F – J – BUILT ENVIRONMENT & PUBLIC HEALTH CLEARINGHOUSE

F

Fair Market Value: The amount of money that would probably be paid for a property in a sale between a willing seller, who does not have to sell, and a willing buyer, who does not have to buy. Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Family: See also – Household. Means a household composed of two or more related persons. Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Feasibility Study: A study by EPA to determine the best way to clean up environmental contamination. A number of factors are considered, including health risk, costs, and what methods will work well. Source: Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
Federal Highway Administration (FHWA): A branch of the US Department of Transportation that administers the federal-aid Highway Program, providing financial assistance to states to construct and improve highways, urban and rural roads, and bridges. The FHWA also administers the Federal Lands Highway Program, including survey, design, and construction of forest highway system roads, parkways and park roads, Indian reservation roads, defense access roads, and other Federal lands roads. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Federal Lands Highway Program (FLHP): Provides funds to construct roads and trails within (or, in some cases, providing access to) Federal lands. There are four categories of FLHP funds: Indian Reservation Roads, Public Lands Highways, Park Roads and Parkways, and Refuge Roads. Funds available to the US Forest Service may be used for forest development roads and trails. To be eligible for funding, projects must be open to the public and part of an approved Federal land management agency general management plan. 23 U.S.C. 204. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Federal Motor Vehicle Control Program: All federal actions aimed at controlling pollution from motor vehicles by such efforts as establishing and enforcing tailpipe and evaporative emission standards for new vehicles, testing methods development, and guidance to states operating inspection and maintenance programs. Federally designated area that is required to meet and maintain federal ambient air quality standards. May include nearby locations in the same state or nearby states that share common air pollution problems. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Federal Transit Administration (FTA): A branch of the US Department of Transportation that is the principal source of federal financial assistance to America’s communities for planning, development, and improvement of public or mass transportation systems. FTA provides leadership, technical assistance, and financial resources for safe, technologically advanced public transportation to enhance mobility and accessibility, to improve the Nation’s communities and natural environment, and to strengthen the national economy. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Federal-aid Highway Program (FAHP): An umbrella term for most of the Federal programs providing highway funds to the States. This is not a term defined in law. As used in this document, FAHP is comprised of those programs authorized in Titles I and V of TEA-21 that are administered by FHWA. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Federal-Aid Highways: Those highways eligible for assistance under Title 23 U.S.C. except those functionally classified as local or rural minor collectors. (23CFR500) Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Fine Particulates: Particulate matter less than 2.5 microns in size (PM-2.5). A micron is one millionth of a meter. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Fixed-Route: Term applied to transit service that is regularly scheduled and operates over a set route; usually refers to bus service. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
5 D’s of Development: The 5 D’s of development (density, diversity, design, destination accessibility, and distance to transit) impact the physical, social, and mental health of community residents. Source: Making Healthy Places
Flexibility In Use: The second principle of Universal Design: The design accommodates a wide range of individual preferences and abilities. Source: The Center for Universal Design
Flexible Work Schedule (FWS): In the case of a full-time employee, has an 80-hour biweekly basic work requirement that allows an employee to determine his or her own schedule within the limits set by the agency; and in the case of a part-time employee, has a biweekly basic work requirement of less than 80 hours that allows an employee to determine his or her own schedule within the limits set by the agency. Source: U.S. Office of Personnel Management
Floor Area Ratio (F.A.R.): Expresses the relationship between the amount of usable floor area permitted in a building (or buildings) and the area of the lot on which the building stands. It is obtained by dividing the gross floor area of a building by the total area of the lot. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Fomite: An inanimate object that can be the vehicle for transmission of an infectious agent (e.g., bedding, towels, or surgical instruments). Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Food Desert: An area with limited access to affordable and nutritious food, particularly an area composed of predominantly lower income neighborhoods or communities. Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture
Food Environment: The availability and selection of foods in a particular setting, such as a school or a neighborhood; availability and selection affect people’s food intake and their health. Source: Making Healthy Places
Forest Service: An agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, primarily responsible for planning and overseeing the use of national forest lands by private, commercial and government users. Source: American Society of Landscape Architects
Form-Based Codes: A method of regulating development to achieve a specific urban form. Form-based codes create a predictable public realm by controlling physical form primarily, with a lesser focus on land use, through city or county regulations. From-based codes address the relationship between building facades and the public realm, the form and mass of buildings in relation to one another, and the scale and types of streets and blocks. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Form-Based Zoning: Zoning that focuses on required features and performance of buildings rather than on prohibitions and specifications of land uses. Source: Making Healthy Places
Fossil Fuels: Carbon-rich deposits in the earth, such as petroleum (oil), coal, or natural gas, derived from the remains of ancient plants and animals and used for fuel. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Freeway: A divided arterial highway designed for the unimpeded flow of large traffic volumes. Access to a freeway is rigorously controlled and intersection grade separations are required. Source: Federal Highway Administration
