Chapter 1: Water Cycle and Watersheds

Chapter 1: Water Cycle and Watersheds Chapter 1, page 1

Solid, Liquid, or Gas? Water comes in three forms or states: solid, liquid, and gas. Label the following examples of water as solid, liquid, or gas. SNOWFLAKE FOG GLACIER RIVER ICEBERG LAKE RAIN AIR CLOUD Chapter 1, page 2

Once Upon a Raindrop The story of the magical cycle of water Imagine a sunny summer day, blue sky dotted with puffy clouds, a still lake nearby. You are a water molecule in that lake, moving gently back and forth, feeling the other water molecules around you. As the wind ripples the surface, you all rock back and forth and then bounce against each other, energized by the warmth of the sun. You gradually move to the surface of the water where you are transformed into a gaseous state (water vapor) and are then released into the air. Separated from the other water molecules you gently float upward alone, invisible to the naked eye. Other water molecules follow, but they too are alone on their journey upward into the atmosphere. As you rise, it gets cooler and your movement is slower. A particle floats by, you grab onto it. More water molecules join you, then more and more. The collective water molecules (water droplets) form clouds that when they are heavy enough, result in a rainstorm which returns those molecules once again to the earth. In the winter months, as you all bond together, you form patterns like giant diamonds. Other water molecules surround you. You are becoming heavier and heavier and then you begin to fall as snow wind swirls you about you see a white blanket below. Gravity takes you to the blanket and you are back on earth. Gradually with the warming sun you and the other water molecules release and slide away. Down the hills and mountains you go, meeting up with more water molecules, traveling quickly now, bumping against the roots of trees and grassy river banks until you gradually slow down. Gravity pulls at you. You seep into the ground, weaving among the sand and soil particles, flowing down into the dark underground. Suddenly your movement seems to be horizontal, it becomes lighter and following other water molecules you spring out of the ground and descend down the mountain. Slowing down you sense a gradual decrease in the slope of the land and you move gracefully into a large mass of water, collecting more and more water molecules as you go. Other particles swirl around you. You and the other water molecules work together to carry the particles but the slower you go the less energy you have to carry the particles. The particles slip from your grasp and sink as you move. You are in a big river. Slowly the water moves, traveling long distances from the grassy riverbanks of the countryside to the cement walls of the city. All around you civilization makes itself known cars people factories. You feel a change. Molecules from other substances are attracted to you. Surface or underground where will you go? Chapter 1, page 3

Water Cycle Diagram 1. Water flows along the land surface to replenish (recharge) rivers, lakes, streams, and ponds. 2. Water falls to the earth as rain or snow. 3. Vapor created when the sun heats water in lakes, streams, rivers, or oceans. 4. Downward movement of water through the ground. 5. Water vapor rises into the air and cools to form clouds. 6. Vapor created when plants give off moisture. WORD BANK: percolation, precipitation, runoff, condensation, evaporation, transpiration. Chapter 1, page 4

What is a Watershed? A watershed is the area of land that drains to a particular water body (river, lake, ocean, etc.). Watersheds are separated from each other by areas of higher elevation called ridge lines or divides. Questions: 1. Do you see a sub-watershed or sub-basin that drains into a lake? 2. Draw a line where the boundary of the lake watershed might be. 3. Where does all the water in this watershed eventually end up? Chapter 1, page 5

Water Distribution on Earth Earth s Total Water Supply 97.2% Oceans (salt water) 2.8% Fresh water Earth s Total Fresh Water Supply 2.38% Icecaps, glaciers 0.39% Groundwater 0.029% Surface water (lakes rivers, etc.) 0.001% Air and soil Label the pie graph below correctly. 3% is 97% is Chapter 1, page 6

Ossipee Watershed Map Questions: 1. Draw a star ( boundary? ) where your school is located on the map. Is it within the Ossipee Watershed 2. Draw a triangle ( ) where your house is located on the map. Is it within the Ossipee Watershed boundary? 3. Do you live near a lake, pond, or river? 4. What towns are part of the Ossipee Watershed? Chapter 1, page 7

How much water does it take? 1. Taking a shower 2. Watering the lawn 3. Washing the dishes 4. Washing clothes 5. Flushing the toilet 6. Brushing teeth 7. Drinking 8. Needed to produce one ton of steel 9. Needed to process one can of fruit or vegetables 10. Needed to manufacture a new car and its four tires Options: A. 30 gallons B. 180 gallons C. 4-7 gallons D. ½ gallon E. 39,090 gallons F. 62,600 gallons G. 15-30 gallons H. 9.3 gallons I. 1 gallon J. 9-20 gallons Chapter 1, page 8

