UNIVERSIDAD TECNOLÓGICA DE PANAMÁ

FACULTAD DE INGENIERÍA CIVIL

INGENIERÍA CIVIL

HYDROLOGY: the branch of geology that studies water on the earth and in the
atmosphere: its distribution and uses and conservation.

SUSTAINABILITY: sustainability refers to the ability to maintain or support a process

continuously over time. In business and policy contexts, sustainability seeks to prevent the
depletion of natural or physical resources, so that they will remain available for the long
term.

PROCESSES: a series of actions that produce something or that lead to a particular

result.

RESERVOIR: Body of water, either natural or man-made, used for storage, regulation, and
control of water resources.

STREAMFLOW: Streamflow is flowing water in a stream or a river. Rate of streamflow, or

discharge is measured at stream gauges.

ROUTING: a technique used to predict the changes in shape of a hydrograph as water

moves through a river channel or a reservoir.

PROBABILITY: Basic statistical concept either expressing in some way a "degree of belief"
or taken as a limiting relative frequency of occurrence in an infinite series. (DST)

RISK: implies future uncertainty about deviation from expected earnings or expected
outcome.

UNCERTAINTY: Estimate of the range of values within which the true value of a variable
lies.

RETURN PERIOD: Long-term average time interval between a hydrological event of a

specific magnitude and an event with equal or greater magnitude.
PRECIPITATION: Precipitation is moisture that falls onto the land surface as rain, dew,
snow or hail.

EVAPORATION: Process by which water changes from liquid to vapor at a temperature

below boiling point.

INFILTRATION: The entrance of water into the soil or other porous material through the
interstices or pores of a soil or other porous medium. Maximum rate at which water can
penetrate the
soil matrix per unit area under certain conditions.

GROUNDWATER: water that fills the cracks and spaces in underground soil and rock
layers. Water in a saturated zone of geologic stratum.

STORAGE: Impounding of water in surface underground reservoirs for future use.

TRANSPIRATION: Water is evaporated into the air through the leaves of plants.

RUNOFF: Runoff is streamflow rate, presented as the average depth of water flowing off
from the catchment area of the river basin. Typically, runoff from a river basin is presented
in units of millimeters per day or millimeters per year, enabling comparison with average
rainfall over the river basin.

BUDGET: a hydrological tool used to quantify the flow of water in and out of a system.

RESOURCE: a source of supply, support, or aid, especially one that can be readily drawn
upon when needed.

ANTHROPOGENIC: environmental change caused or influenced by people, either directly

or indirectly.

WIND: the perceptible natural movement of the air, especially in the form of a current of air
blowing from a particular direction.

HUMIDITY: is the concentration of water vapor present in the air.

WEATHER: State of the atmosphere at a particular time, as defined by the various

meteorological elements.

CLIMATE: Synthesis of weather conditions in a given area, characterized by long-term

statistics of the meteorological elements in that area.

WEIR: Overflow structure which may be controlling upstream water level measuring
discharge or for both.

FLUMES: Man-made channel with clearly specified shape and dimensions which may be
used for the measurement of discharge. (TR)

DISCHARGE: Volume of water flowing through a river (or channel) cross-section per unit
time.
MONITORING: Continuous or frequent standardized observation, measurement and
evaluation of phenomena occurring in the environment, used for warning or control.

DRAINAGE: Removal of surface water or groundwater from a given area by natural or

artificial means.

BASIN: Area having a common outlet for its surface runoff.

HYDROGRAPH: A graph relating stage, flow, velocity, or other characteristics of water

with respect to time. Graph showing the variation in time of some hydrological data, such
as stage, discharge,
velocity and sediment load.

LOSSES: Hydrological losses can be caused by various processes such as infiltration,

depression storage, evapotranspiration and interception.

EXCESS: An excess of something is a larger amount than is needed, allowed, or usual.

RAINFALL: Amount of rain (expressed as depth of water on a horizontal surface).

STEADY: firmly fixed, supported, or balanced; not shaking or moving.

UNSTEADY: liable to fall or shake; not steady in position.

INTENSITY: the measurable amount of a property, such as force, brightness, or a

magnetic field.

FREQUENCY: the rate at which something occurs or is repeated over a particular period
of time or in a given sample.

FLOOD: (1) Rise, usually brief, in the water level of a stream or water body to a peak from
which the water level recedes at a slower rate.
(2) Relatively high flow as measured by stage height or discharge.

INFRASTRUCTURE: the basic physical and organizational structures and facilities (e.g.
buildings, roads, power supplies) needed for the operation of a society or enterprise.

CONVEYANCE: Discharge in an open channel flowing at bank full stage.

WASTEWATER: Water containing waste liquid or solid matter discharged as unusable.

AVAILABLE: present or ready for immediate use available resources

DROUGHT: Prolonged absence or marked deficiency of precipitation.

SUPPLY: a stock of a resource from which a person or place can be provided with the
necessary amount of that resource

CLIMATE CHANGE: Long-term modification of the climate resulting from one or more of
the following factors: (i) internal changes within the climate system; (ii) interaction between
the climatic components; (iii) changes in external forces caused by natural phenomena or
by human activities.

TIME OF CONCENTRATION: Period of time required for storm runoff to flow to the outlet
from the point of a drainage basin having the longest travel time

WATER RESOURCES: Scientific and technological activities which identify the possible
outcomes of human intervention in the hydrological cycle and evaluate these outcomes in
terms of benefits
and costs.

FRESH WATER: Water neither salty nor bitter to the taste and in general, chemically
suitable for human consumption (having a low content in dissolved solids). Water that
contains less than 1,000 milligrams per liter (mg/L) of dissolved solids; generally, more
than 500 mg/L is undesirable for drinking and many industrial uses

ECOLOGICAL FLOW: describe the quantity, timing, and quality of water flows required to
sustain freshwater and estuarine ecosystems and the human livelihoods and well-being
that depend on these ecosystems.

INTEGRATED WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT: Development and operation of

regional water
resources, taking into account hydrological and technical aspects, as well as socio-
economic,
political and environmental dimensions.