Have you ever wondered what those arcane strings of letters mean?
Have you ever lost interest while reading a document because the alphabet soup made it difficult to understand?

In an effort to shine a light on the multitude of acronyms prevalent in the fields of natural resource conservation, environmental science and sustainability,
we offer the following list:

Please note: this list remains a work in progress; if you have a suggestion, please let us know.

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Acronym List

          ABA           American Birding Association
          ADCP        Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler
          AFT           American Farmland Trust
          AFWA        Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies
          ALB           Asian Longhorned Beetle
          AMC          Appalachian Mountain Club
          AOU          American Ornithologists' Union
          APA           American Planning Association
          APA           Aquifer Protection Area
          ATV           All Terrain Vehicle
          BCI            Bat Conservation International
          BF              Baseflow
          BFI             Baseflow Index
          BHR           Bank Height Ratio
          BMP           Best Management Practice
          BNR           Bureau of Natural Resources (CT DEEP)
          BOD           Biological Oxygen Demand
          BSD            Bird Species Diversity
          CAES          Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station
          CACD         Connecticut Association of Conservation Districts
          CACIWC     Connecticut Association of Conservation & Inland Wetlands Commissions
          CAMP         Connecticut Amphibian Monitoring Project
          CAS            Connecticut Audubon Society
          CBS            Connecticut Botanical Society
          CCC           Citizens Coordinating Council
          CCC           Cornwall Conservation Commission
          CCD           Colony Collapse Disorder
          CCSWC      Connecticut Council on Soil & Water Conservation
          CCT           Cornwall Conservation Trust
          CEC           Contaminant of Emerging Concern
          CEPA         Connecticut Environmental Policy Act
          CERCLA    Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation & Liability Act (aka Superfund)
          CEQ           Council on Environmental Quality
          CES            Cooperative Extension Service
          CFT            Connecticut Farmland Trust
          CFPA          Connecticut Forest & Park Association
          CFR            Code of Federal Regulations
          CFS            Cubic Feet Per Second
          CGS           Connecticut General Statutes
          CIPWG       Connecticut Invasive Plant Working Group
          CIRCA        Connecticut Institute for Resilience & Climate Adaptation
          CLCC         Connecticut Land Conservation Council
          CLEAR       Center for Land Use Education and Research (UCONN)
          CNB           Cavity Nesting Birds
          CNP           Community & Natural Resource Planning Program (a UCONN CLEAR program)
          COA           Connecticut Ornithological Association
          COA           Conservation Opportunity Area
          COC           Contaminant of Concern
          COD           Chemical Oxygen Demand
          COG           Council of Government
          CRI             Community Resource Inventory
          CSA            Community Supported Agriculture
          CSO            Combined Sewer Overflow
          CT CEQ      Connecticut Council of Environmental Quality
          CT ECO      Connecticut Environmental Conditions Online (DEEP & UCONN)
          CTLCV       Connecticut League of Conservation Voters
          CT NOFA    Connecticut Northeast Organic Farming Association
          CTIWR       Connecticut Institute of Water Resources  (sometimes CIWR)
          CWA           Clean Water Act
          CWCS         Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy (now WAP)
          DBH            Diameter at Breast Height (4' 6" above the ground)
          DEC            Department of Environmental Conservation (New York)
          DEEP          Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (Connecticut)
          DO              Dissolved Oxygen
          DOT            Department of Transportation
          DPH            Department of Public Health
          DPW            Department of Public Works
          DU               Ducks Unlimited
          EAB             Emerald Ash Borer
          EBM            Ecosystem Based Management
          EFH             Essential Fish Habitat
          EPA             Environmental Protection Agency
          EPT             Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Trichoptera (Taxa Richness Index)
          EQIP           Environmental Quality Incentives Program (NRCS)
          ERT            Environmental Review Team
          E&S            Erosion & Sedimentation
          ESA            Endangered Species Act
          ESA            Exclusive Service Area
          ESSAC        Endangered Species Scientific Advisory Committee
          ET              Evapotranspiration
          EVI             Enhanced Vegetation Index
          FAC            Facultative
          FACU          Facultative Upland
          FACW         Facultative Wetland
          FEMA         Federal Emergency Management Agency
          FHD           Foliage Height Diversity
          FHWA        Federal Highway Authority
          FMP           Forest Management Plan
          FPS            Feet Per Second
          FSA            Farm Service Agency (USDA)
          FWS           Fish & Wildlife Service (United States)
          GCN          Greatest Conservation Need
          GIS            Geographic Information System
          GPD          Gallons Per Day
          GPS           Global Positioning System
          HAB           Harmful Algal Bloom
          HEAL         Housatonic Environmental Action League
          HRC           Housatonic River Commission
          HRI            Housatonic River Initiative
          HUC           Hydrologic Unit Code
          HVA           Housatonic Valley Association
          IBA            Important Bird Area
          IPANE        Invasive Plant Atlas of New England
          IPCC          Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
          IPM            Integrated Pest Management
          IUCN          International Union for Conservation of Nature
          IWA            Inland Wetlands Agency
          IWC            Inland Wetlands Commission
          IWCC         Inland Wetlands & Conservation Commission
          IWM           Integrated Watershed Management
          IWQR         Integrated Water Quality Report
          IWWA        Inland Wetlands & Watercourses Act
