V-Shaped Valley - A valley having a pronounced cross-profile suggesting the letter "V;" characterized by steep sides and short tributaries. Specifically, a young, narrow valley, resulting from downcutting by a stream. (DOI/NPS)

V factor. See Vegetative cover. - National Resources Inventory

VA - The Vail Agenda

VA - Value Added

VA - Visual Aid

VA - Visual Alteration

VA - Visual Analysis

VA - Visual Assessment

VAA - Value Added Agriculture

VAC - value-added cooperatives (USDA)

VAC - Visual Absorption Capability

VACSEN Matrix - Visual Absorption Capability and Visual Sensitivity

Vadose Zone - A term sometimes used in place of unsaturated zone.

VAERS - Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System

Vail Agenda - The National Park Service has a ... dedicated work force, some of the nation's most treasured resources under its management, and widespread support from the American public. At the same time, however, it suffers from declining morale, an increasingly diffuse set of park units and programs that it is mandated to manage, serious fiscal constraints, and personnel and organizational structures that often impede its performance. To address these and related issues of critical importance to the national park system, the Service initiated an intensive review of its responsibilities and prospects. This process was undertaken in cooperation with other leading institutions concerned with management of the national park system. The central focus of the process was the 75th Anniversary Symposium 'Our National Parks: Challenges and Strategies for the 21st Century,' which was held in Vail, Colorado in October 1991. This event brought together nearly 700 experts and interested parties from inside and outside the Service to consider the future of the national park system. An "Alliance for Sustainable Practices" came from the Vail conference: http://www.nps.gov/renew/alliance.htm http://www.nps.gov/training/facilitators/endnotes.htm  A quote from a speaker at the Vail Agenda: The Vail conference was intended to turn the boat around. Entitled "Our National Parks -- Challenges and Strategies for the 21st Century," it discussed recommendations from "working groups" that had been commissioned by the Park Service and supervised by Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. Conveying the authority and prestige of America's oldest university, it was intended to have maximum public impact. ... confusions about natural preservation are the product of a decision-making process in which public debate seldom occurs and is sometimes suppressed. (The NPCA -- National Parks and Conservation Association -- for example, did not publish a minority report written by several members of the Blue Ribbon Panel who were unhappy with that committee's conclusions.) ... The fits and starts of [National] Park Service policy and the intellectually pathetic attempts to justify it reveal that while everyone wants preservation, no one know what it means. Many biologists, for example, would say that preservation is the promotion of biodiversity; this is the goal of The Nature Conservancy and the United Nations Biosphere Reserve Programme. But even this concept is far from clear. It can refer to the number of species, to the abundance of each species, or to some combination of these two measurements. Estimates of ecological health depend on which standard is chosen, and no one is necessarily more "correct" than another. Thanks to invasions of exotic plants such as Kentucky bluegrass and musk thistle, for example, Yellowstone National Park probably has more species than it had 200 years ago. But the numbers of many of the original species -- such as beaver, bighorn sheep, and white-tailed deer -- have plummeted. Most people would say that the park is therefore worse off, even though one kind of biodiversity has actually increased. So choosing a criterion of biodiversity is a matter of deciding what characteristics we desire a particular ecosystem to exhibit. Preservation, like beauty, is in the eyes of the beholder. ... the Vail conference was disappointing. The public needed to be there. But principal speakers and panel moderators were either cabinet members who know nothing about parks issues (such as the keynoter, Education Secretary Lamar Alexander) or the same old tired group of NPCA insiders. Within the context of these political forces, it is not surprising that preservation policy remains in disarray. It is almost never discussed and indeed was not included on the Vail agenda. Yet until the circle of debate is widened, no amount of tinkering with the structure and budget of the National Park Service will save the national parks. - Alston Chase, from "Unhappy Birthday," (referring to the National Park Service's 75th birthday party held in Vail, Colorado, December 1991) Eco-Watch, 2-19-2002

Valid Existing Rights - Locatable mineral development rights that existed when the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) was enacted on October 21, 1976. Some areas are segregated from entry and location under the Mining Law to protect certain values or allow certain uses. Mining claims that existed as of the effective date of the segregation may still be valid if they can meet the test of discovery of a valuable mineral required under the Mining Law. Determining the validity of mining claims located in segregated lands requires BLM to conduct a validity examination and is called a "valid existing rights" determination. - BLM Surface Mgmt. Regs.

