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72 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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point source pollution
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*a single, identifiable, source of pollution
*caused by combined sewage system, so when it rains the storm drain drains both the storm water and sewage water into a river. Ex. power plant or sewage treatment plant. |
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nonpoint source pollution
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*Pollution cause by a number of different factors
*These factors can include: -agricultural areas draining into a river -rural or suburban houses -wind-borne debris blowing onto river -city streets |
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sediment fences
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*temporary sediment control device used on construction sites to protect water quality in nearby rivers and streams
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Clean Water Act (1972)
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*protect chemical, physical, and biological integrity of US waters.
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Water Quality Act of 1987
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*addresses stormwater runoff
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chemical weathering
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*Decomposition of rocks by chemical reactions on mineral surfaces
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acid rain
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*precipitation that is unusually acid (low PH)
*main cause of acid rain is CO2 *causes chemical weathering |
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Eutrophication
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*Body of water acquires a high concentration of nutrients, especially phosphates and nitrates
*Excessive growth of algae...algae dies and decompose. *High levels of organic matter and the decomposing organisms deplete the water of available oxygen, causing the death of other organisms, such as fish. *Eutrophication is a natural, slow-aging process for a water body, but human activity greatly speeds up the process |
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Distribution of Water on Earth
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95.96% Salt Water
4.04% Fresh Water *2.97% in Glaciers and polar ice *1.05% in Underground Water *.009% in Lakes and Rivers |
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Goals of Water Management
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-Flood control
-Water supply -Power generation -Navigation -Recreation |
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World Water Use
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70% Agriculture
22% Industrial 8% Domestic |
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High-income Countries Water Use
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60% Industrial
30% Agricultural 10% Domestic |
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Low-income Countries Water Use
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82% Agricultural
10% Industrial Use 8% Domestic Use *India , China |
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Per capita water use (domestic consumption)
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USA = 150 gallons/person/day
France=100 g/p/d India = 50 g/p/d China 30g/p/day |
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Water Stress
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(D+I+A)/Q
*Domestic+ industrial + agriculture / mean annual river discharge *20-40% is medium-high stress *40%+ is severe water limitation |
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Strahler Stream Order
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*used to define stream size based on hierarchy of tributaries
*1+1 --> 2 , 2+2 -->3 |
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Shreve Magnitude
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*equal to the sum of all the first-order streams
upstream of the point under consideration. *1+2 =>3 , 3+4 =>7 *Low order streams = rapid hydrograph response to storms *High order streams = slow hydrograph response to storms |
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Levees and channel modifications
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move more water faster
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set-back levee
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levees that are set back from the channel, allow the river to occupy the floodplain
*these levees are smaller and tend to be less expensive |
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Flow constriction
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causes increased velocity, depth, and stream power, competence (leading to deposition)
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What causes the "Bird's Foot" shape of the Mississippi Delta?
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-Large sediment supply
- low (<1 m) tidal range. - Low wave erosion. - Sea level rising slowly (.06 cm/yr) Build up of -Marsh => Sands/Silt => Silt/Clay => Clay |
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Reservoir
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store water in watershed
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Dam
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can do all the functions of water management
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Mill Dams
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used to create a Mill Pond that can be used by a Watermill to produce energy
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Pelton wheel
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water impulse turbine, water passes through it and it generates energy
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Power Generation Equation
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Discharge x Drop = Power
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Pumped-storage hydroelectricity
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channel water from upper reservoir to lower reservoir to generate power
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Three Gorges Dam
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-Yangtze River, China
-HUGE POWER generation -also good for transportation for coal -flood control |
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Boston Water Crisis
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-had to weld a breached pipe
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Effects of Dams
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-Changed hydrographs (less total flow, no flood peaks, lower high flow)
-Changed sediment load (sediment trapping in reservoir, ex. Yuba River) -Changed temperature -Changed chemisty -Changed habitat |
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Colorado River Compact (1922)
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Lower basin states (AZ,NV,CA) must receive water from Upper basin states (CO, UT, WY)
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Glen Canyon Dam
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-generated power to pay for other Colorado River water projects
-water supply for lower-basin states -flood control -Prolong life of Lake Mean by trapping sediment |
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Effects of Glen Canyon Dam on Grand Canyon sediment and habitat?
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*Boulders and huge rocks delivered by landslides and debris flows build up in canyon.
*Temperature effects on fish. *Reduction of wind-transport of sand up canyon. *Erosion of archeological sites *Encroachment of invasive tamarisk trees on sand bars. *Erosion of sand bars. *Fluctuating flows, sediment trapping |
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Why are sand bars valuable?
