Water Cycle – The energy to power this cycle comes from the sun.
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Evaporation – The sun heats up the water molecules causing them to speed up. When they
are moving fast enough to break the water tension the molecules move into the air as water
vapor.
Condensation – As the water molecules move up in the atmosphere they cool off and slow
down. This causes them to start clumping together to form water droplets and clouds.
Precipitation – When the water droplet become heavy enough they fall to the earth. This
can take the form of rain, snow, sleet, or hail.
Water Flow – When the water falls to earth two things could occur:
o Infiltration – This is when the water soaks into the ground. It will collect in aquifers
and become groundwater. The highest level of water in the aquifer is called the
water table.
o Run-off – This is when the water falls on the ground and moves over the surface of
the ground into larger bodies of water.
Transpiration – This is when water evaporates off of the leaves of plants or other living
things.
Water Shed
A water shed is an area of land that empties into a specific body of water. The school is
located in the Plaster Creek water shed. This means that the water that falls here will find its way
into Plaster Creek.
Pollution
Pollution can enter the water supply in many ways.
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Factories and industry can dump pollutants into local water systems.
Run-off from roads will bring oil and other pollutants from the roads into local water
systems.
Run-off from agricultural areas will bring fertilizers and pesticides into the local
water systems.
Pollutants in the air can mix with precipitation.
Thermal pollution from local power plants can impact local water systems.
Trash and pollutants from urban areas can be washed into the water system.