Fresh Food Access: The ongoing opportunity to procure fresh fruits and vegetables and other nutritious foods within one’s community. Source: Making Healthy Places
Frequency: The amount or number of occurrences of an attribute or health outcome among a population. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Frequency Distribution: A complete summary of the frequencies of the values or categories of a variable, often displayed in a two-column table with the individual values or categories in the left column and the number of observations in each category in the right column. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Functional Limitation: A difficulty encountered by an individual in executing a task or action. Source: World Health Organization
Future Needs: Represents the gap between the vision and the current or projected performance of the system. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration

G

Garbage: Animal and vegetable waste resulting from the handling, storage, sale, preparation, cooking, and serving of foods. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Gas Sorption: Devices used to reduce levels of airborne gaseous compounds by passing the air through materials that extract the gases. The performance of solid sorbents is dependent on the airflow rate, concentration of the pollutants, presence of other gases or vapors, and other factors. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Gentrification: A phenomenon which reverses decay and decline in a neighborhood. It is brought about by the immigration of people into a deteriorating or renewed city area. As more people follow suit, the neighborhood desirability and values gradually increase to a point whereby the neighborhood becomes once again viable and desirable, however existing residents may be priced out of the revitalized area as a result (see “displacement”). Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Geocoding: The process of assigning latitude and longitude to a point, based on street addresses, city, state and zip code. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Geographic Information Systems (GIS): A computer system designed for storing, manipulating, analyzing, and displaying data in a geographic context. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Geothermal Energy: Heat that comes from the Earths interior. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Global Warming: The progressive gradual rise of the Earth’s surface temperature thought to be caused by the greenhouse effect. Global warming may be responsible for changes in global climate patterns. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Grade: The slope of a plot of land. Grading is the mechanical process of moving earth changing the degree of rise or descent of the land in order to establish good drainage and otherwise suit the intent of a landscape design. Source: American Society of Landscape Architects
Grand Rounds: Training sessions for physicians and other health care providers about health topics. Source: Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
Gray Water: Water that flows from sinks, showers, bathtubs, and clothes washers and is potentially reusable Source: Making Healthy Places
Green Agenda: A political and social movement interested in promoting environmental and ecological sustainability (cf. brown agenda)
Green Alleys: Alley design and construction techniques that conserve resources and protect the environment by: 1) allowing water to infiltrate into the soils through permeable pavement or infiltration basins; 2) utilize light, reflective surface materials (high albedo) that reflected heat energy and reduce light pollution and glare. Source: City of Chicago
Green Building: Green building refers to a set of building design and construction practices that seek to reduce a building\’s environmental impacts by improving energy efficiency and indoor air quality, reducing water use and consumption, choosing sustainable building materials, and situating the home in a manner that takes advantage of sunlight and other natural amenities. Source: HousingPolicy.org
Green Design: Using natural products and safer procedures to protect people’s health and well-being. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Green Roofs: Highly engineered, lightweight roofing systems that allows for the propagation of rooftop vegetation while protecting the integrity of the underlying roof. While conventional roof gardens rely on heavy pots and planters, green roof systems allow for much more extensive cultivation of plant life across wide expanses of a given rooftop. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Green Space: Open, undeveloped land with natural vegetation. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Greenbelt: A strip of unspoiled, often treed, agricultural or other outlying land used to separate or ring urban areas. Source: American Society of Landscape Architects
Greenfield: Farmland and open areas where there has been no prior industrial or commercial activity, and therefore where the threat of contamination is much lower than in urbanized areas. Source: A Planners Dictionary, ed. by M. Davidson & F. Dolnick. PAS Guide 521/522
Greenhouse Effect: The warming of the Earth’s atmosphere attributed to a buildup of carbon dioxide or other gases; some scientists think that this build-up allows the sun’s rays to heat the Earth, while making the infra-red radiation atmosphere opaque to infra-red radiation, thereby preventing a counterbalancing loss of heat. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Greenhouse Gas (GHG): A gas, such as carbon dioxide or methane, which contributes to potential climate change. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Greenspace: Open space, undeveloped space designated for parks, playgrounds, trails, gardens, and habitat restoration and preservation. Source: Sustainable Management Approaches and Revitalization Tools – electronic
Greyfield: Older, economically obsolete development. The term is commonly applied to malls that are past their prime and are experiencing declining levels of occupancy. Source: A Planners Dictionary, ed. by M. Davidson & F. Dolnick. PAS Guide 521/522
Groundwater: The supply of fresh water found beneath the Earth’s surface, usually in aquifers, which supply wells and springs. Because ground water is a major source of drinking water, there is growing concern over contamination from leaching agricultural or industrial pollutants or leaking underground storage tanks. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Group Home: Housing occupied by two or more single persons or families consisting of common space and/or facilities for group use by the occupants of the unit and (except in the case of shared one-bedroom units) separate private space for each family.
