Water Chapter 15

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Water Chapter 15 A frog does not drink up the
pond in which he lives.-Native American
Proverb
2
Key H20 Characteristics

• Water
• Is the prime constituent of all living organisms.
• Moves easily-from one physical state to another
  one place to another.
• Slowly absorbs and releases large quantities of
  energy (heat.)
• Is a superior solvent.
• Is cohesive due to its polarity
• Blocks UV radiation

3
Importance of Water Properties
Running water can quickly erode topsoil rendering
farmland infertile and streams contaminated.
Lack of access to clean water supplies can
quickly lead to dehydration and death.
Chemical spills, excess nutrients acids
dissolved in H20 can lead to massive die offs.
4
Available Water

• 326 million cubic miles
• 97.4 oceans
• 2.6 fresh
• 2 locked up in ice caps and glaciers
• 0.014 is easily accessible
• Soil moisture
• Groundwater that is not too salty or deep to use.
• Water vapor
• Lakes/streams
• Biota
• Each human body contains 10 gallons of water (X
  6.3 billion?)
• Total Water Picture

5
Hydrologic Cycle

• Powered by solar energy and gravity
• Continuous recycling of water
• Temporary storage as snow, ice, and in lakes
• Temporary storage in plants (transpiration) and
  animals
• Chemical reactions with rocks and minerals
• Source of additional water? volcanism (steam)

6
Surface Water

• Surface runoff flows into streams, lakes,
  wetlands and reservoirs
• Watershed (drainage basin)- region that drains
  into a streams, lakes, wetlands or reservoirs

www.canaanvi.org/assistance/ watershed.asp
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Groundwater

• Precipitation infiltrates and percolates through
  voids in soil and rock (pores, fractures, etc.)
• Shallow rock has little moisture
• Zone of saturation is at a depth were ground is
  filled with water
• Top of this zone is water table
• Falls in dry weather
• Rises in wet

8
The Groundwater System

• Aquifers-porous, water-saturated layers of sand,
  gravel or bedrock through which groundwater flows
• Area of land that supplies water to aquifer is
  called the recharge area
• Natural recharge is when water percolates
  downward, but sometimes lateral recharge occurs
• Moves in from recharge area, through aquifer, and
  out a discharge area (well, spring, lake, geyser,
  artesian well, steam, ocean) at only a m/yr.

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Aquifers

• Unconfined aquifer -water table that raises and
  lowers.
• Confined aquifer-under pressure because bounded
  above and below by less permeable beds of rock.
• Some aquifers get little recharge and were formed
  1000s of yrs ago
• Removal from these nonrenewable resources
  iscalled water mining

10
Water and Civilization

• Water management played a major role in the
  development of early government.
• In Mesopotamia the Fertile Crescent (Tigris and
  Euphrates Rivers), allowed the rise of
  irrigation-based agriculture.
• Ancient communities that prospered were those
  that
• managed their water supplies well.

Michael D. Lee Ph.D. Geography and Environmental
Studies
11
Water Use Globally

• Total water withdrawn for human use annually
• 70 soaked up by agriculture (mostly for
  irrigation)
• 20 for industry
• 10 for domestic use (household, drinking water,
  sanitation)
• The average person needs a minimum of 5L (1.3
  gallons) of water/day to survive.
• The minimum needed for drinking, cooking, bathing
  and sanitation is 50 liters (13 gal).

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Water Use Globally

• The average person in the U.S. uses 250-300 L/day
  of water (65-78 gals) for drinking, cooking
  bathing, and watering their yard.
• The average person in the Netherlands uses
  104L/day (27 gals).
• The average person in the African nation of
  Gambia uses 4.5L/day (1.2 gals).

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Water Use - United States

• In 2000, about 408,000 million gallons/day
  (Mgal/d) of water were used.
• 339,000 Mgal/d fresh water
• 69,400 Mgal/d was saline water
• CA used the most water, about 46,800 Mgal/d, with
  most of that going towards irrigation. TX comes
  in 2nd.

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Water for Power

• Moving water also has tremendous power to do
  work.
• Due to water wheels, European societies in the
  middle ages advanced because labor was freed for
  purposes other than farming.
• Hydropower systems were built after the discovery
  of electricity and later electric light by Edison
  
• Water is intimately linked to energy
• It takes energy to access, move, and clean water
• It takes water to make energy

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Too Little Water

• Can cause
• Drought - a period in which precipitation is much
  lower and evaporation is much higher
• Desiccation - drying of soil because of such
  activities as deforestation and overgrazing
• Water stress - low per capita availability of
  water caused by overpopulation

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Precipitation Varies Greatly

• US cities vary in their precipitation from an
  average of 8 up to 60/year.
• Globally, the extreme is even greater averages
  of less than 1 to more than 70/year.
• However, this masks variations between years.
• Meeting demands for water when precipitation is
  so highly varied creates many challenges and
  disputes.

