Glossary
In the Waterfront Navigator glossary, we’ve compiled regulatory terms and definitions from agency documents, environmental terms you will come across when doing work in wetlands and in coastal areas, and abbreviations used by agencies or on this site. Definitions cite the sources, with links back to original documents or websites for further reference.
Gabion
Wire mesh units shaped as baskets or blocks and filled with loose stone. Gabions are primarily used as shore protection and retaining walls. (New York City Economic Development Corporation, Waterfront Facilities Maintenance Management System, May 2016)
Gabions
Structures composed of masses of rocks, rubble or masonry held tightly together usually by wire mesh so as to form blocks or walls. Sometimes used on heavy erosion areas to retard wave action or as a foundation for BREAKWATERS or JETTIES. (US Army Corps of Engineers, Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory Glossary, 2015)
Galvanic Corrosion
An accelerated form of corrosion occurring in an electrolyte when a pair of dissimilar metals capable of acting together as a source of electricity are in contact with each other. (New York City Economic Development Corporation, Waterfront Facilities Maintenance Management System, May 2016)
Galvanic Potential
A quantity in an electrical field measured (in volts) with reference to some arbitrary level of potential, such as a reference electrode. (New York City Economic Development Corporation, Waterfront Facilities Maintenance Management System, May 2016)
Gravity Wall
A retaining structure that obtains stability through its own weight. (New York City Economic Development Corporation, Waterfront Facilities Maintenance Management System, May 2016)
Groin (British, Groyne)
A narrow structure projecting out from the shoreline, usually at close to a right angle. It is designed to influence offshore currents and wave action in a manner that will minimize erosion of the shoreline. (New York City Economic Development Corporation, Waterfront Facilities Maintenance Management System, May 2016)
Grout
Traditionally, a mixture of portland cement and fine aggregate to which is added enough water to make a fluid mixture. Epoxy-resin grouts are also widely available. (New York City Economic Development Corporation, Waterfront Facilities Maintenance Management System, May 2016)
Gunite
H-Pile
A pile with a cross-section consisting of a web centered on two flanges. (New York City Economic Development Corporation, Waterfront Facilities Maintenance Management System, May 2016)
Habitat
The physical location in which a population of plants or animals lives. (US Army Corps of Engineers, Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory Glossary, 2015)