Nonliving things (Examples:  water, air, and temperature)

Land area that collects and channels water from a smaller body of water to a larger body of water.

cause of the flow of water down a watershed

the shape of the land determined by the elevation and natural or man-made (map with curved lines).  

a continuous ridge that separates a watershed (like a mountain).

A natural stream of water of considerable volume, larger than a brook or creek.

Smaller rivers or streams that flow into a larger river or stream.

A body of fresh water naturally or man-made found in low lying areas.

A river and all its tributaries.

a coastal inlet or bay where fresh water mixes with salty water.  Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the U.S.

an area of land that is covered with a shallow layer of water during some or all of the year.  The land acts like a sponge and takes in water and pulls out pollution. 

the wearing down or washing away of soil and land surface by the action of wind, water or ice.

 the accumulation of bits of sand, pebbles or other materials deposited by physical or chemical weathering.

precipitation that flows over the land to streams, rivers and lakes.  This is the LEADING source of water quality problem in the U.S.

allows something to go through it.  Example: grass, and soil

prevents the flow.  Example:  plastic and clay

This method places plastic on top of the dirt and rocks to hold the plastic down.  The plastic is impermeable and does not allow water to touch the dirt.

This method uses vegetation along waterways.  The roots help hold the soil in place.

 Farmers plow and planting crops along the natural contour of the land.  The crops catch some of the water from flowing down the hills.  

Switching up where you grow plants to prevent pests and diseases

Surface water that has seeped down through soil through tiny openings until it reaches a saturated area underground in pores or cracks in rock, sand or soil.  

This is located above the water table.  This area can hold more water before it is “full”.

Below the water table – this is where the ground cannot hold any more water.  A puddle is a saturated zone ABOVE the ground.

Top of the saturated zone.  When it rains the water table rises, when there is a drought the table falls.

tiny spaces between particles of soil and rock.

Underground water to be used for wells and springs

Pollution that comes from an identifiable point

Pollution that comes from various sources that cannot be easily identified.

 the way to use our natural resources sparingly.

Substances that are either present  in an environment, where it does not belong, or is present at levels that might cause harm 

a process by which nutrients build up in a waterway, increasing the growth of algae and decreasing the species.  (Too much fertilizer causes this)