The Hydrosphere
This percentage of Earth’s water is saltwater.
What is 97%?
This measures how acidic or basic water is.
What is pH?
This type of pollution comes from a single, identifiable source like a pipe or factory.
What is point source pollution?
This is the first step in water treatment, removing large debris like sticks and leaves.
What is screening?
This cycle includes precipitation, evaporation, condensation, and transpiration.
What is the water cycle?
The underground rock layer that holds water.
What is an aquifer?
This small portion of Earth’s freshwater is actually available for use.
What is 1%?
A healthy dissolved oxygen level must be at least this many ppm.
What is 4–5 ppm?
This type of pollution comes from many widespread sources, like farmland runoff.
What is nonpoint source pollution?
This process clumps small particles together so they can settle out.
What is coagulation?
This area where freshwater and saltwater mix provides nurseries for marine life.
What is an estuary?
The process of pollutants making water unsafe to drink.
What is contamination?
The process that turns saltwater into drinkable water.
What is desalination?
These small visible organisms help indicate water health.
What are bioindicators?
These two actions help reduce water pollution and protect the environment.
What are conservation and stewardship?
In this step, heavy particles settle at the bottom of tanks.
What is sedimentation?
A high turbidity level often means there’s too much of this process occurring.
What is erosion or eutrophication?
Prolonged exposure to nitrates/phosphates causes...?
What is Eutrophication?
This type of aquifer is located between layers of impermeable rock.
What is a confined aquifer?
This term describes how cloudy the water is.
What is turbidity?
One solution to existing pollution is to do this to pollutants before they reach water systems.
What is filtering them out or breaking them down?
In this stage, water passes through sand and gravel to remove smaller impurities.
What is filtration?
Water stored between layers of permeable and impermeable rock is called this.
What is groundwater in an aquifer?
Macroinvertebrates that help determine the amount of pollution and overall health of a body of water.
What are Bioindicators?
This land area collects rainfall and contributes to a river basin (HINT: THIS IS A SMALL RIVER BASIN).
What is a watershed?
This compound comes from fertilizer runoff and can harm ecosystems.
What are nitrates?
Creating this kind of manmade ecosystem can help clean water naturally.
What are artificial wetlands?
The final stage before water storage that kills harmful microorganisms.
What is disinfection?
This government agency provides information about safe drinking water.
What is the CDC or EPA?
Type of rock that does not allow water to flow through it.
What is impermeable rock?