Validity Period - Refers to the time period that any document, classification, etc. could be applicable or used. In classification, usually there is an overlapping time period where the old classification could still be used before being superseded by the revised edition. (UN)

Valley fill - In glaciated regions, material deposited in stream valleys by glacial meltwater. In nonglaciated regions, alluvium deposited by heavily loaded streams. - USDA

Valley segment - That portion of a stream network with similar morphologies and governing geomorphic processes identified by valley bottom and sideslope geomorphic characteristics. - Bioenergy Glossary

Value - The degree of lightness in a color. - NPS Ecology and Restoration Glossary

Value-Added - Those activities or steps that add to or change a product or service as it goes through a process; these are the activities or steps that customers view as important and necessary. - Forest Service http://svinet2.fs.fed.us/recreation/permits/final1.htm  2. The sum of all income deriving from an industry, including wage income and owner income, less business taxes. - USDA/FS

Value-Added Products - In general, products that have increased in value because of processing; such products include wheat flour, and soybean oil. Livestock are considered value-added products because they have increased the value of pasture and feed grains going into them. The terms value-added and high-value are often used synonymously.

Value-Based Pricing - Packers are increasingly using this method of determining how much to pay cattle and hog producers for animals. Rather than simply paying a fixed rate based on the weight of the animals, value-based pricing attempts to establish the individual merits of each animal (or lot) purchased, building quality characteristics such as yield, fat thickness, likely grade (such as choice, select, etc.) into a formula to arrive at the price that will be paid. Under this system, the producer assumes the financial responsibility that the animals, once slaughtered, will meet these criteria. In traditional pricing methods, it is the packer that bears the greater financial risks associated with the uncertain quality of the animals purchased.

Value Engineering - An analysis of materials, processes, and products in which functions are related to cost. From Value Engineering a selection may be made to achieve the desired function within performance guidelines at the lowest overall cost.

Values - The valuable minerals contained in a deposit, usually refers to the precious metal content.

Values - Relatively firmly held and socially shared positions or expressions about what is good or right, they are abstract and normative and are considered to be somewhat stable. - USDA/FS

VAMS - Vibroacoustic Monitoring System

Vanadium - A soft, ductile chemical element used to form iron and steel alloys. - BLM (DOI) Grand Escalante Staircase National Monument DEIS Glossary

VANRCC - Vail Agenda Natural Resource Careers Committee

VAP - Virginia Association for Parks The Virginia Association for Parks (VAP) is a "power-sharing" organizational structure. http://www.parktrust.org/npt-report2/vap.html  http://www.parksonline.org/vap

Variable - Is a characteristic of a unit being observed that may assume more than one of a set of values to which a numerical measure or a category from a classification can be assigned (e.g. income, age, weight, etc. and 'occupation', 'industry', 'disease,' etc). (UN)

Variable Import Levy - A charge levied on imports that raises their price to a level at least as high as the domestic price. Such levies are adjusted frequently (hence 'variable') in response to changes in world market prices, and are imposed to defend administered prices set above world market prices. Under the Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture, the variable levies of the EU have been converted into fixed tariffs or tariff-rate quotas.

Variance - New York State town law explains the basic principles of granting variances (which are amplified greatly in case law) in those towns that have zoning laws: "Where there are practical difficulties or unnecessary hardships in the way of carrying out the strict letter of such ordinances, the board of appeals shall have the power in passing upon appeals, to vary or modify the application of any of the regulations or provisions of such ordinances relating to the use, construction or alteration of buildings or structures, or the use of land, so that the spirit of the ordinance shall be observed, public safety and welfare secured and substantial justice done." - Zoning (Case Law) Glossary

Variegation - Refers to patterns of contrasting colors assumed to be inherited from the parent material rather than to be the result of poor drainage. - USDA

Variety - See Cultivar. - UNDP/WRI

Variety Class - A way to classify landscapes according to their visual features. This system is based on the premise that landscapes with the greatest variety or diversity have the greatest potential for scenic value.