Growth Management: The use by a community of a wide range of techniques in combination to determine the amount, type, and rate of development desired by the community and to channel that growth into designated areas. Growth management policies can be implemented through growth rates, zoning, capital improvement programs, public facilities ordinances, urban limit lines, standards for levels of service, and other programs. Source: (A Planners Dictionary, ed. by M. Davidson & F. Dolnick. PAS Guide 521/522)a

H

Habitable Room: Any room used or intended to be used for sleeping, cooking, living or eating purposes. Enclosed spaces such as bath or toilet facilities, service rooms, corridors, laundries, hallways, utility rooms or similar spaces are excluded from this definition. Source: United Kingdom Department for Communities and Local Governments
Half-Life: The time it takes for half the original amount of a substance to disappear. In the environment, the half-life is the time it takes for half the original amount of a substance to disappear when it is changed to another chemical by bacteria, fungi, sunlight, or other chemical processes. In the human body, the half-life is the time it takes for half the original amount of the substance to disappear, either by being changed to another substance or by leaving the body. In the case of radioactive material, the half-life is the amount of time necessary for one half the initial number of radioactive atoms to change or transform into another atom (that is normally not radioactive). After two half-lives, 25% of the original number of radioactive atoms remain. Source: Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
Hardscape: Elements added to a natural landscape, such as paving stones, gravel, walkways, irrigation systems, roads, retaining walls, sculpture, street amenities, fountains, and other mechanical features. Source: American Society of Landscape Architects
Hazard: 1) A source of potential harm from past, current, or future exposures. 2) A situation that poses a level of threat to life, health, property, or environment. Most hazards are dormant or potential, with only a theoretical risk of harm; however, once a hazard becomes active, it can create an emergency situation. A hazard does not exist when it is happening. A hazardous situation that has come to pass is called an incident. Hazard and vulnerability interact together to create risk. Source: Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry; Wikipedia
Hazard Score And Rating: See Healthy Home Rating System (HHRS) Formula. The Hazard Score is a numerical representation of the overall risk from a hazard. It is based on the evaluation of the likelihood of an occurrence and of the probable spread of harms that could result. Source: Healthy Home Rating System
Hazardous Substance: 1) Any material that poses a threat to human health and/or the environment. Typical hazardous substances are toxic, corrosive, ignitable, explosive, or chemically reactive. 2) Any substance designated by EPA to be reported if a designated quantity of the substance is spilled in the waters of the United States or is otherwise released into the environment. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Hazardous Substance Release And Health Effects Database (HAZDAT): The scientific and administrative database system developed by ATSDR to manage data collection, retrieval, and analysis of site-specific information on hazardous substances, community health concerns, and public health activities. Source: Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
Hazardous Waste: By-products of society that can pose a substantial or potential hazard to human health or the environment when improperly managed. Possesses at least one of four characteristics (ignitability, corrosivity, reactivity, or toxicity), or appears on special EPA lists. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Healing Garden: The ongoing opportunity to procure fresh fruits and vegetables and other nutritious foods within one’s community. Source: Making Healthy Places
Health: A state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. (World Health Organization, as adopted by the International Health Conference, New York, 19-22 June, 1946; signed on 22 July 1947 by the representatives of 61 States (Official Records of the World Health Organization, no. 2, p. 100); and entered into force on 7 April 1948.) Source: World Health Organization
Health Care: Services provided to individuals or communities by agents of the health services or professions to promote, maintain, monitor, or restore health. Health care is not limited to medical care. Source: (A Dictionary of Epidemiology, (3rd ed.) Edited by John Last)
Health Consultation: A review of available information or collection of new data to respond to a specific health question or request for information about a potential environmental hazard. Health consultations are focused on a specific exposure issue. Health consultations are therefore more limited than a public health assessment, which reviews the exposure potential of each pathway and chemical. Source: Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