Glossary Aquifer: Underground sediments, which can be soil or rock, that are saturated and yield significant quantities of water. Boiling point: The temperature at which a liquid becomes a gas. For water, it is 212 degrees Fahrenheit (100 degrees Celsius) at sea level. Condensation: The process by which water vapor in the air is changed into liquid water, often as water vapor rises into the atmosphere and cools. Evaporation: Process by which vapor is created when the sun heats water in surface waters (lakes, streams, rivers, or oceans). Freezing point: The temperature at which a liquid becomes a solid. For water, it is 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0 degrees Celsius) at sea level. Gas: The state of water in which individual molecules are highly energized and move about freely. Also known as water vapor. Groundwater: Water found in spaces between soil particles underground (located in the saturation zone). Liquid: The state of water in which molecules move freely among themselves but do not separate like those in the gaseous state. Percolation: Downward movement of water through openings in rock or soil. Precipitation: Water that falls, in a liquid or solid state, from clouds to the land surface as rain, freezing rain, sleet, snow, or hail. Recharge: Process where precipitation moves through the soil and reaches groundwater, replenishing aquifers. Runoff: Downhill movement of precipitation that flows overland to surface streams, rivers, and lakes. Solid: The state of water in which molecules have limited movement. Subwatershed: A smaller section of a larger watershed or drainage basin that drains into a specific body of water. Surface water: Water above the land surface, including lakes, rivers, streams, ponds, floodwater, and runoff. Transpiration: Process by which water absorbed by plants (usually through the roots) is evaporated and released into the atmosphere through plant surfaces (usually leaf pores). Chapter 1, page 9

Water cycle: The paths water takes through its various forms (solid, liquid, and gas) as it moves throughout the Earth s systems (oceans, atmosphere, groundwater, streams, etc.). Also known as the hydrologic cycle. Water pollution: The introduction of any substance that changes the physical, chemical, or biological properties of water and makes it harmful to use. Watershed: Area of land in which all water, whether above or below the ground, is constantly moving downhill towards the same body of water (river, stream, pond, lake, ocean, etc.). It is also known as a basin or drainage basin. Chapter 1, page 10

Solid, Liquid, or Gas Answers snowflake solid, fog liquid (gas also acceptable), glacier solid, river liquid, iceberg solid, lake liquid, rain liquid, air gas, cloud liquid (gas also acceptable) Water Cycle Diagram 1. Runoff 2. Precipitation 3. Evaporation 4. Percolation 5. Condensation 6. Transpiration Water Distribution on Earth 3% is fresh water 97% is oceans (salt water) How much water does it take? 1. G Taking a shower 2. B Watering the lawn 3. J Washing the dishes 4. A Washing clothes 5. C Flushing the toilet 6. I Brushing teeth 7. D Drinking 8. F Needed to produce one ton of steel 9. H Needed to process one can of fruit or vegetables 10. E Needed to manufacture a new car and its four tires Chapter 1, page 11

Image Credits Page 1-1 Southwest Florida Water Management District (n.d.). Coloring/Activity Sheet: Hydrologic Cycle. Retrieved from http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/publications/files/hydrocyclecoloring.pdf Page 1-2 Snowflake: http://clipart-for-free.blogspot.com/2009/11/snowflake-clip-art.html Fog: http://www.fotosearch.com/illustration/fog.html Glacier: http://www.hoodriverswcd.org/fieldseries.htm River: http://www.clipsahoy.com/nature/water/water2.htm Iceberg: http://dir.coolclips.com/business/metaphors_a_to_d/crisis_or_danger/the_tip_of_the_iceberg_car t0301.html Lake: http://www.fotosearch.com/clip-art/lake.html Rain: http://www.factofarabs.net/era.aspx?id=609&tid=67 Air: http://www.funfonix.com/clipart3.php Cloud: http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/ld/projects/trc/2007/manual/bil_clipart.html Page 1-3 http://www.commwater.com Page 1-4 Environmental Protection Agency Region 4, Alabama Department of Environmental Regulation, & LEGACY Partners in Environmental Education. (n.d.). The Water Sourcebooks. Retrieved from http://www.epa.gov/safewater/kids/wsb/ Page 1-5 http://www.thewatershedproject.org/explore.html Page 1-8 Watering lawn: http://www.nacdnet.org/education/clipart/ Washing dishes: http://abcteach.com/directory/clip_art/kidspeople/chores/ Brushing teeth: http://www.nacdnet.org/education/clipart/ Shower: http://www.fotosearch.com/clip-art/shower.html Drinking water: http://www.nacdnet.org/education/clipart/ Washing clothes: http://www.nacdnet.org/education/clipart/ Toilet: http://www.ci.arcadia.ca.us/home/index.asp?page=868 Can of vegetables: http://www.clipartpal.com/clipart/food/tomato1.html Car: http://www.nikkiemcdade.com/subfiles/2dexamples.html Steel: http://www.wpclipart.com/working/construction/steel_beams.png.html Chapter 1, page 12