Various Acts to create Hydroelectric Dams, 1933 to 1944 - The "New Deal" featured the building of many high profile dams. These provided employment, river transportation, recreation, irrigation, and inexpensive electricity.

Vascular Plants - Plants with a well-developed vascular system that transports water, minerals, sugars, and other nutrients throughout the plant body. Excludes the bryophytes: mosses, hornworts, and liverworts. - UNDP/WRI

VAT - Value-Added Tax

VAVFBCTG - Vis-A-Vis Foreign Business Communities and Their Governments

VB - Vegetative Barriers

VC - Values Clarification

VC - Viewing Condition

VC - Visible Consequences

VCC - Visual Condition Class

VCS - Vineyard Conservation Society (covering Martha's Vineyard)

VCT - Voice of Citizens Together (California-based)

VD - Vertical Drain

VD - Visual Demonstration

VE - Viable Explanation

VE - Visual Emissions

Veganism - Veganism is a spiritual and religious state of mind that has four external manifestations: 1. A diet with NO animal products (meat, eggs, cheese, milk, fish, etc. are ALL verboten). 2. No use of any animal product (leather, fur, wool, etc). 3. No "ownership" or use of any animal (anti--- pet, hunt, fish, trap, sled dog, circus, rodeo, bullfight, cockfight, etc., etc., ad infinitum) 4. A commitment to "recognize" in law the equality of all animals with the rights and personhood of man.

Vegetable Stockpiles - Regulates the time at which stockpiles must be plowed or buried under.

Vegetation - Plants in general, or the sum total of the plant life above and below the soil surface in an area.

Vegetation Treatment - Changing the characteristics of an established vegetation type for the purpose of improving rangeland forage or wildlife habitat resources. Treatments are designed for specific areas and differ according to the area's suitability and potential. The most common land treatment methods alter the vegetation by chaining, spraying with pesticides, burning, and plowing, followed by seeding with well adapted desirable plant species. - BLM (DOI) Grand Escalante Staircase National Monument DEIS Glossary

Vegetative - A sterile structure of a plant, not associated with the production or dissemination of seeds, spores, or pollen. (NPS Rare Plant glossary)

Vegetative Community - An assemblage of plant populations in a common spatial arrangement. - BLM Surface Mgmt. Regs.

Vegetative cover (V factor - WEQ) - The effect of vegetative cover in the Wind erosion equation is expressed by relating the kind, amount, and orientation of vegetative material to its equivalent in pounds per acre of small grain residue in reference condition (small grain equivalent). - National Resources Inventory

Vegetation Management - Activities designed primarily to promote the health of forest vegetation for multiple-use purposes.

Vegetation Succession - Vegetation succession proceeds by new plant species invading a site.

Vegetation Type - A plant community with distinguishable characteristics.

Vegetative Controls - Non-point source pollution control practices that involve planting cover crops to reduce erosion and minimize loss of pollutants.

Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) - An estimate of the total number of miles traveled on the highway and street system. VMT is used as an indicator for both vehicular and roadway utilization.

Vein - A fissure, fault or crack in a rock filled by minerals that have traveled upwards from some deep source.

VEI - Visions for the Earth Initiative (Canada)

Vein - A well-defined, typically tabular zone or belt of mineral-bearing rock confined between nonmineralized rock. - BLM Surface Mgmt. Regs.

