Test 3 (Lectures 9-12) Pt. 3 Flashcards
What percent of the Earth’s water is freshwater?
Less than 3%
What structures are used to divert water to places that need it?
Aqueducts and canals
What is groundwater?
The water beneath the ground surface that is stored within pores and fractures within the substrate
What is infiltration?
The process in which rainwater gets under the ground
What is an aquifer?
A rock/ reservoir that holds the groundwater
What is an aquitard?
A rock with low amounts of permeability
What two properties do aquifers have?
Porosity and permeability
What is porosity?
The total volume of open space within the rock
What is permeability?
How easily water can flow through a material
What does hydrofracking do?
It allows the water to have more permeability. In other words, it allows water to flow more easily.
What are the two types of aquifers?
- Confined aquifer – an aquifer
beneath an aquitard - Unconfined aquifer – an aquifer that intersects the surface
Groundwater flows as a force of…?
Gravity and pressure
Groundwater tend to move from…
High water table areas to low water table areas
Groundwater are governed by several factors, what are they?
- Permeability of the porous material
- The effect of friction between water and conduit walls
- The spatial change in hydraulic head -> hydraulic gradient
When do springs occur?
When groundwater discharges
at the surface