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-terrestrial and aquatic habitat
-burying and preserving archaeological sites -camping and recreation -natural component of the pre-dam riverscape, ***but they are disappearing... |
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The problem: Loss of sediment in Grand Canyon
Scientific studies of sediment transport within Grand Canyon The solution? |
Experimental Floods
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3 Plate Boundaries
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1. Transform
2. Divergent 3. Covergent |
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Theory of Plate Tectonics
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*The upper mechanical layer of Earth (lithosphere) is divided into rigid plates that move away from, toward, and along each other
*Most deformation of Earth's crust occurs at plate boundaries |
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Earth's Layers
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Crust => Mantle => Outer Core => Inner Core
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Seismology
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study of earthquakes and seismic waves
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aquifers
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underneath the water table
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water table
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subterranean land at which any point below is completely saturated with water
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oxbow lake
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An Oxbow Lake is formed in a meandering river during a flood when the two bends that are closest together are united
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competence (of a stream)
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largest size particle that a stream can transport
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Discharge
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Q=CIA, where C is the coefficient of intensity, I is intensity of participation, and A is the Area where the precipitation that leads to the stream.
*Discharge is the total volume of water that travels through the stream for any given time unit. |
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greenhouse effect
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the process by which heat radiation from earth’s surface is absorbed by greenhouse gases and is re-directed, both back to the surface of the earth and to other places. The temperate in the lower atmosphere is therefore higher than it would be if direct heat from the sun were the only warming factor
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Why is runoff more important than subsurface flow in generating floods?
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Subsurface flow moves considerably slower than runoff, and runoff intensity causes erosion. The speed and erosion caused by runoff are essential in creating a flood.
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Channel Pictures
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*Braided is self-formed
*Meandering is self-formed *Bed rock is imposed form |
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Terrace
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another word for an abandoned flood plain
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Elastic Rebound Theory
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1. As rock is deformed it bends, storing elastic energy
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P-waves and S-waves
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Primary Wave (push and pull)- travels through Earth's interior and all liquid/solids like a sound wave, compressional waves that are longitudinal in nature. Pressure waves that travel faster than other waves through the earth to arrive at seismograph stations first hence the name "Primary".
Secondary Wave- slower than P-wave, can only move through solid rock, not through any liquid medium |
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Exceedance Probability
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*probability of a given flood
*As flow increases , exceedance probability decreases |
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How do you get runoff?
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If rainfall intensity is greater than the infiltration and evaporation, then you get runoff
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How do you get Horton Overland Flow?
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rainfall > infiltration rate
typical in arid areas |
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How do you get Subsurface Storm Flow?
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Infiltration rate > rainfall rate
dominant in humid, temperate regions |
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How do you get Saturated Overland Flow?
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Saturated ground, rainfall cannot infiltrate
creates direct runoff |
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Avulsion
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abrupt abandonment of a segment of a river channel, often due to stream capture
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Stream Capture
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stream is diverted from its own bed
flows instead down the bed of a neighboring stream a type of Avulsion |
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subsidence
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sinking of a large part of Earth's crust
due to: -loading by ice or thick sediments -downward convection flow in mantle beneath |
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Delta
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depositional body of sand, silt, and clay formed when river empties into the sea
sediments settle out in sequence Marsh => Sands/Silt => Silt/Clay => Clay |
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Mississippi River Watershed Size
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40% of the US , including all parts of 31 states
huge, funnel shape stretched from Rocky Mountains to Allegheny Mountains (Part of Appalachian Mountains) |
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Mississippi River Size
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4th longest river in the world
10th largest river in the world |
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Length of Mississippi
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2,300 miles long
From Lake Itasca in Minnesota to Southern Louisiana into the Gulf of Mexico |
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Miss River divided into what 3 regions?
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Upper
Middle Lower |
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Upper Region of Mississippi
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Runs from its headwaters (Lake Itasca) to its confluence with the Missouri River
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Middle Region of Mississippi
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Runs from Missouri River to Ohio River in Cairo, IL
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Lower Region of Mississippi
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Stretches from Ohio River to Gulf of Mexico
*widest point exceeds 1 miles |
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bankfull discharge
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max. discharge a river can hold without flooding
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Levees or Dikes or Flood Walls
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essentially increase channel height and increase bankfull volume.
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Dam
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impound sudden runoff and allow water to be released slowly without causing a flood.
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Shifting deltaic lobes in Mississippi Delta
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The lobes have been shifting approx. every 1000 years since 3400BC
Shifting sub delta lobes every 100 years |
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1973 Flood
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-Old River Control Structure was a floodgate system located in a branch of the Mississippi river to prevent the main flow of the river from finding an easier way to
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Basic Origin of Mississippi
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Break up of supercontinent Rodinia
When the Ocean retreated, the Miss. River was born -Can tell Ocean was there due to certain rocks |