VER - Valid existing rights

VER - Voluntary Export Restraints

VERITAS - Very Energetic Radiation Imaging System

Vermiculite - A clay similar to hydrous mica and having 2:1 layers of 2 tetrahedral sheets to 1 octahedral sheet. Vermiculite has the layers held together by hydrated cations and has less swelling than montmorillonite. 2. A mica-like silicate mineral that expands into an accordion-like structure when heated to high temperature; it is a high water-holding capacity within the expanding particles and yet good aeration between the large particles.

VERP - Visitor Experience and Resource Protection (DOI/NPS)

Vertebrate Species - Any animal with a backbone or spinal column. - BLM (DOI) Grand Escalante Staircase National Monument DEIS Glossary

Vertebrates - Animals having a backbone, or a spinal column, including mammals, fishes, birds, reptiles, and amphibians.

Vertical Diversity - The diversity in a stand that results from the different layers or tiers of vegetation.

Vertical Mulching - A high priority recovery need for the federally-listed desert tortoise and other sensitive species occurring within the California Desert is the restoration of unauthorized routes, or road reclamation (refer to West Mojave Route Designation, Ord Mountain Pilot Unit, Biological Resource Screening Components; Bureau of Land Management 1997). Such restoration allows for the protection of large contiguous blocks of habitat that are relatively unencumbered by vehicle use impacts and related activities. Restoring unauthorized routes would significantly reduce identified habitat fragmentation occurring within designated tortoise critical habitat units and yield tremendous positive benefits affecting recovery of this species. Of the 22 major threats to the tortoise identified in recent research, ten would be significantly reduced by restoring unauthorized roads and trails, including the following: fire, off highway vehicle recreation, animal collection, garbage and litter, handling and manipulation, invasive weeds, noise, vandalism, predation (by ravens and similar subsidized predators), and non off-highway vehicle recreation. The Barstow Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management is currently seeking support among potential cooperators to use "desert tortoise habitat compensation" funds for road and trail restoration. Such funds are occasionally generated, pursuant to guidelines in BLM's Desert Tortoise Rangewide Plan, when habitat-impacting projects are approved within the range of the tortoise that cannot be fully mitigated on-site. In the past, these "habitat compensation" funds have typically been used to acquire private inholdings within designated tortoise critical habitat units. Recently, however, the Barstow Field Office determined that compensation funds generated by several large-scale projects would enable cooperating agencies to protect/enhance a much larger amount of tortoise habitat if these funds were used for route restoration, rather than habitat acquisition. Both methods of offsite habitat compensation are necessary for long-term recovery of the desert tortoise and other sensitive species in certain critical habitat units, and these options should be carefully evaluated on a case-by-case basis. To accomplish both tortoise habitat restoration and route designation objectives in critical habitat units, BLM staff have developed a reclamation strategy commonly referred to as "vertical mulching." This technique involves the placement of structure (live vegetation, rocks, dead shrubs and "snags," bunch-grasses, and various woody material) within the confines of the closed roadway surface, both on the ground surface and in a vertical manner, designed to conform with adjacent vegetation and terrain. Use of this technique is further described below. Discussion: Lessons learned by BLM over past decades have shown that route designation cannot be effectively implemented by simply installing red carsonite "closed to vehicle use" signs on or adjacent to unauthorized routes of travel. Efforts must include encouraging vehicle travel on designated open routes, and making designated closed routes literally disappear into the landscape. To begin this "disappearing act," decompaction and mulching techniques must be applied to closed routes, extending at least to the visual horizon, especially where the closed routes intersect with other routes. The Barstow Field Office has demonstrated that unauthorized roads and trails can be economically restored through use of vertical mulching techniques. These techniques involve placement of boulders and organic structure, such as live/dead and down vegetation, within the disturbed soil portion of affected roadbeds. Only vegetation, rock and woody structure native to the immediate closed route vicinities are used. The estimated cost for restoring tortoise habitat using this technique is $500 per acre, using current technology. The target restoration areas consist of roads and trails that facilitate a variety of anthropogenic impacts to designated desert tortoise critical habitat. The specified collection and installation of mulching material occurs under the supervision of a qualified natural resource specialist, archeologist, biologist or technician, to ensure a minimization of impacts to biological or cultural resources. Areas adjacent to where route closure/rehabilitation is planned may occasionally be used to gather dead vertical mulching material, in a manner designed to avoid causing local dead and down habitat loss, yet also accomplish restoration objectives. In no circumstances are shrubs that shade animal burrows or that are located adjacent to cultural resources, removed for use as mulching material. However, live and dead vegetation from the immediate region, salvaged from land clearing or road maintenance operations, may occasionally be used as mulching material in such restoration projects. Memorandums of understanding developed between land management agencies and local transportation departments, regarding salvage and storage of native material for this application, can facilitate large-scale projects. The use of pitting, ripping, or other scarification techniques within the confines of route or roadbed soil disturbance is sometimes necessary for rapid site recovery. Such scarification is done with hand-tools or through the use of heavy equipment and machinery (toothed rake, pitter, or similar device pulled by a tractor). After scarification, the live or dead vegetation is placed in a vertical fashion within the confines of route or roadbed soil disturbance, in a manner designed to conform to adjacent terrain and vegetation. The Barstow Field Office is able to restore Mojave Desert habitats for about $500 per acre, due to relationships and agreements it has in place with the California Conservation Corps and other local young adult labor groups. Under an existing agreement, the California Conservation Corps will match BLM contributed project funds on a dollar for dollar basis. As a consequence, funds generated by large habitat-disturbing projects could also qualify for matching by the state of California, in the form of matching labor funds available via the use of the California Conservation Corps. Conclusion: Vertical mulching can be an economical technique for restoring unauthorized roads and trails in desert tortoise and other sensitive species' habitats. In some circumstances it may provide much more "bang for the buck" when compared to traditional forms of offsite compensation. Its application in selected areas of the California Desert will reduce anthropogenic impacts to the listed desert tortoise, contributing significantly to the recovery of this threatened species. References: Bureau of Land Management (BLM). 1997. West Mojave route designation, Ord Mountain pilot unit, biological resource screening components. California Desert District BLM Office, Riverside, California. http://www.blm.gov/nstc/resourcenotes/rn16.html

