Glossary of Planning and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Terms

Glossary is usually defined as an alphabetical list of technical terms in some specialized field of knowledge. This knowledge base glossary provides a collection of knowledge base documents that define many technical terms. These terms are arranged alphabetically, but you can quickly jump to a specific term by selecting its first letter from the index of the knowledge base glossary below.

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Keyword

Term
Wan
Wide area network. Computer data communications technology that connects computers at remote sites. WANs are composed of special data communications hardware and software and usually operate across public or dedicated telephone networks.
Watershed
An area of land with a common drainage point.
Weed Tolerance
The minimum allowable distance between any two vertices along an arc. Weed tolerance is a parameter that can be set before adding arc features. When adding new arcs, if an input vertex is within the weed distance of the last vertex, it is disregarded. When weeding existing arcs, it is the tolerance used by the Douglas-Peucker algorithm. Nodes are always retained. The proximity of vertices on one arc to vertices on another arc within the tolerance does not cause them to be weeded; this is controlled by the proximal tolerance.
Wetland
An area inundated or saturated by surface or groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions under normal circumstances. Nontidal wetlands are also referred to as swamps, marshes and bogs. (See also NONTIDAL WETLAND.) See also:  Nontidal Wetland
Woodland Conservation Ordinance
A state and county regulation that seeks to preserve high-priority woodlands through the land development process. It includes the designation and protection of woodland conservation areas, as well as mitigation measures and penalties.