Groundwater study guide

The following texts are the property of their respective authors and we thank them for giving us the opportunity to share for free to students, teachers and users of the Web their texts will used only for illustrative educational and scientific purposes only.

All the information in our site are given for nonprofit educational purposes

The information of medicine and health contained in the site are of a general nature and purpose which is purely informative and for this reason may not replace in any case, the council of a doctor or a qualified entity legally to the profession.

Groundwater study guide

Groundwater
Fresh Water

Most of the Earth’s fresh water is found in moving and standing water.
Rivers, streams, and springs are moving water.
Ponds, lakes, and swamps are standing water.

The water cycle – the movement of water from the oceans and freshwater sources to the air and land and finally back to the oceans.
Evaporation – the process of water to gas phase.
Condensation – the process of gas to water. Must be cooled for this to occur.
Precipitation – water returns to the Earth in the form of rain, snow, sleet, or hail.

Groundwater
Water that remains in the ground
Eventually flows into the ocean
Some of this returns to the earth from springs

Frozen water: Glaciers
A. Valley (Alpine) glaciers – long, narrow glaciers that move downhill between mountain valleys.
B. Continental glaciers – thick sheets of ice that covers millions of square km of the earth’s surface, moves slowly in all directions.
C. Icebergs – Some are as large as Rhode Island

Terminology

Surface runoff – the water that enters a river or stream after a heavy rain or spring thaw.
Pore space – the space between particles of soil. More pore space means more water the ground can hold.
Watershed – a land area where surface runoff drains into a river or a system of rivers and streams.

More areas holding water…

Lakes – usually deep depressions in the earth’s crust filled with fresh water. Usually where glaciers once were.
Ponds – shallow depressions with fresh water, plants usually throughout.
Reservoirs – the most frequently used source of fresh water. Built by damming a stream or river and is protected from polluting by laws.

Uses of Reservoirs
A. Prevents flooding by controlling water during heavy rains.
B. As a source of drinking water.
C. Provides irrigation water for farms
D. Used to generate electricity

Groundwater

Groundwater – present because the various forms of precipitation do not stop traveling when they hit the ground. Instead it moves slowly downward through pores.
Permeable – material through which water can move quickly. Ex. Sandstone
Impermeable – water cannot get through easily. Ex. Clay
Zone of saturation – the underground region in which all the pores are filled with water.
Zone of aeration – a drier region in which the pores are filled mostly with air.
Water table – the boundary between the zone of saturation and aeration, that marks the level below which the ground is saturated.

Water level example:
This is the point when you dig down a few inches (sometimes feet) at the beach and reach the point where your hole fills up with water. This is different for every area, the farther away from the shore you are you need to dig deeper.

Aquifer – the layer where the water begins to move sideways through a layer of rock that allows it to pass freely. This is the groundwater level where a large amount of water collects. Usually made up of sandstone, gravel, sand, or limestone (that has been weathered and is cracked). This is usually where wells are drilled into.
Aquiclude: Area of impermeable rock… small area in which water can collect

Solubility
Solvent – a substance in which another substance dissolves. Water is the universal solvent.
Solution – contains two or more substances mixed on the molecular level, one thing must be dissolved.
Soluble – can be dissolved.
Insoluble – cannot be dissolved.

Hard versus Soft Water

Hard water – contains large amounts of dissolved minerals, especially calcium and magnesium. Soap will not lather easily in hard water.
Soft water – just the opposite.

Water Pollutants

Point Source Pollution – oil spills, leaking toxic waste, smokestack emissions; where the source is obvious.
Non-point pollution – where there is no single point of pollution. Examples: runoff carrying natural and human-made pollutants. (pesticides, fertilizers, petroleum products…)

Source : http://pams-zajac.wikispaces.com/file/view/Groundwater+Notes.doc

Web site link to visit: http://pams-zajac.wikispaces.com

Google key word : Groundwater study guide file type : doc

Author : not indicated on the source document of the above text

If you are the author of the text above and you not agree to share your knowledge for teaching, research, scholarship (for fair use as indicated in the United States copyrigh low) please send us an e-mail and we will remove your text quickly.