Stream Erosion

What is runoff?

• The process of sediment moving or being weathered away by wind or water.

• Water that moves over Earth's surface, because it doesn't infiltrate the ground.

• Water moving from the liquid state to the gaseous state.

• Observations described in words or letters.

What is a tributary?

• A competitor in the Hunger Games; eg, Katniss Everdeen volunteered as a tributary in place of her sister.

• A mass of frozen water slowly moving over land; eg, you can see tributaries in Tributary National Park, in Montana.

• A larger stream or river that flows into a smaller one; eg, the Mississippi River is a tributary of the Kanawha River.

• A smaller stream or river that flows into a larger one; eg, the Kanawha River is a tributary of the Ohio River.

What is a floodplain?

• The area near a river that floods when water levels get to be too high.

• The area near a river that looks boring or dull.

• The process of water levels going over a river or stream bank.

• Water gathering on the surface of the Earth because it doesn't seep into the ground.

Which of the following is NOT a variable or factor that might affect how much runoff forms?

• The slope of a hill where rain falls

• The composition of the soil rain falls on

• The volume of water or rain falling

• The shape of the stream runoff flows into

The gradual movement or removal of sediment from a location by water is called...

• erosion

• runoff

• slope

• tributary

With a steeper slope, we would expect to see...

• less erosion

• more erosion

• the same amount of erosion

• no erosion at all

Solution, suspension, and bed load are the three components of...

• stream load

• gravity

• erosion

• water

What scenario would you expect to find the most erosion due to runoff?

• A shallow slope covered with grass

• A shallow, bare slope

• A steep slope covered with evergreen trees

• A steep, bare slope

Which of the following statements is not true?

• Water causes more erosion on slopes without plants
• Water flows from higher to lower ground
• Faster water erodes more sediment
• As water slows, smaller particles are deposited first

When a stream or river starts to slow down, it:

• Picks up more sediment
• Erodes more rapidly
• Deposits fine sediments, but continues carrying larger rocks
• Deposits larger rocks, but continues carrying finer sediment