Pollution discharged over a wide land area, not from one specific location. Diffuse water pollution caused by sediment, nutrients, and organic or inorganic toxic substances carried to lakes and streams by surface runoff.
Pollution that does not originate at a single location. In an urban area runoff water can be polluted as it flows to a stream by gasoline, antifreeze, road salt or other contaminants. In rural areas runoff can be contaminated by insecticides, manure, or fertilizer. This contamination can be significant but can not be traced back to a specific source.
Pollution that cannot be detected from a specific point or any specific land use. It’s usually pollutants that are on the ground and get washed into lakes, streams and ponds when it rains.
Pollutants which enter the environment from a broad area.
Pollution that originates from diffuse areas and unidentifiable sources, such as agriculture, the atmosphere, or ground water.
less visible discharges, such as stormwater, rain, lawn and parking lot runoff that contribute to pollution.
pollution from dispersed sources like agricultural activities, urban runoff, and atmospheric deposition
Pollution that does not come from specific, identifiable sources such as a factory or a sewage-treatment plant. Non-point source pollution includes materials that wash from roofs, streets, yards, driveways, sidewalks and other land areas.
Pollution that does not come from a single point or location. Jump to Top
pollution that cannot be traced to a specific location. Non-point source pollution occurs when rainwater, snowmelt or irrigation washes off plowed fields, city streets or urban backyards. As this runoff moves across the land surface, it picks up soil particles and pollutants, such as nutrients and pesticides.
Pollution that cannot be identified as coming from a specific source and thus cannot be controlled through the issuing of permits. Storm water runoff and some deposits from the air fall into this category.
Pollution of the water from numerous locations that are hard to identify as point source. For example, agriculture and urban diffuse source runoff .
Undefined sources of water pollution, such as street runoff, erosion from construction and agricultural runoff.
Pollution that is so general or covers such a wide area that no single, localized source of the pollution can be identified.
The source of surface or groundwater pollution originating from diffuse areas without well-defined sources. The most common examples of NPS are chemicals that enter surface water during runoff events from cropland and turf grass, and soil erosion from cultivated cropland and construction sites.
pollution of the water from numerous widespread locations that are hard to identify and pin-point. Ex. agri-chemicals through leaching or runoff List of Glossary Terms
(NPS) pollution which does not come from a single, identifiable point but from a number of points that are spread out and difficult to identify and control.
Pollution that is not identifiable to any particular source as described by the NREPA.
Diffuse pollution sources (i.e. without a single point of origin or not introduced into a receiving stream from a specific outlet). The pollutants are generally carried off the land by storm water. Common non-point sources are agriculture, forestry, urban, mining, construction, dams, channels, land disposal, saltwater intrusion, and city streets. Non-potable: Water that is unsafe or unpalatable to drink because it contains pollutants, contaminants, minerals, or infective agents.
Pollution that is carried into streams by stormwater runoff. When it rains, the runoff collects pollutants from streets, lawns, parking lots (oil, gasoline, fertilizer, pesticides, litter, animal wastes) and carries pollutants into the stream
Pollution that does not come from a single, identifiable source. Includes materials that wash from roofs, streets, yards, driveways, sidewalks and other land areas. Collectively, this is the largest source of stormwater pollution.
pollution that does not come from a single outlet source. Lawn fertilizer traveling down a storm drain is a classic example.
Pollution originating at a variety of non-localized sources, such as street runoff, septic systems, atmospheric deposition, or groundwater.
Water pollution created from a source that has no particular or permanent point of input.
Pollution that enters a water body from diffuse origins on the watershed and does not result from discernable, confined, or discrete conveyances.
Harmful substances that are carried by rain and snow moving over and through the earth and end up in groundwater, rivers, lakes or the ocean. These substances come from various sources and can be natural or man-made. They're called non-point source because instead of being dumped directly from a house or factory into a body of water, the pollutant is diluted and transported by the natural cycle of precipitation.
Pollutants that come from a land area not discharged from a pipe.
water pollution arising from indistinct sources such as petroleum products from roadways or pesticides from farmland.
Pollution whose source is general rather than specific in location. It is widely used in reference to agricultural and related pollutants. cf Point Source Pollution
pollution discharged over a wide land area, not from one specific location. These are forms of diffuse pollution caused by sediment, nutrients, organic and toxic substances originating from land-use activities, which are carried to lakes and streams by surface runoff. Non-point source pollution is contamination that occurs when rainwater, snowmelt, or irrigation washes off plowed fields, city streets, or suburban backyards. As this runoff moves across the land surface, it picks up soil particles and pollutants, such as nutrients and pesticides.
See Point-source pollution.
"Diffuse" pollution, generated from large areas with no particular point of pollutant origin, but rather from many individual places. Urban and agricultural areas generate non-point source pollutants.
Pollution from diverse sources difficult to pinpoint as separate entities and thus more complicated to control or manage. Examples of “nonpoint sources†include area-wide erosion (as opposed to landslides or mass wasting), widespread failure of septic systems, certain farming practices or forestry practices, and residential/urban land uses (such as fertilizing lawns or landscaping).
pollutants entering waterways from a general area such as runoff from farmland or suburban communities
Widespread overland runoff containing pollutants; the contamination does not originate from one specific location, and pollution discharges over a broad land area. Water pollution that cannot be traced to a specific source.