Health Disparity: Most health disparities affect groups marginalized because of socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, disability status, geographic location, or some combination of these. People in such groups not only experience worse health but also tend to have less access to the social determinants or conditions (e.g., healthy food, good housing, good education, safe neighborhoods, freedom from racism and other forms of discrimination) that support health/ Health disparities are referred to as health inequities when they are the result of the systematic and unjust distribution of these critical conditions. Also called Minority Health. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Health Education: Programs designed with a community to help it know about health risks and how to reduce these risks. Source: Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
Health Equity: 1) Health equity, then, as understood in public health literature and practice, is when everyone has the opportunity to attain their full health potential and no one is disadvantaged from achieving this potential because of their social position or other socially determined circumstance.; 2) a situation in which, regardless of individual behavior, individuals have access to equal opportunities for positive health outcomes. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Health Impact Assessment (HIA): A combination of procedures, methods, and tools by which a policy, program, or project may be judged as to its potential effects on the health of a population, and the distribution of those effects within the population. Source: World Health Organization
Health Indicator: A characteristic of an individual, population, or environment which is subject to measurement (directly or indirectly) and can be used to describe one or more aspects of the health of an individual or population (quality, quantity and time). Source: World Health Organization
Health Information System: A combination of health statistics from different sources. Data from these systems are used to learn about health status, health care, provision and use of services, and the impact of services and programs on health. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Health Investigation: The collection and evaluation of information about the health of community residents. This information is used to describe or count the occurrence of a disease, symptom, or clinical measure and to evaluate the possible association between the occurrence and exposure to hazardous substances. Source: Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
Health Literacy: The capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information and services to make appropriate health decisions. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Health Outcome: A change in the health status of an individual, group or population which is attributable to a planned or unplanned intervention or series of interventions. Source: World Health Organization
Health Promotion: The process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve, their health. To reach a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, an individual or group must be able to identify and to realize aspirations, to satisfy needs, and to change or cope with the environment. Health is, therefore, seen as a resource for everyday life, not the objective of living. Health is a positive concept emphasizing social and personal resources, as well as physical capacities. Therefore, health promotion is not just the responsibility of the health sector, but goes beyond healthy life-styles to well-being. Source: World Health Organization
Health Statistics Review: The analysis of existing health information (i.e., from death certificates, birth defects registries, and cancer registries) to determine if there is excess disease in a specific population, geographic area, and time period. A health statistics review is a descriptive epidemiologic study. Source: Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
Health Status: A description and/or measurement of the health of an individual or population at a particular point in time against identifiable standards, usually by reference to health indicators. Source: World Health Organization
Health System: The people, institutions and resources, arranged together in accordance with established policies, to improve the health of the population they serve, while responding to people’s legitimate expectations and protecting them against the cost of ill-health through a variety of activities whose primary intent is to improve health. Source: World Health Organization
Healthy City: A healthy city is one that is continually creating and improving those physical and social environments and expanding those community resources which enable people to mutually support each other in performing all the functions of life and in developing to their maximum potential. Source: World Health Organization
Healthy Community: A place where people provide leadership in assessing their own resources and needs, where public health and social infrastructure and policies support health, and where essential public health services, including quality health care, are available. Source: The Future of the Public’s Health in the 21st Century
Healthy Development Measurement Tool (HDMT): A comprehensive evaluation metric, developed in San Francisco, for considering health needs in urban development. Source: Making Healthy Places
Healthy Home Rating System (HHRS) Formula: This is the formula used to calculate the Hazard Score for the Healthy Home Rating System (HHRS) using representative scale points to denote likelihood and spread of outcomes judgments. The HHRS is an American adaptation of the British Housing Health and Safety Rating System. The HHRSR was developed to allow assessment of all the main potential housing related health and safety hazards.
