EOF Test #2

How is water distributed on Earth

• 75% of Earth's surface is covered by water.

• 97% of Earth's water is saltwater.

• 3% of Earth's water is freshwater.

what are the sources of freshwater

• Most freshwater is stored in glaciers and ice caps.

• Groundwater makes up most of the remaining freshwater.

• A small amount is surface water, found in lakes, rivers, streams, and wetlands.

What is surface water?

• Freshwater on Earth's land surface. Surface water is found in lakes, rivers,streams, and wetlands.

- What is groundwater?

• The water that is beneath Earth's surface.

- What is an aquifer?

• Porous rock that stores groundwater and allows the flow of groundwater.

How does an aquifer receive or lose water, and what problems emerge when too much water is removed?

• Aquifers receive water through infiltration, when water soaks into the ground.

• Aquifers lose water through wells and natural groundwater flow.

• Removing too much groundwater can cause:

  • The water table to drop.

  • Wells to dry up.

  • Land to sink (land subsidence).

  • Saltwater intrusion, when saltwater enters freshwater aquifers.

- What is a well?

• A hole that is dug to obtain fresh groundwater.

- What is infiltration?

• Water soaking into the ground.

what happens to the water cycle due to global warming

• Global warming will speed up the water cycle.

What is the water cycle (6 things)

• Evaporation: Changing from liquid to gaseous state.

• Transpiration: Plants release water vapor into the atmosphere.

• Condensation: Changing from gaseous to liquid state.

• Precipitation: Any form of water (snow, sleet, hail, or rain) falling to Earth.

• Surface water: Water collects in lakes, rivers, streams, and oceans.

• Infiltration: Water soaks into the ground and becomes groundwater.

What is the breakdown of water use by sector (Agriculture, industry, domestic use

• Agriculture: About 70% of global freshwater use.

• Industry: About 20% of global freshwater use.

• Domestic/household use: About 10% of global freshwater use.

 how does use of water differ betweendeveloped anddeveloping nations?

• Developed nations use more water for industry, energy production, and household activities.

• Developing nations use a larger percentage of their water for agriculture and often have less access to clean drinking water and sanitation.

- What is water scarcity? (definition, two types, and causes)

• When there is not enough clean, usable freshwater to meet people's needs.

• Physical water scarcity occurs when there is not enough natural water available.

• Economic water scarcity occurs when water is available but people lack the money or infrastructure to access it.

• Causes include drought, climate change, pollution, population growth, and overuse.

Primary Filtration

The first step in water treatment where large items are filtered out.

Preliminary Treatment

The first step in sewage treatment where large sewage items are filtered out.

Coagulation

• Alum takes toxins out of the water and creates flocs that sink.

Alum

• White chalk material added to water for cleaning.

Floc

• Alum combined with water contaminants.

Second Filtration

• Layers of rock and gravel filter any remaining impurities from drinking water.

Chlorination

Chlorine is added to water to kill pathogens in water.

Aeration

Water and air are in close contact to remove dissolved gases and oxidize dissolved and other chemicals.

Fluoridation

Fluoride is added to prevent tooth decay.

- What is wastewater?

• Water that contains wastes from homes or industry.

- What is potable water?

• Water suitable for drinking.

- What is a pathogen?

• A microorganism, another organism, a virus, or a protein that causes disease;an infectious agent.

- What is effluent?

• Treated wastewater that is released into the environment.

- What are the stages of wastewater treatment? (4)

• Preliminary Treatment: Large sewage items are filtered out.

• Primary Treatment: Fine particles settle out to create sludge.

• Secondary Treatment: Oxygen, chlorine, and possibly UV light are used to further treat wastewater.

• Tertiary Treatment: Wastewater is funneled through a gravel bed for final cleaning before it is released into a waterway.

- What is sludge?

• The solid portion of wastewater treatment.

- What is cake?

• The finished product of sludge that is used as a soil conditioner.

- What is LifeStraw?

• Created for developing countries to remove bacteria, viruses, and parasites from water to use for drinking.

