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Lecture Slides for Ecology and Natural Resources (8046) Watersheds and The Forest

Explore the water cycle - evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and collection. Learn what watersheds are, their features, and how human activities impact them. Discover the importance of keeping water clean in ecosystems.

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Lecture Slides for Ecology and Natural Resources (8046) Watersheds and The Forest

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  1. Lecture Slides for Ecology and Natural Resources (8046) Watersheds and The Forest Prepared by: Jam TePoel SOL 6.5

  2. THE WATER CYCLE (The water cycle is also known as the hydrologic cycle)

  3. The Water Cycle • The earth has a limited amount of water.  That water keeps going around and around and around and around and (you get the idea) in what we call the "Water Cycle".

  4. Parts of the Water Cycle • This cycle is made up of a few main parts: • A) evaporation (and transpiration) • B) condensation • C) precipitation • D) collection

  5. EVAPORATION • Evaporation is when the sun heats up water in rivers or lakes or the ocean and turns it into vapor or steam. The water vapor or steam leaves the river, lake or ocean and goes into the air.

  6. Do plants sweat?. . . (Transpiration) • Well, sort of.... people perspire (sweat) and plants transpire.  • Transpiration is the process by which plants lose water out of their leaves.  Transpiration gives evaporation a bit of a hand in getting the water vapor back up into the air.

  7. Condensation • Condensation:    Water vapor in the air gets cold and changes back into liquid, forming clouds. This is called condensation. • You can see the same sort of thing at home... pour a glass of cold water on a hot day and watch what happens.  Water forms on the outside of the glass.  That water didn't somehow leak through the glass!  It actually came from the air.  Water vapor in the warm air, turns back into liquid when it touches the cold glass.

  8. Precipitation • Precipitation:  Precipitation occurs when so much water has condensed that the air cannot hold it anymore.  The clouds get heavy and water falls back to the earth in the form of rain, hail, sleet or snow.

  9. Collection • Collection:  When water falls back to earth as precipitation, it may fall back in the oceans, lakes or rivers or it may end up on land.  When it ends up on land, it will either soak into the earth and become part of the “ground water” that plants and animals use to drink or it may run over the soil and collect in the oceans, lakes or rivers where the cycle starts all over again.

  10. Lecture 2: What is a Watershed? Course: Ecology and Environmental Resources (8046) Developed by: Jam TePoel

  11. What is a watershed? • The Simple Definition: an area in which all surface water drains to a single outlet. • Unfortunately, watersheds aren’t that simple… • Watersheds can be many different sizes and types. • Watersheds can be broken down into various parts… • This diagram shows the various watersheds of VA: of Virginia. • Note: Students will be given a copy of this diagram, so it is more clear to read.

  12. Which watershed do you live in? Note to students: Use the handout provided to figure out which VA watershed encompasses the area in which you live. . .

  13. Watersheds are made up of natural surface features… • Some of the natural surface features which make up watersheds include: • Streams • Wetlands • Springs • Ponds and lakes

  14. Watersheds can also include human-made features such as: • Homes, farms,and businesses • Dikes and levees • Dams and lakes • Storm Drains • CombinedSewer Outfalls

  15. Groundwater is also an important part of the Watershed

  16. Watersheds are complicated interactive systems in which all parts affect each other.

  17. How we use the land affects the quality and quantity of the water. Red areas – Urban, Industrial, Commercial, and Residential AreasBrown areas – Agricultural Use AreasGreen areas – Forested Areas

  18. Watershed: A Working Definition • If we add everything together, we come up with a good working definition. • Working Definition: A watershed is a feature, natural or human made, that catches precipitation and drains or seeps into a marsh, stream, river, lake orgroundwater.

  19. Three keys to understanding watersheds: The three keys to understanding watersheds are found on the next 3 slides.

  20. Key 1: Everything in a watershed is interconnected by water.

  21. Key 2: Education and involvement are important parts of watershed and community health.

  22. Key 3: Keep our Water Clean. . .

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