Graded | 100% Verified
The earths surface - 70% of earth's surface is water. oceans contain most water. freshwater is only 2.4%
of water. most is bound up as ice and snow or is groundwater. only .8% of freshwater is visible
Water cycle - similar to other nutrient cycles (C,N,P). precipitation, evapotranspiration (evaporation and
transpiration), runoff, and infiltration
Average annual rainfall - 30 inches of rain
what happens to precipitation - 2/3 evaporates, groundwater,
first terrestrial stages - water seeps through soil goes down to aquifer
watershed - a land area draining into a river or other body of water. It's like you are funneling it down.
vegetated watershed - water will mostly go down into soil and through the soil to meet up with stream
cleared watershed - putting impervious service and the water can't go through so you don't have
evapotranspiration and it runsoff into a stram
effects of land clearing on stream discharge - floods are more intense and happen more often, ground
water declines and tendency for drought effects increase, low flow periods are lower, low flow periods
last longer
effects of land clearing on water and soil resources - decreased soil water availability, increase in stream
temp., increased movement of organic and inorganic materials to stream, increased erosion of
landscape and increased sediment to stream
how does water move in a watershed - funnel