Healthy Home/Housing: A healthy home is sited, designed, built, maintained, and renovated in ways that support the health of its residents. The concept of healthy homes extends beyond the four walls of a dwelling to its surroundings to the land immediately around the house, to adjacent structures and amenities (such as outbuildings, trees, and recreational equipment), and to the neighborhood setting. A house does not exist in isolation. Community factors including the ways people behave and relate to each other, the way the community is designed and built, and the state of the environment, contribute critically to healthy homes. Health-promoting features of the community may include sidewalks and bicycle trails; parks and green space; mass transit; and nearby destinations such as stores, schools, and workplaces. Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Healthy People 2020: A program of the Department of Health and Human Services, HP 200 is a nationwide health promotion and disease prevention agenda. The Healthy People initiative is grounded in the principle that setting national objectives and monitoring progress can motivate action. Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Hearing Impairment: Difficulty hearing or deafness. Source: Usability First
Health Insurance Portability And Accountability Act (HIPAA): The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, enacted in 1996, which addresses the privacy of a person’s medical information as well as postemployment insurance and other health-related concerns. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Heavy Rail (Transit): An electric railway with the capacity to transport a heavy volume of passenger traffic and characterized by exclusive rights-of-way, multicar trains, high speed, rapid acceleration, sophisticated signaling, and high-platform loading. Also known as: Subway, Elevated (railway), or Metropolitan railway (metro). Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Hierarchy of Controls: A list of ways to control exposures to occupational hazards that is arranged in order of effectiveness, beginning with the most effective, as follows: elimination, substitution, engineering controls, warnings, administrative controls, and personal protective equipment. Source: Making Healthy Places
High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA): Refers to a filtering system capable of trapping and retaining at least 99.97 percent of all monodispersed particles 0.3 m in diameter or larger. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
High Occupancy Toll (HOT) Lane: HOT lanes are limited-access, normally barrier-separated highway lanes that provide free or reduced cost access to qualifying HOVs, and also provide access to other paying vehicles not meeting passenger occupancy requirements. Source: Federal Highway Administration Planning Guide
High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV): Vehicles carrying two or more people. The number that constitutes an HOV for the purposes of HOV highway lanes may be designated differently by different transportation agencies. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
High Occupancy Vehicle Facility: Any kind of facility that gives priority treatment to buses, vanpools, carpools and high-occupancy vehicles, including HOV lanes, park-and-ride lots, and other support facilities or elements. Source: Federal-Aid Highway Program Guidance on High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Lanes
High Occupancy Vehicle Lane: Exclusive road or traffic lane limited to buses, vanpools, carpools, and emergency vehicles. (APTA1) Source: Federal Highway Association Planning Glossary
High-performance Schools: Schools designed, built, and operated to be environmentally friendly, comfortable, safe and healthy, and effective learning environments. Source: Making Healthy Places
Highway Trust Fund (HTF): An account established by law to hold Federal highway user taxes that are dedicated for highway and transit related purposes. The HTF has two accounts: the Highway Account, and the Mass Transit Account. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Highway-Rail Grade Crossing (Rail): A location where one or more railroad tracks are crossed by a public highway, road, street, or a private roadway at grade, including sidewalks and pathways at or associated with the crossing. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Highway-User Tax: A charge levied on persons or organizations based on their use of public roads. Funds collected are usually applied toward highway construction, reconstruction, and maintenance. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Historic Preservation: The act or process of applying measures necessary to sustain the existing form, integrity, and materials of an historic property. Source: National Park Service; American Society of Landscape Architects
Home Rule: The power of local government to manage local affairs and to avoid interference from the state (cf. Dillon’s Rule). Source: Making Healthy Places
Homeless Prevention: Activities or programs designed to prevent the incidence of homelessness, including, but not limited to: (1) short-term subsidies to defray rent and utility arrearages for families that have received eviction or utility termination notices; (2) security deposits or first months rent to permit a homeless family to move into its own apartment; (3) mediation programs for landlord-tenant disputes; (4) legal services programs that enable representation of indigent tenants in eviction proceedings; (5) payments to prevent foreclosure on a home; and (6) other innovative programs and activities designed to prevent the incidence of homelessness. Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Homeownership: Ownership in fee simple title or a 99 year leasehold interest in a one- to four-unit dwelling or in a condominium unit, or equivalent form of ownership approved by HUD. The ownership interest may be subject only to the restrictions on resale required under 92.254(a); mortgages, deeds of trust, or other liens or instruments securing debt on the property as approved by the participating jurisdiction; or any other restrictions or encumbrances that do not impair the good and marketable nature of title to the ownership interest. For purposes of the insular areas, homeownership includes leases of 40 years or more. For purposes of housing located on trust or restricted Indian lands, homeownership includes leases of 50 years. The participating jurisdiction must determine whether or not ownership or membership in a cooperative or mutual housing project constitutes homeownership under State law. Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Horticultural Therapy: A process utilizing plants and horticultural activities to improve individuals’ social, educational, psychological, and physical adjustment, thus improving their body, mind, and spirit. Source: Making Healthy Places
