Ground Water - Water Reservoirs under Surface of the Earth - Coursework Example

Ground water Ground water means water that is located under the earth’s surface in pore spaces between the soil particles, and in fractures that result from rock formation. A rock unit that is cabled to yield a usable amount of water is known as an aquifer. Under the surface of the earth, there is a depth at which pore spaces between soil particles as well as rock fractures and spaces are saturated with water. This depth is referred to as the water table. Ground water is naturally recharged from the surface of the earth. Water as well can flow from the earth’s surface at seeps, and springs. Ground water can also lead to formation of wetlands or oases. There are ways in which ground water can be extracted from the earth’s surface for a score of uses. It can be used for home purposes, industrial usage, in addition to agricultural use for activities like irrigation. This can be possible by construction of extraction wells that draws water underneath the surface of the earth. Ground water has been distributed differently under the surface of the earth. In addition, underground water undergoes movement under the earth’s ground. Study of ground water motions, plus distribution is known as hydrogeology. It is also called ground water hydrology. Ground water can also include soil moisture, immobile water that is found in bedrocks that have very low permeability, and oil formation water that is found very deep in the earth’s surface. Ground water is thought to act as lubricants that cause movement of faults. The points under the surface of the earth where ground water originates are identified as aquifers. An aquifer has layers of porous materials that contain and transmit water. When aquifer is not confined, water can move freely between the earth’s surface and the saturated zone of an aquifer. Since gravity causes water to move downwards, deeper zones of the aquifer are further saturated as compared to the upper parts. Water table refers to the upper zone of the saturated layer of an unconfined aquifer. Below the water table, all spore spaces are saturated with water. This zone is known as phreatic zone. There is a substrate that slight porosity and allows little transmission of ground water. This substrate is called an aquitard. Aquifers have diverse features depending on the geology, and the structure of the substrate as well as the topography in which they happen. Aquifers that contain a high amount of water are situated in sedimentary geologic formations. Crystalline rocks that are weathered and fractured produce a smaller amount of ground water in various environments. The insulating effect brought by rocks and soil, plus the high specific heat capacity of water are the two factors that are responsible for maintaining ground water at a moderate constant temperature. In some regions, the temperatures of ground water are maintained at a temperature of estimate ten degrees Celsius. In such places, ground water can be used to control temperatures in buildings and in other structures constructed on the surface of the earth. For instance, during a hot weather, ground water can be pumped through radiators to help cool a house, and then the water is returned back to the ground via another well. Ground water is a cheap supply of water and more safe from pollution as compared to surface water. It is not possible to contaminate ground water unless the source of contamination occurs naturally underground. Many countries utilize ground water for public supply because it is safe. In United States of America, the largest source of water that is used in all parts of the country is ground water. Water reservoirs under surface of the earth contain more water as compared to all surface water reservoirs including oceans and great lakes. In all countries, municipal water supplies are commonly extracted from ground water. Amount of ground water in an aquifer can me estimated by measuring levels of water in wells found around that area. It can as well be estimated by examining records from the drilling of wells to ascertain the depth, extend and thickness of rocks that contain water (Hollis 47). In case ground water is polluted naturally, it not easy to discover and it is hard to clean polluted ground water than cleaning surface waters. Sometimes in a certain region, ground water is characterized by too much of a specific mineral. For example, ground water can contain too much fluoride ions. Consumption of water with too much ions of fluorine leads to turning the color of teeth to brown. Pollution of ground water can be as a result of disposing waste on the surface of the earth in an improper way. The most common sources of ground water pollution are chemicals from industries and in homes. Other sources of pollution include landfills, waste waters from mining sites, and oil processing process. Polluting elements from the mentioned sources move downwards slowly until they contaminate ground water. To determine whether ground water is contaminated or not, soil and samples of water from the suspected area are taken to test the extent at which pollution has taken place. It also helps to design ways of controlling and preventing of ground water pollution. To prevent ground water pollution from most likely sources of pollution like landfills, a material that cannot permit a liquid material to pass through is placed under the landfill to prevent polluting elements from moving to underground water. Collecting leachates using drains, and making sure that rain water does not come in contact with grounds that are polluted, are also proper ways of controlling pollution. Monitoring is also important to ensure that water on contaminated ground does not leak to come in contact with ground water. Ground water contributes 20% of total fresh water on earth. World’s ground water storage is estimated to be equal to fresh water that is retained in snow, and ice found at both north and south poles. Ground water is replenished naturally by surface water for instance from rivers and streams. Water from surface leaks down until it reaches to the water table. The amount of ground water is constant because of the water cycle. Water lost from earth’s ground through evaporation undergoes condensation in the atmosphere then falls back in form rain. Rain water trickles down the ground to replace water lost through evaporation (Reston 102) . Works cited Hollis, Matthew. Ground Water. Highgreen, Tarset, Northumberland: Bloodaxe; 2004. Print. Reston.'US Dep of Interior'. geological survey (2011): n. pag. Print. Read More