- What is charcoal used for in water treatment?

• Charred wood used for cleaning water, such as in a Brita water filter.

- What is water pollution?

• Contamination of water by waste matter or other material that is harmful to organisms that are exposed to the water.

- What is point-source pollution?

• Pollution that comes from a specific site.

• Example: Pollution from a factory water pipe into a stream.

- What is non-point-source pollution?

• An undefined source of water contamination, such as a golf course, farm field,orresidential neighborhood.

- What is groundwater contamination?

• Pollutants enter groundwater by percolating down from the surface.

- What is artificial eutrophication?

• A process that increases the amount of nutrients in a body of water throughhuman activities,such as waste disposal and land drainage.

- What are the causes of eutrophication?

• Causes include:

  • Fertilizer runoff.

  • Sewage and wastewater.

  • Animal waste.

  • Nitrogen and phosphorus entering waterways.

- What are the Consequences of eutrophication?

• Consequences include:

  • Excessive algae growth (algal blooms).

  • When algae die and decompose, microorganisms use up dissolved oxygen.

  • Low oxygen levels can cause fish and other aquatic organisms to die.

  • Can create dead zones where aquatic life cannot survive.

- What is organic pollution?

• Pollution that occurs when living things decompose.

- What is biological oxygen demand (BOD)?

• The amount of oxygen needed by microorganisms to decompose biological wastes into carbon dioxide, water, and minerals.

- What is dissolved oxygen?

• Oxygen available in water for aquatic organisms.

• If this variable is high, the environment is healthy.

- What is hypoxia?

• A condition where oxygen levels in water become extremely low.

- What is the Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone?

• An area in the Gulf of Mexico that has low amounts of oxygen due to large amounts of nutrients.

• Contains large amounts of phosphorus and nitrogen in the water.

- What is sediment pollution?

• Excessive amounts of soil particles that enter the water as a result of erosion.

- What is a watershed?

• The area of land that is drained by a water system.

• Rainwater carries pollutants from the land into rivers, lakes, and streams.

• Pollution in one part of a watershed can affect water quality farther downstream.

• Infiltration within a watershed helps replenish groundwater and aquifers.

• Paved surfaces reduce infiltration and groundwater recharge.

- What is a river system?

• A flowing network of rivers and streams draining a river basin.

- What public policies are in place to protect water quality? Part one (Act)

• Clean Water Act:

  • Passed in 1972.

  • The goal was to make water clean for swimming and fishing by 1983, but this goal was not achieved.

  • Regulates the release of pollutants into U.S. surface waters.

  • Establishes water quality standards and requires permits for many pollution discharges.

- What public policies are in place to protect water quality?

(Part 2 Management)

• Watershed Management:

• Managing land and water resources across an entire watershed.

• Helps prevent pollution from entering waterways.

• Includes reducing fertilizer runoff, protecting wetlands, planting vegetation,and controlling erosion.

- What happened to the Cuyahoga River in 1969?

• The Cuyahoga River caught on fire because it carried so much flammable waste.

- What is the Huang Pu River known for?

• A river that ended in Shanghai that had dead pigs in it.

• It significantly decreased BOD.

- What was the main contaminant in the Hinkley, California, class-action lawsuitinvolvingErin Brockovich?

• Hexavalent chromium.

- What is alkalinity?

• Measured to determine the buffering capacity of water.

- What is pH?

• A measurement of how acidic or basic water is.

• The goal pH of water is 7.0 (neutral).

- What is ammonia?

• A small, very toxic molecule (NH3) produced by nitrogen fixation or as a metabolic waste product.

- What is chromium?

Cr.

Categories of Waste: debris and grit

rags, plastic bags, sand gravel

Categories of Waste: particulate organic material

fecal matter, food waste, toilet paper

Categories of Waste: colloidal and dissolved organic material

bacteria, urine, soap, detergents, cleaning products

Categories of Waste: dissolved inorganic material

nitrogen, phosphorus, and other nutrients from excretory wastes and detergents