Host Factor: An intrinsic factor (age, race, sex, behaviors, etc.) which influences an individual’s exposure, susceptibility, or response to a causative agent. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Household: All the people who occupy a housing unit. A household includes the related family members and all the unrelated people, if any, such as lodgers, foster children, wards, or employees who share the housing unit. A person living alone in a housing unit, or a group of unrelated people sharing a housing unit such as partners or roomers, is also counted as a household. Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Household Vehicle: A motorized vehicle that is owned, leased, rented, company-owned, or available under some other arrangement, such as borrowed. The vehicle must be available to be used regularly by household members during the travel period. Also included are vehicles used solely for business purposes or business-owned vehicles if kept at home and used for the home to work trip, (e.g., taxicabs, police cars, etc.) which may be owned by, or assigned to, household members for their regular use. Vehicles that were owned or available for use by members of the household during the travel period even though a vehicle may have been sold before the interview are also included. Excluded from this category are vehicles that were not working and not expected to be working within 60 days, and vehicles that were purchased or received after the designated travel day. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Housing And Urban Development, Department Of (HUD): Federal agency responsible for producing and managing many federally-funded public service programs, especially those affecting housing and public spaces. Source: American Society of Landscape Architects
Housing Code: A process utilizing plants and horticultural activities to improve individuals’ social, educational, psychological, and physical adjustment, thus improving their body, mind, and spirit. Source: Making Healthy Places
Housing Interventions: Housing is a readily available setting for a number of public health interventions, but there is a lack of research results from intervention studies alone to support improved housing as a robust means to improve health. Insulating existing homes, providing effective safe heaters, and where necessary subsidized power, has been shown theoretically and in practice, to increase older peoples health and wellbeing and the health of children with asthma. In some cases the intervention prevented only further deterioration in health. The construction of new passive houses that are well insulated, have no active heating or cooling systems and use passive solar energy even in winter time, costs around 10% more but reduces energy running costs by a factor of 10 over the building lifetime. Such sustainable housing can increase the disposable income of the households and help to reduce inequalities. Source: Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
Housing Tenure: Tenure is the legal conditions under which people live in their dwellings. Homes can be rented or owner occupied. If they are rented they can be rented from a private or public landlord. If homes are owner occupied, they may be owned with or without a mortgage, but, unlike rental properties, they can provide some financial benefits. One key advantage for many home buyers is that paying off a mortgage is a regular, forced form of saving, which yields security in later years. Source: Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
Housing Wealth: Housing is the largest capital asset many families own and thus can be used to provide financial flexibility, for example, as collateral against a personal loan. Housing wealth is the net asset value of an owner occupied dwelling calculated as the market value, minus the mortgage debt. Housing costs are usually the largest item of household expenditure. To adjust for this, disposable income is sometimes calculated after housing costs have been accounted for. When interest rates rise, households with mortgages can face a decline in after-housing disposable income. Source: Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
Hydrocarbons (HC): Colorless gaseous compounds originating from evaporation and the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Hydrogeological Cycle: The natural process recycling water from the atmosphere down to (and through) the earth and back to the atmosphere again. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Hyperendemic: The constant presence at high incidence and prevalence of an agent or health condition within a given geographic area or population. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Hypersensitivity Diseases: Diseases characterized by allergic responses to pollutants; diseases most clearly associated with indoor air quality are asthma, rhinitis, and pneumonic hypersensitivity. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

I

Immunity, Active: Resistance developed in response to an antigen (i.e., an infecting agent or vaccine), usually characterized by the presence of antibody produced by the host. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Immunity, Herd: The resistance to an infectious agent of an entire group or community (and, in particular, protection of susceptible persons) as a result of a substantial proportion of the population being immune to the agent. Herd immunity is based on having a substantial number of immune persons, thereby reducing the likelihood that an infected person will come in contact with a susceptible one among human populations, also called community immunity. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Immunity, Passive: Immunity conferred by an antibody produced in another host This type of immunity can be acquired naturally by an infant from its mother or artificially by administration of an antibody-containing preparation (e.g., antiserum or immune globulin). Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Impairment: A problem in body function or structure. Source: World Health Organization
Impermeable: Incapable of permeating, absorbing, or diffusing water, thereby creating runoff. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Impervious Surface (Cover): The property of a material or soil that does not allow, or allows only with great difficulty, the movement or passage of water. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
In Vitro: Experiments or tests done under controlled experimental conditions outside of the body, such as in a test tube or laboratory dish. These tests tend to focus on organs, tissues, cells, cellular components, proteins, and/or biomolecules. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
In Vivo: Within a living organism; a laboratory experiment performed in which the substance under study is inserted into a living organism. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Incidence: A measure of the frequency with which new cases of illness, injury, or other health condition occurs among a population during a specified period.