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Case Study U.S. Recent Events

• According to the author of Unquenchable
• Atlanta, GA came within 3 months of running out
  of municipal water for their town.
• 2007 Orme, TN was forced to truck in water from
  AL after it did run out.
• The Earths largest freshwater body, Lake
  Superior, was too shallow to float fully loaded
  cargo ships.
• 2008 Decimated salmon runs prompted total
  cancellation of the commercial fishing season on
  the west coast.
• Etc
• What happens when our population grows?

18
Water Law

• In the U.S., many states allow unregulated
  drilling of residential wells and unmetered use
  of the water
• Dont require permits for commercial wells unless
  pumping exceeds 100,000 gal/day!
• Tragedy of the Commons
• More than 35 states in the U.S. are involved in a
  legal battle with their neighboring states
  concerning water rights.

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Water Law

• Riparian Rights (Sharing)
• Applies to surface waters in which owner of
  waterfront land uses reasonable amounts.
• Works well with water surplus
• Prior Appropriation (1st come, first served)
• Idea first put into law in U.S. in Colorado
• No preference given to those adjoining water
  course
• Earliest users in area has rights
• Use protected as long as it is continuous and
  reasonable

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Case Study Chinook Salmon

• The Klamath River provides Oregon farmers with
  water before the river flows wild for 200 miles
  in CA to the Pacific.
• These diversions eventually decimated Coho salmon
  runs protected by the ESA.
• 2001 the fed withheld water from 1,000 of the
  farmers.
• Farmers rioted
• 2002 the Bureau of Reclamation restored the
  water.
• 60,000 salmon died from disease caused by
  warmer, shallow waterthe largest fish die-off
  in American history
• Result 2010 the worlds largest dam removal and
  river restoration plan.
• Klamath fish kill video

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Water Law

• Correlative Rights
• Applies to groundwater
• Overlying landowners entitled to reasonable
  use. Rights are correlated with other landowners
  overlying the aquifer
• The California Doctrine
• 1928 amendment to California Constitution
• Most reasonable beneficial use
• Blend of riparian and appropriation rights

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How to Increase Water Supplies

• Build dams and reservoirs to store runoff
• Bring in surface water from another area
• Withdraw groundwater
• Convert salt water to fresh water (desalination)
• Improve the efficiency of water use

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Case Study Dams on the Colorado River

• Electricity and cheap water for agriculture,
  industry, and cities but cheap water has led to
  wasteful practices
• Limited water must be divided between farmers,
  ranchers, cities, Native Americans, MX, and
  wildlife, so Colorado River rarely makes it to
  the Gulf of California
• Population growth in lower basin is increasing
  demand beyond the allocated supply
• Most water withdrawn by AZ before it reaches CA

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Large Dams - Pros

• Collect and store water from rain and snow
• Produce electricity
• Irrigate land below the dam
• Control flooding
• Provide water to cities, towns and rural areas
• Provide recreational activities such as swimming,
  boating, fishing

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Large Dams - Cons

• Enormous water loss due to evaporation from
  reservoir
• Mass of water can cause earthquakes
• Flooded land destroys forests or cropland and
  displaces people
• Dam collapse
• Downstream areas deprived of nutrient-rich soil,
  which will eventually clog the reservoir
• Migration and spawning of fish disrupted
• to build

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Case Study Three Gorges Dam

• World's largest hydroelectric dam on the Yangtze
  River in China7600 ft long.
• 1.5 million people displaced
• Sits on a seismic fault
• The reservoir contains 9 cubic miles of water and
  covers an area of 410 miles in length and 0.7
  miles in width on average.

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Upstream of Dams - Negative Impacts

• Environment
• Loss of terrestrial/riparian habitat and species
• Exotic species introductions
• Reservoir is storage for contaminants
• Cultural / social
• Loss of cultural resources
• Displacement of families
• Water quality hazard
• Economic
• Shift in land use / economy
• Water loss via evaporation and seepage
• Aesthetic
• Landscape inundated

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Downstream of Dams- Negative Impacts

• Altered hydrology - no seasonality because water
  temp and levels downstream are more consistent
• Altered water quality/character
• Modify nutrient cycling
• Reduce sediment supply
• Habitat modification and species impacts
• River fragmentation
• Due to negative impacts and cost of
  refurbishment, more dams are currently being
  decommissioned than built in the U.S.

