Chapter 13: Water Resources

Reverse osmosis

use high pressure to remove salts.

Desalination

Removing dissolved salts.

Distillation

evaporate water, leaving salts behind.

Freshwater availability

________: 0.024 %- Groundwater, lakes, rivers, streams.

Hydrologic cycle

Movement of water in the seas, land, and air.

Aquifers

________: Naturally recharge, lateral recharge.

Subsidies

________ mask the true cost of water.

Flood plains

Highly productive wetlands, that provide natural flood and erosion control, maintain high water quality and recharge groundwater.

Zone of saturation

Spaces in soil are filled with water.

Water footprint

Volume of water we directly and indirectly.

Hydrologic cycle

Movement of water in the seas, land, and air

Zone of saturation

Spaces in soil are filled with water

Water table

Top of the zone of saturation

Aquifers

Naturally recharge, lateral recharge

Water footprint

Volume of water we directly and indirectly

India, China, and the United States

Three largest grain producers

India and China

Small farmers drilling tubewells

Saudi Arabia

Aquifer depletion and irrigation

California Water Project

Inefficient water use

Desalination

Removing dissolved salts

Distillation

evaporate water, leaving salts behind

Reverse osmosis, microfiltration

use high pressure to remove salts

Flood plains

Highly productive wetlands, that provide natural flood and erosion control, maintain high water quality and recharge groundwater

Water Table

Upper surface of the zone of saturation, in which all available pores in the soil and rock in the earth's crust are filled with water.

Surface Water

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

Surface Runoff

Water flowing off the land into bodies of surface water.

Watershed or Drainage Basin

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

Reliable Runoff

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

Drought

Condition in which an area does not get enough water because of lower-than-normal temperatures that increase evaporation.

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.

Water Footprint

A rough measure of the volume of water that we use directly and indirectly to keep a person or group alive and to support their lifestyles.

Virtual Water

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

Dam

A structure built across a river to control the river's flow or to create a reservoir.

Reservoir

Artificial lake created when a stream is dammed.

Drip or trickle irrigation/micro irrigation

Above- or below-ground pipes or tubes deliver water to individual plant roots.

Rainwater harvesting

the accumulation and deposition of rainwater for reuse on-site, rather than allowing it to run off.

Xeriscaping

landscape (an area) in a style that requires little or no irrigation.