Groundwater
Easton Park
What Is Groundwater
Groundwater is the water that is held underground in the soil or in pores and crevices in rock. The process water takes to get into the ground is infiltration (a stage in the water cycle). Infiltration is water transferring from ground surface to soil.
Porosity v.s. Permeability
Porosity- A measure of how much of a rock is open space
Permeability- The ability of a substance to allow another substance to pass through it
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These two affect the presence of groundwater by the speed of which the water goes down through the ground particles. It depends on the texture of the material the water passes through, example: Sand has better porosity than gravel, (the coarsest). Gravel has better permeability than sand, (gravel has larger diameter than sand).
Permeability- The ability of a substance to allow another substance to pass through it
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These two affect the presence of groundwater by the speed of which the water goes down through the ground particles. It depends on the texture of the material the water passes through, example: Sand has better porosity than gravel, (the coarsest). Gravel has better permeability than sand, (gravel has larger diameter than sand).
Porosity and Permeability
Water Table Words
Zone of Aeration Region in the ground in which pore spaces are filled with air, and sometimes water
Zone of Saturation The area beneath the water table where all pore spaces are completely filled with water
Water Table The boundary between the two zones, (Zone of Aeration and Zone of Saturation).
Aquiclude An impermeable body of rock or stratum of sediment that acts as a barrier to the flow of groundwater
Aquifer A body of permeable rock that can contain or transmit groundwater
Zone of Saturation The area beneath the water table where all pore spaces are completely filled with water
Water Table The boundary between the two zones, (Zone of Aeration and Zone of Saturation).
Aquiclude An impermeable body of rock or stratum of sediment that acts as a barrier to the flow of groundwater
Aquifer A body of permeable rock that can contain or transmit groundwater
Water Table Diagram
Types of Aquifers
Unconfined Aquifer Water flows freely
Confined Aquifer Water flow is restricted by impermeable layers called aquicludes
Confined Aquifer
Unconfined Aquifer
What Kind of Effects can Depleting our Groundwater Supply Cause?
Effects of Depleting our Groundwater Supply:
Earthquakes (mini)
Streams drying up
Ground subsistence; the ground sinking
Water Table drops
Requiring more energy to pump out water
Lack of good, clean drinking water
Earthquakes (mini)
Streams drying up
Ground subsistence; the ground sinking
Water Table drops
Requiring more energy to pump out water
Lack of good, clean drinking water
Lack of water in general (California's drought)
Main Ways we Pollute our Groundwater in the United States
Some Main Ways we Pollute U.S. Groundwater:
Fertilizer runoff
Parking Lot Runoff
Sewage Leak
Oil Spills
Human/Pet Waste
Landfills
Fertilizer runoff
Parking Lot Runoff
Sewage Leak
Oil Spills
Human/Pet Waste
Landfills
---------------------------------------------------Oil spill polluting groundwater-------------------------------------
Sited Soures
My Notebook
http://sharif.ir/~ataie/gwsite/gw%20image/groundwater4.jpg -- Water Table diagramhttp://techalive.mtu.edu/meec/module04/images/tn_gwa10.jpg -- Confined Aquifer
http://www.usbr.gov/lc/yuma/programs/YAWMS/Groundwater/aquifer.jpg -- Unconfined Aquifer
http://www.groundwateruk.org/Gallery/cache/cache_640x480_gwf023.jpg -- Groundwater