| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Headwaters | Beginning top or highest point generally steep areas. Water will be moving quickly and generally not deep. |
| Divide | Highest point that separates 2 watersheds. |
| Down river | the direction the water flows |
| Channel | steep sides that holds the 'normal' water level |
| Tributaries | smaller streams or rivers that empty into a larger body of water |
| Flood plain | broad, flat land next to a body of water where flooding regularly occurs |
| Mouth | where a faster smaller stream or river empties into a larger body of water (generally slower rate of flow) |
| Wetland | a low-lying area that holds water some time of the year, has specific plants and animals |
| Runoff | water that flows over a round surface. It picks up materials as it moves |
| Erosion | where water, ice, or wind breaks down rock into smaller pieces, causes sediments |
| Deposition | when sediments are put down into the water. Leads to sedimentary rock |
| Flooding | when water overflows the channel. regular and naturally occurring phenomenon |
| Dams | built across the channel to reserve water upstream and prevents and controls flooding |
| Levees | built along the channel to make channel higher to prevent flooding |
| Watersheds | land area where all the runoff "sheds" into the lowest point (water system) |
| factors that determine the amount of runoff | ground surface , rate of rainfall/amount of precipitation, slope of the land |
| functions of wetlands | flood control, habitat, filtration of water, atmospheric maintenance, ground water recharge |
| filtration | the process of passing water through a series of screens that allow water through, but not larger particles |
| flocs | sticky globs created by adding a chemical such as alum during water treatment |
| coagulation | the process by which particles in a liquid clump together; a step in the water treatment process |
| sewage | the wastewater and the different kinds of wastes in it |
| septic tank | an underground tank containing bacteria that treats wastewater as it passes through |
| leach field | the area around the septic tank that the water filters through |
| unsaturated zone | a layer of rocks and soil above the water table in which the pores contain air as well as water |
| water table | the top of the saturated zone |
| saturated zone | a layer of permeable rock or soil in which the cracks and pores are totally filled with water |
| permeable rock | has pore space where air, water, petroleum, or natural gas may occur |
| impermeable rock | has little or no pore space; materials will not pass through this layer |
| aquifer | an underground layer of rock or soil that holds water |
| producers | a person, company, or country that makes, grows, or supplies goods or commodities |
| consumers | a person or thing that eats or uses something |
| decomposers | an organism, esp. a soil bacterium, fungus, or invertebrate, that decomposes organic material. |
| carbon sink | a system that absorbs and stores carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. |
| carbon sequestration | storing carbon in a natural sink or a geologic reservoir underground |
| porous | decreases runoff |
| non-porous | increases runoff |
| Clean Water Act of 1972 | gave the corps of engineers the responsibility of regulating the development of wetlands and began a national permitting system for pollution discharges |
| alkalinity | the measurement of the amount of buffering materials in the water optimal range: 20-200 ppm |
| pH | the measurement of the activity of hydrogen ions in the water optimal range: 6.6-8.5 ppm |
| dissolved oxygen | the amount of oxygen dissolved into the water optimal range: 4-8 ppm |
| turbidity | sediments floating in the water optimal range for our depth: 20-100 jackson turbidity units |
| phosphate | the measurement of the nutrient phosphate that limits plant growth optimal range: 0.05-0.1 ppm |
| nitrate-nitrogen | a nutrient that can contribute to plant growth |
| drinking water treatment | first filtration, coagulation, second filtration, chlorination, aeration, additional treatment |
| wastewater treatment | settling tanks, filtration, open ponds |
| spring | where an aquifer meets the ground surface and supplies water |
| evaporation | the process by which molecules of liquid water absorb energy and change to the gas state |
| condensation | the process by which a gas changes to a liquid |
| nitrogen fixation | the process of changing free nitrogen gas into a usable form of nitrogen |
| conservation viewpoint | use resources but do not destroy or use them all, sustainability is important |
| preservation viewpoint | choose not to use resources in order to preserve them |
| development viewpoint | resources have economic value and should be used by humans |
| types of land use | agriculture, development, mining |
| types of waste | hazardous, and municipal |
| hazardous waste catagories | 5 |
| toxic | harmful to the health of human beings |
| explosive | react quickly when exposed to air or water and cause explosions |
| corrosive | materials that dissolve or break down other materials |
| Radioactive | wastes that contain unstable atoms that will remain dangerous for thousands of years |
| flammable | wastes that catch fire at relatively low temperatures and burn easily |
| producer | an organism that can make its own food |
| consumer | an organism that obtains energy by feeding on other organisms |
| decomposer | organisms that break down wastes and dead organisms, and return the raw materials to the environment |
Combine with other sets
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