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Water Transfer and Diversion

• Transfer and diversion of massive amounts of
  water was first coordinated by Roman aqueducts
• This method allows for more arid regions to get
  water from areas where availability is greater
• Great Lakes supply was not even safe
• Great Lakes Basin Compact signed into law to
  protect them from detrimental diversion
• 8 states and 2 Canadian provinces adjoining Lakes

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Water Transfer and Diversion

• Problems?
• Many canals are only ditches in the soil
• Seepage loss
• Constant sediment buildup
• Evaporative loss
• Old pipes can leak massive amounts of water
• Areas upstream pollute water and divert it away
  from those downstream.
• Tremendous global disputes over water rights

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Case Study All American Canal

• An 83 long mile aqueduct that creates power and
  conveys water from the Colorado River to Imperial
  Valley, CA
• This is the only water that is available to this
  highly agricultural and arid area in the Sonoran
  desert.

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Case Study All American Canal

• This canal has been dubbed the Most Dangerous
  Body of Water in the U.S.
• Over 550 drownings since 1997, mainly of illegal
  immigrants trying to get from Mexico.
• Current efforts are underway to line the canal.
• Mexico tried to dispute it claiming the seepage
  contributes to their groundwater supply.

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Most of the land in NV and southern CA is desert
shrubland.These areas receive little
precipitation and have the majority of CAs
population. By contrast, wetter areas of
central and northern CA are forested where
mountainous and developed as farmland and urban
areas where flatter
Case Study Californias Water
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Case Study Californias Water

• Californias Water Projects
• Hetch-Hetchy
• Colorado Aqueduct

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California Water Code

• Applications by municipalities for use of water
  by residents given priority over most other uses.
• Nonessential use, such as lawn watering and
  washing cars regulated in some areas.
• Water Board determines allocation to serve public
  interest. Board must work within state water
  plans.
• Second priority goes to irrigation

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Hetch HetchySan Francisco Water

• Hetch Hetchy Glacial Valley in Yosemite National
  Park dammed by 1923. BIG dispute due to
  destruction of land.
• Raker Act passed in 1913 which put project in
  motion.
• This OShaughnessy Dam and the Hetch Hetchy
  reservoir provides water and cheap power to the
  city of San Francisco and others.
• Controversy helped to strengthen John Muirs
  Sierra Club.

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Colorado River Aqueduct

• Established 1928 to bring water to L.A. and rest
  of S. California.
• First delivery in 1940 serves 15 million people
• Lawsuit from AZ (1953) finally began to be
  implemented in 1985 - supply will decrease and
  this amt will be replaced by State Water Project
  water.
• Five pumping stations
• Diversions for agriculture

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Summary of California Water Systems

• Very complicated.
• Politically controversial - dams, habitat
  changes, reduced flushing of SF Bay Delta.
• California has the most advanced and expensive
  water delivery system in the world.
• Most of the water (about 80) is used by
  agriculture essential to Californias huge farm
  industry.

Michael D. Lee Ph.D. Geography and Environmental
Studies
41
Case Study The Aral Sea

• In arid area of former Soviet Union
• Water diverted from the Aral Sea and the two
  rivers supplying it.
• Water used for irrigation
• Lost 80 of water
• Salinity increased over 3Xs
• 20 out of 24 native fish species gone
• Surface area decreased by 58

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Groundwater Problems

• 50 of the drinking water in U.S. pumped from
  aquifers
• 1 removal of aquifer water is for irrigation
• Aquifer depletion -more water is removed than is
  naturally refreshed
• Aquifer subsidence- land sinks due to withdrawal
  of groundwater (Mexico City)
• Aquifer depletion video clip
• Intrusion of salt water into aquifers
• Contamination from multiple sources

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Case Study Ogallala Aquifer

• Worlds largest aquifer
• Deposited during the last ice age
• Aquifer use changed the center of the country
  from arid high plains to productive agricultural
  region
• Region produces 1/5 of U.S agricultural output
• Overpumped and depleted in many areas
• Pumped out 8-10x faster than it is being
  recharged

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Aquifer Subsidence
California

• Mexico Citys aquifer has shrunken enough that
  land has dropped up to 7.5 m
• Same situation has occurred in places all over
  the globe

http//www.geotimes.org/july01/sinking_titanic_cit
y.html
http//www.science.uwaterloo.ca/earth/waton/mexfig
2.html
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Desalination

• Removal of salts from ocean water by
• Distillation (boiling off water)
• Reverse osmosis (pushing water through a
  semi-permeable membrane)
• 1st land-based desalination plant-1928 in the
  Netherlands

www.oas.org/usde/publications/ Unit/oea59e/ch21.ht
m
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Desalination
http//urila.tripod.com/

• Largest plant in U.S. in Tampa Bay, Fl
• Used a great deal in the Middle East, which has
  the most severe freshwater shortage.
• Especially prominent in Saudi Arabia, where their
  production is 24 of the worlds total.

