Watersheds

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The Earth has Slope, gradient, and Topography

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In mathematics, the slope or gradient of a line is a number that describes both the direction and the steepness of the line.
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​https://learnzillion.com/lesson_plans/5946-find-the-slope-and-y-intercept-of-a-line/

Topography is the study of the shape and features of land surfaces. 
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http://reynolds.asu.edu/topo_gallery/intro_title.htm
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​http://geology.wlu.edu/intro3d/topo_contours/topographic_contours.html

https://gisgeography.com/what-is-topography/

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Water Basin Vocabulary 

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• Watershed-area of land that drains water from higher land to lower land

 

• Basin-a natural depression in the Earth’s surface, typically filled with water

 

• Divide-ridge that separates two watersheds

 

• Surface Water-water that is on the earth’s surface

 

• Ground Water- water that collects in cracks and spaces beneath the earth’s surface

 

• Non- Point Source Pollution- source of pollution that is not readily identifiable, as water runoff

 

• Tributary- a river or stream flowing into a larger river or lake.

 

• Percolation- Rainfall seeps underground through a process called percolation, where water travels downwards through the tiny spaces between rocks and soil particles.

 

• Agricultural Land- land devoted to the systematic and controlled use of other forms of life—particularly livestock and production of crops—to produce food for humans.

 

• Residential Area- a land use in which housing predominates, as opposed to industrial and commercial areas.

 

• Urban run-off- a major source of flooding and water pollution in urban communities worldwide.   Water moving through cities instead of fields and natural waterways and carrying oil spills and debris.

 

• Factory- a building or group of buildings where goods are manufactured or assembled chiefly by machine.

 

• Livestock- farm animals that are intentionally raised as an asset. 

 

• Erosion- The process of moving away or being moved away by wind, water, or other natural agents.  The action of processes that remove soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location.

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​https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Public_Works/Sewers_-_Storm/Watershed_Resources.aspx
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https://outdoordiscovery.org/odc-network/macatawa-river-greenway/macatawa-greenway/macatawa-watershed/

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Watersheds are involved in many cycles

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https://cfpub.epa.gov/watertrain/moduleFrame.cfm?parent_object_id=593

​https://cfpub.epa.gov/watertrain/pdf/modules/WatershedEcology.pdf

​https://extension.usu.edu/waterquality/files-ou/Watershed-information/NR_WQ_2005-pH.pdf

​http://www.hawaii.edu/gk-12/evo/erinb.streams.factors.htm

​http://butane.chem.uiuc.edu/pshapley/environmental/l24/2.html