Vertically-propagating waves - These are hydrostatic waves that tilt upstream with height. They typically produce wave clouds in the upper troposphere that have a distinct, often laminar appearing, leading edge over or (more typically) downstream of the crest of the mountain range. These clouds may extend over 100km downstream. Clouds produced by these waves tend to be based near or above 500mb, and are favored by conditions of uniform or decreasing static stability in the troposphere, and a cross mountain wind component that does not increase very rapidly with height. The hydrostatic nature of these waves derives from their large horizontal scale; they are favored by broad mountain ranges. These are landmark identifiers. - NOAA-NWS-WMO

Very High (SIO) - A Scenic Integrity Objective that generally provides for ecological change only. - FS

VESI - Vogel Environmental Services, Inc.

Vesicle - A cavity or variable space in lava formed by the entrapment of a gas bubble while the lava was solidifying. - BLM Surface Mgmt. Regs.

Very Low (SIO) - A Scenic Integrity Objective meaning activities of vegetative and landform alterations may dominate the landscape character but should appear as valued occurrences when viewed at background distances. - FS

VHOD - Village Housing Overlay District

VI - Vulnerability Index (UN)

Viability - The quality of possessing the ability to live, function and grow-a crucial characteristic of seeds. - NPS Ecology and Restoration Glossary

Viability - The ability of a population or species to persist over time. - DOI/USFWS http://rcwrecovery.fws.gov/finalrecoveryplan.pdf

Viability assessment - A Department of Energy decision-making process to judge the prospects for geologic disposal of high-level radioactive wastes based on (1) specific design work on the critical elements of the repository and waste package, (2) a total system performance assessment that will describe the probable behavior of the repository, (3) a plan and cost estimate for the work required to complete a license application, and (4) an estimate of the costs to construct and operate the repository (see 10 CFR Part 60). - Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Viable - Capable of sustaining a healthy and reproducing population over a long period of time. BLM-DOI

Viable Population - The number and dispersion of reproductive individuals of a species sufficient to ensure the long-term existence of the species in natural, self-sustaining populations that are adequately distributed throughout their range or the planning area.

