Water Quality
What abiotic factor MOST limits the number of aquatic life in a body of water?
Water Temperature
A land area that supplies water to river, lake or bay is a-
Watershed
What is water commonly referred to as in the context of its ability to dissolve many substances?
Universal Solvent
Define Point Source Pollution and give at least 2 examples.
Point Source Pollution: the source of pollution can be identified.
answers may vary (factory pipes; oil spills)
What are the boiling and freezing points of water?
Boiling: 100°C Freezing: 0°C
What is the defining difference between the marine, freshwater, and estuary biomes?
amount of salinity
A semi-enclosed area where fresh water from a river meets salty water from the sea.
Estuary
Ice floats because it is less dense than liquid water.
What is the greatest danger to the ecosystem?
Humans
Define Solar Energy and explain how it is distributed on Earth.
Energy from the sun and is distributed through radiation and convection.
What is turbidity and why is it harmful to the environment?
Turbidity: the measure of how cloudy or murky water is due to tiny particles floating in it
Too much of it can block sunlight, making it hard for underwater plants to grow and harming fish and other aquatic animals
Name the tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay.
Potamac River
Rappahannock River
York River
James River
The tightness across the surface of water that enables paper clips to float is ____________.
Surface Tension
Define Non-Point Source and give at least 2 examples.
Non-Point Source Pollution: cannot be easily identified
answers may vary (oil and gas from roads, soil erosion, acid rain etc.)
Air is a mixture of gaseous elements and compounds. Which element makes up the largest portion of that mixture?
Nitrogen
Name at least 4 factors that affect the quality of water.
Salinity, Dissolved Oxygen, Temperature, pH, Turbidity, Nitrates, and Phosphates.
Estuaries are known as the __________ of the sea.
nurseries
Large bodies of water, such as lakes and oceans, do not quickly fluctuate in temperature. What is the reason for this phenomenon?
High Heat Capacity or High Specific Heat
Introducing harmful substances into a lake can degrade the water's quality. Which two outcomes would likely result from this action?
Low oxygen levels and harm/death to aquatic life.
An energy source that is only available in limited amount.
Non-Renewable
What are ways that wetlands can maintain water quality
filtering sediment, breaking down pollution, nursery for young, habitat for many species, etc.
What is a watershed? Name our local and regional watersheds.
A watershed is the land that water travels across on its way to body of water such as a river, ocean, or bay
Local: James River Watershed Regional: Chesapeake Bay
Define the following terms: freezing, melting, condensation, and evaporation.
Freezing: liquid to solid
Melting: solid to liquid
Condensation: gas to liquid
Evaporation: liquid to gas
What might the term "NST" (nasty) stand for? (Can you think of any examples?)
Nutrients, Sediments, and Toxins
Define physical and chemical weathering and give at least one example of both.
Physical weathering breaks rocks into smaller pieces without changing what they are made of (ex: ice wedging, abrasion by wind, plants and animal actions, etc.)
chemical weathering changes the minerals in rocks through reactions with water, air, or acids. (ex: acid rain dissolving limestone, rusting (oxidation))