Water on Land Key Terms Flashcards

Frage	Antworten
Erosion	the shaping of a landscape, for example by rivers, involving the removal of material
Transportation	the carrying of sediment downstream from the point where it has been eroded to where it is deposited
Deposition	the dumping (deposition) of sediment that has been transported by a river
Channel	the part of the river valley occupied by the water itself.
Hydraulic action	the power of the volume of water moving in the river
Abrasion	happens when larger loads carried by the river hits the bed and banks, causing bits to break off
Attrition	the knocking together of stones and boulders, making them gradually smaller and smoother
Solution	the dissolving of rocks and minerals by rainwater. This is a means of transportation as well as an erosion process
Load	material of any size carried by the river
Vertical erosion	downwards erosion, for example when a river gouges out a deep valley
Lateral erosion	sideways erosion, for example in a river channel at the outside bend of a meander
Traction	the rolling along of the largest rocks and boulders
Saltation	the bouncing movement of small stones and grains of sand along the river bed
Suspension	small material carried (suspended) within the water.
Long profile	a line representing the course of the river from its source (relatively high up) to its mouth where it ends, usually in a lake or the sea, and the changes in height along its course
Cross profile	a line that represents what it would be like to walk from one side of a valley, across the channel and up the other side
Waterfall	the sudden, and often vertical, drop of a river along its course
Gorge	a narrow, steep-sided valley
Meander	a bend or curve in the river channel
Oxbow lake	a horseshoe or semi- circular area that used to be a meander. Oxbow lakes are cut off from a supply of water and so will eventually become dry
Floodplain	the flat area next to the river channel, especially in the lower part of the course. This is a natural area for water to spill onto when the river reaches the top of its banks
Levees	raised banks along the course of a river in its lower course. They are formed naturally but can be artificially increased in height
Precipitation	any source of moisture reaching the ground, e.g. rain, snow, frost
Interception	water being prevented from reaching the surface by trees or grass
Surface storage	water held on the ground surface, e.g. puddles
Infiltration	water sinking into soil/rock from the ground surface
Soil moisture	water held in the soil layer
Percolation	water seeping deeper below the surface
Groundwater	water stored in the rock
Transpiration	water lost through pores in vegetation
Evaporation	water lost from ground/vegetation surface
Surface run-off (overland flow)	water flowing on top of the ground
Throughflow	water flowing through the soil layer parallel to the surface
Groundwater flow	water flowing through the rock layer parallel to the surface
Water table	current upper level of saturated rock/ soil where no more water can be absorbed
Discharge	the volume of water passing a given point in a river at any moment in time
Drainage basin	area from which a river gets its water. The boundary is marked by an imaginary line of highland known as a watershed
Flood or storm hydrograph	a line graph drawn to show the discharge in a river in the aftermath of a period of rain.
Flashy	a hydrograph that responds quickly to a period of rain so that it has a high peak and a short lag time
Relief	height and slope of land
Impermeable	rock that does not allow water to pass through.
Porous	rock that allows water to soak into it via spaces between particles.
Pervious	rock that allows water to pass through it via vertical joints and horizontal bedding planes.
Urbanisation	the increase in the proportion of people living in cities, resulting in their growth.
Floods	these occur when a river carries so much water that it cannot be contained by its banks and so it overflows on to surrounding land – its floodplain.
Soil erosion	the removal of the layer of soil above the rock where plants grow.
Hard engineering	building artificial structures aimed at controlling natural processes.
Soft engineering	this option tries to work with the natural river system and involves avoiding building on areas especially likely to flood, warning people of a possible flood and planting trees to increase lag time.
Dam	an artificial structure designed to hold back water to create a reservoir
Reservoir	commonly an artificial lake formed behind a dam and used for water supply.
Reservoir	an artificial lake formed behind a dam and used for water supply
Straightening meanders	making the river follow a more direct, rather than its natural course, so that it leaves an area more quickly
Floodplain zoning	controlling what is built on the floodplain so that areas that are at risk of flooding have low-value land uses
Economic	refers to costs and finances at a variety of scales, from individuals up to government
Social	refers to people’s health, their lifestyle, community, etc.
Environmental	the impact on our surroundings, including the land, water and air as well as features of the built-up areas
Water stress	this happens when there is not enough water available. This may be because of an inadequate supply at a particular time or it may relate to water quality
Areas of water deficit	areas where the rain that falls does not provide enough water and there may be shortages
Areas of water surplus	areas that have more water than is needed – often such areas receive a high rainfall total, but have a relatively small population.
Sustainable	making sure there is enough water in the long term without harming the environment

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