Victorian Style - A period of architecture referring to the period of circa 1840-1890. A bewildering variety of classical and romantic elements all reflect confidence, material progress and prosperity.

View - The range or portion of landscape which can be taken in by an observer from one location.

Viewshed - The panoramic or otherwise fully encompassing view from an historic site or property. (NPS) 2. Subunits of the landscape where the scene is contained by topography similar to a watershed. An enclosed area of landscape which can be viewed as a single entity. The total area visible from a point (or series of points along a linear transportation facility) and conversely the area, which views the facility. 2. The landscape that can be directly seen from a viewpoint or along a transportation corridor. (BLM)

Viewshed Protection - May include, but no be limited to, Fences and Walls, Landscaping, Signs, and Scenic Resource Protection.

Vigor - The capacity for natural growth and survival of plants and animals.

Vigor - Relates to the relative robustness of a plant in comparison to other individuals of the same species. It is reflected primarily by the size of a plant and its parts, in relation to its age and the environment in which it is growing; plant vigor. - USDA DEIS Upper & Lower East Fork Cattle and Horse Allotment Management Plans glossary (Sawtooth National Recreation Area, Sawtooth National Forest, Custer County, Idaho

Village - A small, compact Center of predominantly residential character but with a core of Mixed-Use commercial, residential and community services. It often incorporates local economic and social functions that are integrated with housing. A Village typically has a recognizable center, discrete physical boundaries, and a pedestrian scale and orientation. This term does not necessarily refer to the form of incorporation of a municipality and is often smaller than a municipality.

Village of Euclid [Ohio] v. Ambler Realty Co., also known as 'The Euclid Decision' (November 22, 1926) - Euclid was about maintaining property values by controlling nuisances. The exclusionary nature of zoning was appropriate and in the public interest as a means to reduce nuisances, and as such overrode the interests of individual property owners. This case, almost by itself, guaranteed zoning as a use of the state's police power, and led to its importance as the most significant tool of land use, and of planning, yet devised. And it was popular not because of its sophistication, but because of its simplicity. The 1926 Supreme Court case upheld that land use could be controlled, and that "nuisance" uses could be kept out of designated areas. The question became, What determines a nuisance use? Later cases determined that zoning could be used to control minimum lot sizes (Simon v. Town of Needham) and minimum floor sizes (Dundee Realty Co. v. City of Omaha), both illustrating that zoning was being used to prop up property valuations. The Supreme Court rationale: The Court will not invalidate the decision by the Euclid Village Council to adopt an ordinance that on its face, as opposed to as applied, is arguably rationally related to the health and safety of the community.

Virgin Forest - A natural forest virtually uninfluenced by human activity.

VISAS VIPER - Not an acronym, but a program. It is a terrorist reporting channel.

Visegrad Countries - The countries that entered into an agreement to coordinate their policies with a view to apply for membership in the EU. The countries in the original Visegrad agreement were Poland, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia (now the Czech and Slovak Republics).

Visible Gold - Native gold which is discernable in a hand specimen by the unaided eye.

Visibility Protection Plan - A plan that implements the requirements of the Clean Air Act by establishing programs for visibility monitoring; short and long term control strategies; and procedures for program review, coordination, and consultation. (BLM)

Vision - An aspiration for the future. - Everglades Plan glossary

Vision Quest - A solitary vigil by an adolescent American Indian male to seek spiritual power and learn through a vision of a guardian spirit. - BLM Surface Mgmt. Regs.

Visitor Day - Twelve visitor hours which may be aggregated by one or more persons in single or multiple visits. - BLM (DOI) Grand Escalante Staircase National Monument DEIS Glossary 2. 12 visitor hours, which may be aggregated continuously, intermittently, or simultaneously by one or more people. - BLM Surface Mgmt. Regs.

