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Water Resources and Pollution
Flashcards for Unit Exam
32
Science
12th Grade
03/12/2017

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Cards

Term
How are algal blooms formed and what are the consequences?
Definition
Fertilizer run-off causes algal blooms to form and depletes dissolved oxygen causing creatures to die from suffocation.
Term
What elements in fertilizer cause run-off to be harmful to nearby waters?
Definition
Phosphorus and nitrogen.
Term
What is the major cause of oil pollution?
Definition
Nearby cities and town. NOT accidents!
Term
What percentage of oil pollutions is caused by accidents?
Definition
5%
Term
What is a dead zone?
Definition
An area in underwater ecosystems where nothing can live that requires oxygen.
Term
How do dead zones form?
Definition
Phosphorus and nitrogen in fertilizer run-off cause algal blooms, and oxygen is depleted as a result of decompostion of algae.
Term
Tertiary wastewater treatment
Definition
is the final cleaning process that improves wastewater quality before it is reused, recycled or discharged to the environment. This is commonly done by using wetlands to further filter and purify. 
Term
What is the product of waste water treatment?
Definition
Sewage sludge
Term
Can sewage sludge be recycled?
Definition
Yes. It is commonly used as fertilizer and to make bricks. However, the main issue is that it is too toxic to reuse.
Term
Artificial eutrophication
Definition
"Too many nutrients" (commonly phosphorus and nitrogen) caused by human activity.
Term
Irrigation
Definition
The method by which a controlled amount of water is used regularly to water agriculture.
Term
Which type of irrigation has proven to be highly inefficient due to evaporation?
Definition
High-pressure overhead irrigation systems.
Term
Why is drip irrigation beneficient?
Definition
It involves high preforated tubing, watering near roots, limiting evaporation
Term
Percolate
Definition
to "seep through"
Term
Water shed
Definition
the area of land that is drained by water
Term
Recharge zone
Definition
The area of land that is permeable and porous to water, allowing aquifers to be replenished.
Term
Point-source pollution
Definition
Pollution that comes from a specific site, and can often be identified.
Term
Non-point source pollution
Definition
pollution that comes from many sources and is mostly carried to major water ways and oceans by run-off.
Term
Most of the fresh water on earth is
Definition
frozen in ice caps and glaciers
Term
Desalination
Definition
"Desalting water," very inefficient so not commonly practiced.
Term
Surface water
Definition

all the bodies of fresh water, salt water, ice, and snow, that are found above the ground.


Term
Ground water
Definition
the water that is beneath the Earth’s surface.
Term
Please know how to read a food chain.
Definition
(Arrow directions; "arrows point to whose mouth they're going into")
Term
Potable
Definition
Drinkable
Term
Biomagnification
Definition

is the accumulation of pollutants at successive levels of the food chain.
Term
Thermal pollution
Definition

is a temperature increase in a body of water that is caused by human activity and that has harmful effect on water quality and on the ability of that body of water to support life. 

 

Thermal pollution can occur when power plants and other industries use water in their cooling systems and then discharge the warm water into a lake or river.

 

 

Term
River system
Definition
a flowing network of rivers and streams draining a river basin    
Term
Aquifer
Definition
a body or rock or sediment that stores groundwater and allows the flow of groundwater.

They are an important water source for many cities.
Term
Porosity vs permeability
Definition

Porosityis the percentage of the total volume of a rock or sediment that consists of open spaces.

Permeabilityis the ability of a rock or sediment to let fluids pass through it open spaces or pores.

Term
Water diversion projects
Definition
To supply dry regions with water, all or part of a river can be diverted into canals that carry water across great distances    
Term
Causes of groundwater pollution
Definition

Pollutants usually enter groundwater when polluted surface water percolates down from the Earth’s surface    

Pesticides, herbicides, chemical fertilizer, and petroleum products are common groundwater pollutants    

Term
The Clean Water Act of 1972    
Definition

was to designed to “restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation’s waters    

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