The Hydrological Cycle Influences Water Budgets And River Systems At A Local Scale

Question 1

What are water budgets?

Answer 1

Show the annual balance between the inputs (precipitation) and the outputs (evapotranspiration)

Question 2

What is the equation for precipitation?

Answer 2

Runoff + evapotranspiration + or - storage

Question 3

What is green water?

Answer 3

Water evaporated from the soil or transpired from plants as water vapour

Question 4

What is blue water?

Answer 4

Water in liquid form in rivers, lakes and groundwater

Question 5

What parts of the water budget equation are blue or green water?

Answer 5

Run-off and storage are BLUE WATER

Evapotranspiration is GREEN WATER

Question 6

What happens to water balance throughout a year?

Answer 6

It will change as it is affected by overall climate of the area near to the river/catchment

Question 7

What is positive water balance?

Answer 7

When precipitation exceeds evapotranspiration

Question 8

What is negative water balance?

Answer 8

When evapotranspiration exceeds precipitation (can lead to drought)

Question 9

What are the worlds climate zones?

Answer 9

Tropical zone
Temperate zone
Polar region

Question 10

What areas of the globe have a positive or negative water balance?

Answer 10

Polar regions have a positive as do the temperate areas close to the poles
Central temperate zone has a negative water balance
The tropical zone has a positive water balance

Question 11

What is soil moisture recharge?

Answer 11

When precipitation is greater than evapotranspiration the pores in the soil are refilled with water

Question 12

What is soil moisture surplus?

Answer 12

When the soil becomes saturated exceeds water will have difficulty infiltrating into the ground

Question 13

What happens when water cannot infiltrate the soil?

Answer 13

It will run over the surface as overland flow

Question 14

What is soil moisture utilisation?

Answer 14

When evapotranspiration is greater than precipitation there is a reduction in the amount of water stored with the soil

Question 15

What is soil moisture deficit?

Answer 15

Eventually all the available water stored in the soil will have been used up

Question 16

Why is water thought to be renewable?

Answer 16

As its constantly recycled each year

Question 17

What can make water a non-renewable resource?

Answer 17

When humans release water from a store with a long residence time

Question 18

What a re the residence time of some water stores?

Answer 18

Biosphere water 1 week 
Atmospheric water 1.5 weeks 
River channels 2 weeks 
Swamps 1-10 years 
Lakes and reservoirs 10 years 
Soil moisture 2 weeks - 1 year 
Oceans and seas 4,000 years 
Ground water 2 weeks - 10,000 years 
Ice caps, glaciers and permafrost 1000 - 10,000 years

Question 19

What is an aquifer?

Answer 19

A water bearing permeable rock

Question 20

What is recharge rate?

Answer 20

Rate aquifer is refilled be precipitation

Question 21

What is fossil water?

Answer 21

Ancient (>1000yrs residence time) deep groundwater from earlier water times

Question 22

What is an example of a aquifer we studied?

Answer 22

The Ogallala aquifer

Question 23

What is the Ogallala aquifer recharge by?

Answer 23

Exclusively rainwater and snowmelt

Question 24

What is the recharge rate of the Ogallala aquifer?

Answer 24

Minimal due to the semi-arid climate of the high plains

3 inches annually

Question 25

Where is the Ogallala aquifer located?

Answer 25

In the USA under parts of Colorado, Kansas, and Wyoming