Visitor experience - The perceptions, feelings and reactions a park visitor has in relationship with the surrounding environment. (DOI/BLM)

Visitor Experience and Resource Protection (VERP) - A process developed for the National Park Service to help manage the impacts of visitor use on the visitor experiences and resource conditions in national parks.

Visitor Use - Visitor use of a resource for inspiration, stimulation, solitude, relaxation, education, pleasure, or satisfaction. - BLM (DOI) Grand Escalante Staircase National Monument DEIS Glossary

Vista Management - Management that focuses on scenic values rather than functional values. - DOI/NPS http://www.nps.gov/cuva/management/rmprojects/ruraleis/

VISTAS - Visibility Improvement - State and Tribal Association of the Southeast

Visual Absorption Capability - A classification system used to denote relative ability of a landscape to accept human alterations without loss of character of scenic quality. - FS

Visual Condition Class (VCC) - A measure of the level of disturbance to the visual resource, expressed in acres. The visual condition classes are used as indicators to measure the existing conditions and effects of alternatives.

Visual Resource Management (VRM) Class - Management classes are determined on the basis of overall scenic quality, distance from travel routes, and sensitivity to change. Class I - Provides primarily for natural ecological changes only. It is applied to wilderness areas, some natural areas, and similar situations where management activities are to be restricted. Class II - Changes in the basic elements caused by a management activity may be evident in the characteristic landscape, but the changes should remain subordinate to the visual strength of the existing character. Class III - Changes in the basic elements caused by a management activity may be evident in the characteristic landscape, but the changes should remain subordinate to the visual strength of the existing character. Class IV - Changes may subordinate the original composition and character but must reflect what could be a natural occurrence within the characteristic landscape. - BLM (DOI) Grand Escalante Staircase National Monument DEIS Glossary

Visual Resources - The visible physical features of a landscape (topography, water, vegetation, animals, structures, and other features) that constitute the scenery of an area. - DOI/BLM

Visual Quality Objective (VQO) - A set of measurable goals for the management of forest visual resources. A system of indicating the potential expectations of the visual resource by considering the frequency an area is viewed and the type of landscape. A desired level of visual impact from a viewpoint based on physical and sociological characteristics of an area. It refers to the degree of acceptable change of the characteristic landscape. Five categories of VQO are commonly used: preservation; retention; partial retention; modification; and, maximum modification.

Visual Resource - A part of the landscape important for its scenic quality. It may include a composite of landforms, water features, cultural features, terrain, geologic features, and vegetative patterns which create the visual environment. 2. The visible physical features of a landscape. (BLM)

Visual Resource Management (VRM) - The inventory and planning actions to identify visual values and establish objectives for managing those values and the management actions to achieve visual management objectives. (BLM)

Visual Resource Management Classes - Categories assigned to public lands based on scenic quality, sensitivity level, and distance zones. There are four classes. Each class has an objective that prescribes the amount of modification allowed in the landscape. (BLM)

Visual Resources - The visible physical features of a landscape (topography, water, vegetation, animals, structures, and other features) that constitute the scenery of an area. (DOI)

Vividness - The landscape displays features which are highly distinct and prominent. Its patterns of line and form, color and texture range in complexity adding a striking character to the visual experience. (Florida DOT)

VF - V Feature (visual)

VFAP - Very Fine Aluminum Particles

VGA - Vulnerable Grazing Allotment

VHD - Village Habitat Design

VHR - Very High Resolution Mission

VHSNC - Vital and Health Statistics National Committee

VI - Vertical Integration

VI - Virtual Instrument

VIM - Visitor and Information Management

VISTA - Volunteers In Service To America

VLA - Visual Landscape Analysis

VLD - Visual Landscape Design

VLI - Visual Landscape Inventory

VLM - Visual Landscape Management

VLMP - Volunteer Lake Monitoring Program (EPA)

VLT - Vermont Land Trust

VM - Vertical Mulching (road closure technique) Please be sure to read the definition of vertical mulching!

