Glossary
Please note: Some of the definitions for legal terms in this glossary were adapted from: Joseph Nolan and Jacqueline Nolan-Haley, Black’s Law Dictionary, Abridged, 6th ed. (St. Paul: West Publishing Co., 1991).
A
ABS pipe: Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene pipe; a plastic pipe used for water distribution, drain, waste, vent and sewage.
adjourn: to postpone a hearing
AECB: Atomic Energy Control Board, a federal agency under the Ministry of Natural Resources
AECL: Atomic Energy of Canada Limited
affidavit: a written statement made before a notary public or other person authorized to administer oaths
AG: attorney general
allege: to suggest that something happened or that a person committed a crime
amend: to change a document such as an information, usually to remove a defect
AOX: adsorbable organic halides
B
BDL: below detection limit
BOD: biological oxygen demand; a measure of the amount of oxygen consumed by aerobic bacteria as it decomposes organic matter in a sample; high BOD levels indicate that aerobic bacteria are consuming much of the available dissolved oxygen, robbing other aquatic organisms of the oxygen they need in order to live
Bq: becquerel; a unit of measurement of radioactivity; one atomic event per second
BTEX: benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene
C
carcinogen: a substance that can cause cancer
CEPA: Canadian Environmental Protection Act
charge: a formal accusation that a person or organization has committed a crime
Ci: Curie; a unit of measurement of radioactivity; one Curie equals 3.7 x 1010 nuclear transformations per second, which is the activity of 1 gram of radium
COD: chemical oxygen demand
coliforms: see fecal coliforms
counsel: lawyer
cross-examination: questioning of a witness by the lawyer representing the opposing side in a court case
Crown: on behalf of her Majesty the Queen; refers to both federal and provincial governments
D
defence: evidence offered by the accused to defeat a criminal charge; a reason in fact or law as to why a party initiating the proceeding (in criminal cases, the AG or the informant) should not be granted the remedy it is seeking; a legally recognized basis for avoiding liability; may include a flat denial of the other party’s allegations
defendant: the person or entity sued or accused
dioxin: a highly toxic contaminant; sometimes used in chemical warfare, specifically Agent Orange
disclosure: obligation by the prosecution to reveal and give to the defence any information in its possession or control that is relevant, regardless of whether it damages or aids its case
DO: dissolved oxygen; low levels can indicate pollution
DOC: dissolved organic carbon
due diligence: a defence that maintains the defendant has taken all reasonable steps to prevent committing an offence
E
EBR: Environmental Bill of Rights
E. coli: Escherichia coli; a bacterium used as an indicator of the presence of human sewage or animal manure in fresh water
Enterococcus: a bacterium used as an indicator of the presence of sewage or animal manure in salt water
eutrophication: the alteration of a lake through the biological enrichment of the water; sewage and agricultural and industrial wastes can act as plant nutrients, over- stimulating algae growth, causing unsightly scum and unpleasant odours, and robbing the water of dissolved oxygen vital to other aquatic life
examination-in-chief: questioning of a witness by the lawyer who asked that witness to appear
F
fecal coliforms: bacteria used as an indicator of the presence of human sewage or animal manure in fresh water
FOI: Freedom of Information
G
Geiger counter: an instrument for the detection and measurement of ionizing radiation
GPS: Geographic Positioning System; a satellite-based system for determining one’s exact location
I
informant: the person who lays the information (the charge)
information: a standard court document outlining charges laid against the accused
J
JP: justice of the peace
L
LC50: median lethal concentration
leachate: a solution resulting from leaching; e.g., soluble pollutants from a landfill by downward percolating groundwater
LOD: limit of detection
LTD: less than detection limit
M
microgram: a unit measure of weight represented by the symbol µg that is equivalent to one millionth of a gram
MOE: Ministry of the Environment
mrem: millirem; one thousandth of a rem; 0.001 rem
Mrem: megarem; one thousand rems; 1000 rems
MW: molecular weight
N
nitrates: nitrogen compounds, often the limiting nutrients in aquatic systems, that can be toxic to aquatic and human life under certain conditions; the addition of nitrates can lead to increased aquatic plant growth; high levels can indicate sewage, animal manure, fertilizer, and other types of contamination
P
PAHs: polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
pathogen: any disease-producing agent, especially a virus, bacterium, or other microorganism
PCBs: polychlorinated byphenyls
PCDD: polychlorinated dibenzodioxin
PCDF: polychlorinated dibenzofuran
PERC: tetrachloroethylene
pH: an indicator of acidity on a logarithmic scale of 0 to 14; the pH of natural, unpolluted water is generally between 6 and 9; lower or higher pH can indicate pollution and can be harmful to aquatic life
phenols: benzene-derived products
phosphates: phosphorus compounds readily available as plant nutrients; the addition of phosphates can lead to increased aquatic plant growth; high levels can indicate sewage, animal manure, fertilizer, and other types of contamination
plaintiff: a person who brings a suit into a court of law; complainant
PPB: parts per billion
PPM: parts per million
primary sewage treatment: a system of treating wastewater using screens, gravity, and skimming to remove insoluble particles; this treatment does not reduce dangerous water-soluble organic and inorganic substances
pro bono: done or donated without charge; free
prosecutor: the attorney general, or where the AG does not intervene, the person who institutes the proceedings (the informant) in a court case; includes counsel or an agent acting on behalf of either of these parties (see Criminal Code, Sections 2 and 785)
Q
quash: to annul, make void; e.g., if an information is quashed, it has no force or effect, and the proceeding against that defendant ceases
R
rad: radiation absorbed dose; a measurement unit of the energy absorbed in material when exposed to radiation; one rad corresponds to the absorption of 0.01 joule per kilogram (or 100 ergs per gram) of absorbing material
RAP: Remedial Action Plan
rem: roetgen equivalent man; a measurement unit of the energy absorbed in tissue when exposed to radiation; one rem equals one rad multiplied by a quality factor (Q) to convert rads into a common scale of biological damage; Q for external radiation is usually equal to 1, so rad and rem can be used interchangeably, but varies for internal radiation
RoC: Registrar of Companies
S
stay (judicial): a suspension of a case or a proceeding within a case; an injunction in which the court freezes a case at a particular point; a stay can stop a prosecution completely or just one phase of the prosecution, such as an execution of a judgement; a stay does not reverse, annul, undo, or suspend what has already been done, or what is not specifically stayed
summons: a written order notifying an individual that he has been charged with an offence; a summons directs the person to appear in court to answer the charge
suspended solids: particles of substances such as clay, silt, plankton, industrial wastes or sewage within a water body; may indicate soil erosion, urban runoff, or pollution
T
tailing: waste or refuse left in the process of mining
TCDD: tetrachlorodibenzo-para-dioxin
TCDF: tetrachlorodibenzofuran
TCE: trichloroethylene
TEQ: total toxic equivalent
TSS: total suspended solids
U
universal transverse mercator grid: a map projection and plane coordinate system based on 60 north-south trending zones, each 16 degrees of longitude wide, that circle the globe
V
VOC: volatile organic compounds
VSS: volatile suspended solids
Environmental Bureau of Investigation 