Incivilities: Micro-level physical elements in neighborhoods or streets, such as abandoned buildings, broken windows, trash, litter, and graffiti. Source: Making Healthy Places
Inclusionary Zoning: method of incorporating affordable housing into development projects by requiring the developer to build some affordable units or contribute to a trust fund devoted to affordable housing construction. Source: Making Healthy Places
Indoor Air Quality (IAQ): The healthiness of the air inside homes. Indoor air pollution sources that release gases or particles into the air and/or a lack or proper ventilation are the primary causes of indoor air quality problems in homes. Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Infill Development: Development of vacant, skipped-over parcels of land in otherwise built-up areas. Local governments are showing increasing interest in infill development as a way of containing energy costs and limiting costs of extending infrastructure into newly developing areas. Infill development also provides an attractive alternative to new development by reducing loss of critical and resource lands to new development and by focusing on strengthening older neighborhoods. Source: (A Planners Dictionary, ed. by M. Davidson & F. Dolnick. PAS Guide 521/522)
Infrastructure: 1) In transit systems, all the fixed components of the transit system, such as rights-of-way, tracks, signal equipment, stations, park-and-ride lots, but stops, maintenance facilities. 2) In transportation planning, all the relevant elements of the environment in which a transportation system operates. (TRB1) 3) A term connoting the physical underpinnings of society at large, including, but not limited to, roads, bridges, transit, waste systems, public housing, sidewalks, utility installations, parks, public buildings, and communications networks. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Inherently Low Emission Vehicles (ILEV): Any kind of vehicle which, because of the inherent properties of the fuel system design will not have significant evaporative emissions, even if its evaporative emission control system has failed. These vehicles are certified by the Environmental Protection Agency. Source: Freeway Management Program
Injury: the result of an act that damages, harms, or hurts; unintentional or intentional damage to the body resulting from acute exposure to thermal, mechanical, electrical or chemical energy or from the absence of such essentials as heat or oxygen. Source: Trauma System Agenda for the Future
Inspection and Maintenance (I/M): An emissions testing and inspection program implemented by States in nonattainment areas to ensure that the catalytic or other emissions control devices on in-use vehicles are properly maintained. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Integrated Pest Management: An approach to pest control that prevents entry of pests into homes; deprives pests of access to shelter, food, and water; and minimizes use of pesticides. Source: Making Healthy Places
Integrated Transportation and Land-Use Package (ITLUP): The Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE), an international individual member educational and scientific association, is one of the largest and fastest-growing multimodal professional transportation organizations in the world. ITE members are traffic engineers, transportation planners and other professionals who are responsible for meeting society’s needs for safe and efficient surface transportation through planning, designing, implementing, operating and maintaining surface transportation systems worldwide. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS): The application of advanced technologies to improve the efficiency and safety of transportation systems. Source: Federal Highway Administration Planning Glossary
Intercity Class I Bus: As defined by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, an interstate motor carrier of passengers with an average annual gross revenue of at least $1 million. Source: Federal Highway Administration Planning Glossary Intermediate Health Outcomes: Intermediate health outcomes are changes in the determinants of health, notably changes in lifestyles, and living conditions which are attributable to a planned intervention or interventions, including health promotion, disease prevention and primary health care. Source: Intermediate Health Outcomes
Intermodal: The ability to connect, and the connections between, modes of transportation. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA): Legislative initiative by the U.S. Congress that restructured funding for transportation programs. ISTEA authorized increased levels of highway and transportation funding from FY92-97 and increased the role of regional planning commissions/MPOs in funding decisions. The Act also required comprehensive regional and Statewide long-term transportation plans and places an increased emphasis on public participation and transportation alternatives. Source: Federal Highway Administration Planning Glossary
International Federation Of Landscape Architects (IFLA): An organization that promotes the landscape architecture profession within a collaborative partnership of the allied built-environment professions, demanding the highest standards of education, training, research and professional practice, and providing leadership and stewardship in all matters. Source: International Federation of Landscape Architects