VM - Vocal Minority

VMA - Valve Manufacturers Association

VMADS - Vehicle-Mounted Active Denial System

VMC - Vegetation Map Catalog

VMI - Von Mises Institute (Alabama)

VMP - Vegetation Management Plan

VMR - Vegetation Management Regimes

VMS - Vegetation Management Specialist (USDA Forest Service)

VMS - Virginia Military Survey

VMT - Vehicle Miles Traveled

VNDP - Village Neighborhood Design Principles http://www.glatting.com/  and http://www.glatting.com/burden/design_principles.htm

VNS - Voter News Service

VO - Volunteerism Opportunities (at Federal Sites - DOI)

VOF - Virginia Outdoors Foundation

Volcanic rocks - Igneous rocks formed from magma that has flowed out or has been violently ejected from a volcano.

Volcanogenic - A term used to describe the volcanic origin of mineralization.

Volatilization - Evaporation of liquid substances into the atmosphere. - NPS Ecology and Restoration Glossary

Volume - A measurement of the amount of material in a placer, usually stated in cubic outwards.

Volume Factor - A factor that takes into account the swell of loosened gravels after the material has been excavated. Most intact gravels swell at least 25 percent when they have been loosened.

Volume of Live Trees - The cubic-foot volume of sound wood in live trees at least 5.0 inches d.b.h. from a 1-foot stump to a minimum 4.0-inch top d.o.b. of the central stem. - USDA/FS

Voluntary Export Restraint Arrangement (VER) - An arrangement, usually a negotiated bilateral agreement, between countries in which suppliers or their government in an exporting country agree to limit to predetermined levels their exports of a particular product to an importing country. Under the Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture, VERs are to be converted into fixed tariffs or tariff-rate quotas.

Voluntary Purchase Area - Area identified in which USFWS would be interested in purchasing land from willing sellers for use in preserving or restoring native habitat and fish and wildlife species.

VOM - Visual Obstruction Measurement

Voting Right - The stockholder's right to vote in the affairs of the company. Most common shares have one vote each. Preferred stock usually has the right to vote when preferred dividends are in default.

VOR - Visual Obstruction Readings

VP - Viewshed Protection

VP - Viable Population

VPC - Violence Policy Center (formerly the New Right Watch)

VPD - Vehicles Per Day

VPEC - Valley Proud Environmental Council

VPP - Vest-Pocket Parks

VPR - Virginians for Property Rights

VQC - Visual Quality Class

VQO - Visual Quality Objective

VR - Vested Rights

VR - Viewer Rating

VR - Visual Resources

VRI - Visual Resources Inventory

VRM - Visual Resources Management (DOI)

VRO - Voluntary Resource Organizations

VRU - Visual Resource Unit

VRWC - Vast Right Wing Conspiracy

VS - Veg Spec

VS - Volitional Science

VSA - Visually Sensitive Area

VSC - Visual Sensitivity Class

VSG - The SSC Veterinary Specialist Group (UN/IUCN) http://www.iucn.org/themes/ssc/sgprofiles/vetsg.htm

VSI - Visual Site Inspection

VSOGIA - Vancouver Statement On the Globalization and Industrialization of Agriculture

VSU - Visual Sensitivity Unit

VSURP - Visual Sensitivity Unit Rating Point

VSURPS - Visual Sensitivity Unit Rating Point System

VT - Visionary Thinker

VTC - Visibility Transport Commission

VTRANS - The Vermont Transportation Agency http://www.aot.state.vt.us/

VTRPE - Variable Terrain Radio Parabolic Equation (a computer Radio Frequency propagation program that deals with radio waves and enables the RFMP system to visually see the battlefield terrain in 3 dimensions [3-D] on a television screen)

VU - Vehicle Use

Vug - A small cavity in a rock, frequently lined with well-formed crystals. Amethyst commonly forms in these cavities.

VWL - Vaguely Worded Law

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