Chapter 13 Vocab

Aquifer

Aquifer

Porous, water-saturated layers of sand, gravel, or bedrock that can yield and economically significant amount of water

Dam

a structure built across a river to control the river’s flow or to create a reservoir

Desalinization

purification of saltwater or brackish (slightly salty) water by removal of dissolved salts

Floodplain

flat valley floor next to a stream channel. For legal purposes, the term often applies to any low area that has the potential for flooding including certain coastal areas.

Groundwater

water that sinks into the soil and is stored in slowly flowing and slowly renewed underground reservoirs called aquifers; underground water in the zone of saturation below the water table

Reliable Surface Runoff

surface runoff of water that generally can be counted on as a stable source of water from year to year

Reservoir

artificial lake created when a river is dammed

Surface Runoff

water flowing off the land into bodies of surface water

Surface Water

precipitation that does not infiltrate the ground or return to the atmosphere by evaporation or transpiration

Virtual Water

water that is not directly consumed but is used to produce food and other products

Water Footprint

a rough measure of the volume of water used directly and indirectly to keep a person or a group alive and to support lifestyles

Watershed

land area that delivers water, sediment, and dissolved substances via small streams to a major stream

Zone of Saturation

zone where all the available pores in soil and rock in the earth’s crust are filled by water

Recharged

the movement of water into the soil, flowing downward through the unsaturated zone, below the root zone of plants, until it arrives at the saturated zone, adding to groundwater storage

Hydrologist

study how rain, snow, and other forms of precipitation impact river flows or groundwater levels, and how surface water and groundwater evaporate back into the atmosphere or eventually reach the oceans

Freshwater Scarcity Stress

happens when communities can't fulfill their water needs, either because supplies are insufficient or infrastructure is inadequate

Extreme Drought

Exceptional and widespread crop/pasture losses. Shortages of water in reservoirs, streams, and wells creating water emergencies

Springs

Point of exit at which groundwater from an aquifer flows out on top of Earth's crust and becomes surface water. It is a component of the hydrosphere.

Sinkhole

a depression or hole in the ground caused by some form of collapse of the surface layer.

Reverse Osmosis

Process to remove ions, mineral chemicals, and other impurities from water; water passes through a membrane

Snowpacks

Snow that accumulates on the ground and doesn’t melt for a really long time because of the temperature, like on a mountain

User-pays

Notion where it is most efficient if consumers pay the full cost of their goods that they consume

LEPA

Form of center pivot irrigation where it is sprinkled onto the ground; less efficient, less power usage

Center-Pivot

Circular watering of plants

Micro-irrigation

Low pressure, low flow irrigation

Gray water

Domestic wastewater that is not fully contaminated, and can hypothetically be repurposed if treated correctly

Channelization

Widening, straightening, deepening, or clearing existing stream channels

Levees

Embankment meant to prevent river overflow