Intersection Humps/Raised Intersections: Intersection humps raise the roadway at the intersection, forming a type of “plateau” across the intersection, with a ramp on each approach. The plateau is at curb level and can be enhanced through the use of distinctive surfacing such as pavement coloring, brickwork, or other pavements. In some cases, the distinction between roadway and sidewalk surfaces is blurred. If this is done, physical obstructions such as bollards or planters should be considered, restricting the area to which motor vehicles have access. Source: Innovative Intersection Safety Improvement Strategies and Management Practices
Interstate: Limited access divided facility of at least four lanes designated by the Federal Highway Administration as part of the Interstate System. (NHTSA3) Source: Federal Highway Administration Planning Glossary
Interstate Highway: Limited access, divided highway of at least four lanes designated by the Federal Highway Administration as part of the Interstate System. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Interstate Highway (Freeway or Expressway): A divided arterial highway for through traffic with full or partial control of access and grade separations at major intersections. (FHWA3) Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
Interstate Highway System (IHS): The system of highways that connects the principal metropolitan areas, cities, and industrial centers of the United States. Also connects the US to internationally significant routes in Canada and Mexico. Source: Federal Highway Administration
Interstate Maintenance (IM): The Interstate Maintenance (IM) program provides funding for resurfacing, restoring, rehabilitating and reconstructing (4R) most routes on the Interstate System. Source: Federal Highway Administration Planning Glossary
Intrastate: Travel within the same state. (BOC3) Source: Federal Highway Administration Planning Glossary
Intrastate Commerce: Any trade, traffic, or transportation in any State which is not described in the term “interstate commerce.” (49CFR390) Any trade, traffic, or transportation in any State which is not described in the term “interstate commerce.” (49CFR390) Source: Federal Highway Administration Planning Glossary
IRR Inventory: An inventory of roads which meet the following criteria: a) public roads strictly within reservation boundaries, b) public roads that provide access to lands, to groups, villages, and communities in which the majority of residences are Indian, c) public roads that serve Indian lands not within reservation boundaries, and d) public roads that serve recognized Indian groups, villages, and isolated communities not located within a reservation. Source: Federal Highway Administration Planning Glossary
IRR Program Stewardship Plan: The plan which details the roles and responsibilities of the BIA, FHWA and ITGs in the administration and operation of the IRR Program Source: Federal Highway Administration Planning Glossary
IRR Road/Bridge Inventory: An inventory of BIA owned IRR and bridges. Source: Federal Highway Administration Planning Glossary
IRR TIP: A multi-year listing of road improvement projects programmed for construction by a BIA area office, with IRR Program funds, for the next 3-5 years. A separate IRR TIP is prepared for each State within the area office’s jurisdiction. Source: Federal Highway Administration Planning Glossary
IRR Transportation Planning Funds: Funds provided under 23 U.S.C., Section 204 (j), for transportation planning by ITGs. Source: Federal Highway Administration Planning Glossary
Isolated Rural Nonattainment and Maintenance Areas: Areas that do not contain or are not part of any metropolitan planning area as designated under the transportation planning regulations. Isolated rural areas do not have Federally required metropolitan transportation plans or TIPs and do not have projects that are part of the emissions analysis of any MPO’s metropolitan transportation plan or TIP. Projects in such areas are instead included in statewide transportation improvement programs. These areas are not donut areas. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration

J

Jobs-Housing Balance: Jobs-housing balance refers to the distribution of employment relative to the distribution of workers within a given geographic area. Implicit in the concept is a broad mix of housing types to accommodate households (workers) of a range of income categories. Source: University of California Transportation Center
Joint Use Agreement: Joint use agreements facilitate a partnership between two or more entities, often school districts and local government agencies (e.g. parks and recreation or nonprofit organizations, to open up spaces such as playgrounds, athletic fields, pools, and gymnasiums to the community outside of school hours or to open up community facilities to schools at a reduced cost or for free. Joint use partnerships can be formal (based on a legal document) or informal (based on a handshake), but formal agreements offer increased protections for both the facility and the community group using the facility. Source: Prevention Institute and Berkeley Media Studies Group
Journey-To-Work: Includes travel to or from a place where one reports for work. Does not include any other work-related travel. Source: U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration