Introduction to Field Sampling - Field Sampling: Principles and Practices in Environmental Analysis - page 17

1.13.2. Hectare Furrow Slice
Fields are measured in square units. In most of the world the units used are hectares (ha
10 4 m 2 ). In the United States and some other countries acres are used (one acre equals
0.405 ha). Because farmers often work the soil 15 to 30 cm deep we talk of a hectare
furrow slice (hafs). (A furrow is a cut, usually between 15 and 20 cm deep, made in the
soil by a plow.) If a soil has a bulk density between 1.3 Mg/m 3 and 1.4 Mg/m 3 and the
soil is worked to a depth of 15 cm, an hafs will weigh approximately 2,000,000 kg. This
same type of calculation done with acres gives a value of approximately 2,000,000 1b per
acre furrow slice (afs). All of these units will be used extensively in this topic.

1.14. DEFINITIONS

Environmental work and field sampling will require knowledge of a number of
abbreviations and acronyms. These terms abound in environmental work and literature,
especially in field sampling and environmental cleanup. The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (USEPA) has a Web site called “Terms of Environment” devoted to
such terms. The section of abbreviations and acronyms beginning with A through D is 13
pages long, and thus the complete list will not be given here. Table 1.3, however, gives a
very few commonly encountered abbreviations and their explanation. There has been no
attempt to try to pick only the most commonly used abbreviations for inclusion in Table
1.3. This Web site is especially helpful when trying to understand environmental reports
[15].
Because many concepts, procedures, and terms are known by their acronyms and
abbreviations, many are included in the following chapters. Sometimes it is hard to find
information about these concepts, procedures, and terms if their acronyms are not known.
A list of acronyms and abbreviations used in this topic are included in Appendix A.
Several of the abbreviations given in Table 1.3 are very commonly used. VOC, which
stands for volatile organic compound, is an excellent example of one of these. VOCs are
compounds having low boiling points, below 200°C, or high vapor pressure. Common
solvents such as acetone,

TABLE 1.3 Environmental Abbreviations and Acronyms and Terms (ATT)

ATTs Explanation
BMP Best management practice(s)
CFC Chlorofluorocarbon
DO Dissolved oxygen
GEMS Global environmental monitoring system; global exposure modeling
system
MDL Minimum detection limit
O 3

Ozone