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Desalination

• and energy for production
• Currently 14,000 in world 2,000 in U.S. but
  those numbers are increasing steadily
• About half of those in U.S. desalinate brackish
  water, another quarter is desalinated river water
  
• Easier/cheaper to do than ocean water.

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Desalination

• 100 gals of seawater, when desalinated, only
  results in anywhere between 15-50 gals of fresh,
  the rest is brine (very concentrated saltwater).
• Brine is considered industrial waste, but
  sometimes is allowed to be dumped into the ocean
  and estuaries.
• Plant effluent can have 2X the concentration of
  normal seawater.
• This could easily kill marine life, especially
  juveniles or eggs.

Dehydrated salt brine waste from a desal plant
in Sicily, Italy
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Desalination

• Colocation of both a powerplant and a
  desalination plant have been touted as ideal
• Cooling water from the powerplant and the brine
  are mixed before release into the ocean, reducing
  the concentration of the brine.

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Reducing Home Water Waste

• Repair leaky pipes
• Recycling -use of gray water (i.e. from shower)
  for irrigation etc.
• Water conservation-efficient toilets, faucets,
  shower heads

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Case Study San Antonio

• To combat water shortages, San Antonio was
  launched a massive toilet replacement program
• Toilets are the 1 cause of avoidable water waste
• Kick the Can toilet program gave residents 2
  free, efficient toilets for any they had that
  were older than 1992 (when 1.6 gal came into
  play)
• 30,000 replaced in homes in 2007
• 60,000 replaced in apartments since 1998
• Billions of gallons of water and over 500
  million saved.
• Howd they pay for it? A tiered water fee system.

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Reducing Home Water Waste

• Take shorter showers
• Dont run faucet when you brush teeth.
• Dont water lawn during hot times of day
• Use drought resistant plants around house-
  xeriscaping
• Use a rain barrel and collect water for plants
  and gardeningone inch of rain on a 1000 sq ft
  roof will deliver 600 gals of water!

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Reducing Home Water Waste

• Normally treated wastewater is released into
  nearby rivers, streams or oceans.
• Potable-safe for drinking
• Non-potable reclamation involves taking water
  from different fixtures and reusing it before it
  goes to wastewater treatment
• Used for purposes other than drinking, cooking
  or washing dishes

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Specific Uses for Non-potable Recycled Water

• Toilet flushing
• Industry
• Recharge aquifers
• Subsurface drip irrigation
• Safer-non-aerosolizing of water and pathogens
• Requires more maintenance-more prone to clogging
• More efficient
• Less evaporative water loss
• Feeds roots of plants/grass directly

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Direct Potable Water ReuseToilet to Tap
Wastewater
Drinking Water
Treatment
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Case Study Windhoek, Namibia

• Direct Potable Reuse
• Pipe to pipe-water from secondary wastewater
  treatment goes directly to distribution for
  drinking
• Been running since 1967
• Several barriers of treatment
• Carbon Adsorption
• Ultraviolet Irradiation
• Reverse Osmosis/Ultrafiltration and removal of
  viruses and pharmaceuticals
• Disinfection (ozonation and chlorination)

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Reducing Agriculture Water Waste

• Irrigation efficiency (only 40 reaches crops)
• Drip irrigation, centralpivot, computer
  monitoring
• Replace canals with pipeline
• Reduction in seepage losses
• Improvement of well head and on-farm water
  delivery
• Better operation of distribution network
• Reduction in maintenance costs

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Too Much Water Floods

• Natural flooding is caused primarily by heavy
  rain or rapid melting snow.
• Water overflows its normal channel floods the
  adjacent area, called a floodplain.
• Floodplains, which include highly productive
  wetlands, help to
• Provide natural flood erosion control
• Maintain high water quality
• Recharge groundwater
• Floodwaters recede leaving behind deposits of
  nutrient rich silt.

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Too Much Water Floods

• People have been settling in floodplains
• for several reasons
• Fertile soil
• Sufficient water for irrigation
• Flat land suitable for agriculture, buildings,
  and transportation
• Use of nearby rivers for transportation
• However, human activities have
• contributed to the sharp rise in flood
• frequencies which dramatically
• increased flood deaths damages.

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Flooding

• Human activities that increase flooding
• Removing vegetation-logging and forest fires
• Overgrazing
• Mining
• Building on floodplains and destroying wetlands
• Urbanization and pavement!