Term | Definition |
Flooding | overflow or accumulation of water that submerges land |
Hurricane | severe tropical cyclone usually with heavy rains and winds |
Tornado | localized and violently destructive windstorm occuring over land; funnel-shaped cloud |
Weathering | breakdown and changes in rocks and sediments near the Earth's surface |
Chemical Weathering | weathering caused by acids or chemicals breaking down rocks |
Physical Weathering | weathering caused by physical stress on the rocks, such as abrasion, water, ice, etc. |
Erosion | when water, wind or ice carries away particles or rock material from one point to another |
Deposition | when rocks and soil ar dropped off at a new location at the end of the erosion process |
Aquifer | area of loosely packed soil that is saturated with water located beneath the surface which supplied by groundwater and can result in ground sinking due to lack of rain or frequent use |
Contaminants | hazardous materials, such as pesticides, antifreeze, motor oil, paints, etc. that enter the watershed during rains and floods |
Deltas | large areas where soil, silt and sediments are deposited near the mouth of a river |
Groundwater | water beneathe the surface of the ground |
Nutrients | soil additives that contain lots of nitrogen which cause algae population to overpopulate the rivers and upsets the balance of carbon dioxide and oxygen in water |
Sediments | naturally-occurring materials that are broken by processes of weathering and erosion |
Surface Water | water from precipitation and moves on the surface of the earth (such as lakes, ponds, streams and oceans) |
Watershed | an area of land where the water runs off the land drains into local rivers , streams, lakes and wetlands |
Water Conservation | efforts by humans to decrease water consumption |
Water Table | area below the surface where the ground is saturated by water |
Well | a hold that is drilled into the Earth that reaches the water table or aquifer |