cha 11

Question 1

surface water

Answer 1

Surface water is any body of water found on the Earth’s surface, including both the saltwater in the ocean and the freshwater in rivers, streams, and lakes.

Question 2

river system

Answer 2

A river system is also called a drainage basin or watershed. A river’s watershed includes the river, all its tributaries, and any groundwater resources in the area. The end of a river is its mouth.

Question 3

watershed

Answer 3

A watershed is an area of land that drains all the streams and rainfall to a common outlet such as the outflow of a reservoir, mouth of a bay, or any point along a stream channel.

Question 4

groundwater

Answer 4

Groundwater is water that exists underground in saturated zones beneath the land surface. The upper surface of the saturated zone is called the water table. Contrary to popular belief, groundwater does not form underground rivers.

Question 5

aquifer

Answer 5

When a water-bearing rock readily transmits water to wells and springs, it is called an aquifer. Wells can be drilled into the aquifers and water can be pumped out. Precipitation eventually adds water (recharge) into the porous rock of the aquifer.

Question 6

porosity

Answer 6

Porosity is defined as the ratio of the volume of pores to the volume of bulk rock and is usually expressed as a percentage.

Question 7

permeability

Answer 7

permeability, capacity of a porous material for transmitting a fluid; it is expressed as the velocity with which a fluid of specified viscosity, under the influence of a given pressure, passes through a sample having a certain cross section and thickness.

Question 8

recharge zone

Answer 8

a 1,250 square mile area where highly faulted and fractured Edwards limestones outcrop at the land surface, allowing large quantities of water to flow into the Aquifer.

Question 9

potable

Answer 9

suitable for drinking potable water. potable.

Question 10

pathogen

Answer 10

A pathogen is defined as an organism causing disease to its host, with the severity of the disease symptoms referred to as virulence. Pathogens are taxonomically widely diverse and comprise viruses and bacteria as well as unicellular and multicellular eukaryotes.

Question 11

dam

Answer 11

A dam is a structure built across a stream or river to hold water back. Dams can be used to store water, control flooding, and generate electricity.

Question 12

reservoir

Answer 12

a cavity or part that holds some fluid or secretion. a place where anything is collected or accumulated in great amount. a large or extra supply or stock; reserve: a reservoir of knowledge.

Question 13

desalination

Answer 13

removal of dissolved salts from seawater and in some cases from the brackish (slightly salty) waters of inland seas, highly mineralized groundwaters (e.g., geothermal brines), and municipal wastewater.

Question 14

water pollution

Answer 14

the contamination of water sources by substances which make the water unusable for drinking, cooking, cleaning, swimming, and other activities. Pollutants include chemicals, trash, bacteria, and parasites. All forms of pollution eventually make their way to water.

Question 15

point source pollution

Answer 15

any single identifiable source of pollution from which pollutants are discharged, such as a pipe, ditch, ship or factory smokestack.

Question 16

non point source pollution

Answer 16

caused by rainfall or snowmelt moving over and through the ground. As the runoff moves, it picks up and carries away natural and human-made pollutants, finally depositing them into lakes, rivers, wetlands, coastal waters and ground waters.

Question 17

wastewater

Answer 17

Wastewater is used water. It includes substances such as human waste, food scraps, oils, soaps and chemicals.

Question 18

artificial eutrophication

Answer 18

the gradual increase in the concentration of phosphorus, nitrogen, and other plant nutrients in an aging aquatic ecosystem such as a lake

Question 19

thermal pollution

Answer 19

any deviation from the natural temperature in a habitat and can range from elevated temperatures associated with industrial cooling activities to discharges of cold water into streams below large impoundments.

Question 20

biomagnification

Answer 20

Image result for biomagnification definition science
Biomagnification is the accumulation of a chemical by an organism from water and food exposure that results in a concentration that is greater than would have resulted from water exposure only and thus greater than expected from equilibrium. From: Treatise on Geochemistry,