products of burning coal and other fuels and from certain industrial processes. Acid rain can make lakes devoid of fish and damage human health and property.

A special carbon in powdered or grainy form that attracts and holds organic molecules. It is often used to remove dissolved contaminants.

Adjustments made by animals in respect of their environments. The adjustments may occur by natural selection, as individuals with favorable genetically acquired traits breed more prolifically than those lacking these traits (genotypic adaptation), or they may involve non-genetic changes in individuals, such as physiological modification (for example, acclimatization) or behavioral changes (phenotypic adaptation).

To gather a gas, liquid or dissolved substance on a surface

The clinging of molecules to the surface of particles; the process by which activated carbon removes contaminants from water.

Federal and state government-prescribed levels of a pollutant in the outside air that cannot be exceeded during a specified period of time in a specified geographical area.

Removing contaminants from water by enlarging the water's surface area and forcing air over it to evaporate volatile contaminants

A category of substances in the air that are known or suspected of causing cancer or other health problems in humans, and for which a National Ambient Air Quality standard (NAAQS) does not exist (i.e. excluding ozone, carbon monoxide, PM-10, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide).

Simple rootless plants that grow in bodies of water in relative proportion to the amount of nutrients available.