          LHAS         Litchfield Hills Audubon Society
          LID            Low Impact Development
          LiDAR        Light Detection and Ranging (a method of Remote Sensing)
          LIP             Landowner Incentive Program
          LISS           Long Island Sound Study
          LTA            Land Trust Alliance
          MAGIC       Maps & Geographic Information Center (UCONN)
          MGD          Million Gallons Per Day
          MOU           Memorandum of Understanding
          MS4            Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System
          MSPAC       Maple Syrup Producers Association of Connecticut
          MWC          Master Wildlife Conservationist
          NAWCA      North American Wetlands Conservation Act
          NAWQA      National Water Quality Assessment (USGS Program)
          NCD           Northwest Conservation District
          NDDB         Natural Diversity Database
          NDVI          Normalized Difference Vegetation Index
          NEC            New England Cottontail
          NEHCS       Northeast Habitat Classification System
          NEIWPCC   New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission
          NEMO         Non-point Education for Municipal Officials
          NEP            National Estuary Program
          NEPA          National Environmental Policy Act
          NEPARC     Northeast Partners in Amphibian & Reptile Conservation
          NEWFS       New England Wildflower Society
          NGO           Non-Governmental Organization
          NHCOG      Northwest Hills Council of Governments
          NIPGro       New England Invasive Plant Group
          NOAA         National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration
          NOI            Notice of Intent
          NOV           Notice of Violation
          NPDES       National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
          NPO           Non Profit Organization
          NPS            National Park Service
          NPS            Non-Point Source (Pollution)
          NRC           National Research Council
          NRCS         Natural Resource Conservation Service
          NRI            Natural Resource Inventory
          NS&T         National Status & Trends
          NWI            National Wetlands Inventory
          NWOS         National Woodland Owner Survey (USFS)
          NWR           National Wildlife Refuge
          OBL            Obligate
          OMB           Office of Management & Budget
          OPM           Office of Policy & Management
          OSA            Office of State Archaeology
          PAH            Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon
          PARC          Partners in Amphibian & Reptile Conservation
          PCB            Polychlorinated Biphenyls
          PET            Potential Evapotranspiration
          POCD         Plan of Conservation & Development
          POTW         Publicly Owned Treatment Works
          PPB             Parts Per Billion
          PPM            Parts Per Million
          PPT             Parts Per Trillion
          PSI              Pounds Per Square Inch
          PURA          Public Utilities Regulatory Authority
          PWS            Public Water Supply
          QAPP          Quality Assurance Project Plan
          RBP            Rapid Bioassessment Protocol
          RBV            Riffle Bioassessment by Volunteers
          RCN           Regional Conservation Need
          RCP            Regional Conservation Partnership
          RPA            Regional Planning Association
          RPO           Regional Planning Organization
          RSGCN       Regional Species of Greatest Conservation Need
          RUSLE        Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation
          SAV             Submerged Aquatic Vegetation
          SCS             Soil Conservation Service (now NRCS)
          SHARP        Saltmarsh Habitat and Avian Research Program
          SHPO          State Historic Preservation Office
          SIC              Standard Industrial Classification
          SOP             Standard Operating Procedure
          SWAP          Source Water Assessment Program
          SWMP         Stormwater Management Plan
          SWPP          Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan
          TIN             Total Inorganic Nitrogen
          TMA           Trout Management Area
          TMDL         Total Maximum Daily Load
          TMI            What many may consider this list to be
          TKN            Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen
          TN              Total Nitrogen
          TNC            The Nature Conservancy
          TNR            Trap, Neuter & Release
          TOC            Total Organic Carbon
          TP               Total Phosphorus
          TPL             Trust For Public Land
          TRACS        Tracking & Reporting Actions for the Conservation of Species (a USFWS system)
          TSI              Timber Stand Improvement
          TSS             Total Suspended Solids
          TU               Trout Unlimited
          UCONN       University of Connecticut
              CES         University of Connecticut - Cooperative Extension Service
              CIRCA     University of Connecticut - Connecticut Institute for Resilience & Climate Adaptation
              CLEAR    University of Connecticut - Center for Land Use Education and Research
              CTIWR    University of Connecticut - Connecticut Institute of Water Resources
          UNEP          United Nations Environment Programme
          USACE        United States Army Corps of Engineers
          USDA          United States Department of Agriculture
          USEPA         United States Environmental Protection Agency
          USFS           United States Forest Service
          USFWS        United States Fish & Wildlife Service
          USGS           United States Geological Service
          USLE           Universal Soil Loss Equation
          VOC            Volatile Organic Compound
          WAP            Wildlife Action Plan
          WHIP          Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program
          WLA            Waste Load Allocation
          WMA           Wildlife Management Area
          WNS            White Nose Syndrome
          WOTUS       Waters of the United States
          WPC            Water Planning Council
          WPCA         Water Pollution Control Authority
          WRP            Wetlands Reserve Program
          WRRI          Water Resources Research Institute  (USGS)
          WQ              Water Quality
          WQS            Water Quality Standards
          WQV            Water Quality Volume
          WSFR          Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration (a USFWS program)
          WUCC         Water Utility Coordinating Committee