How do Californians get the water they need?

You Try Where does the water in the Sacramento River come from? Is the water in the river fresh water or salt water? Why would a community consider building a dam?

Water Resources The human body is made up of 60 to 75% of water. Fresh water is vital to human health. Fresh water is also necessary for growing many kinds of plants. People use fresh water for bathing, washing dishes, washing clothes, ect.

People also use salt water. People who live in places that have little fresh water, use salt water once the salt and other minerals have been removed. Salt water resources include food, and sea salt. Sea salt is used for cooking and in making chemicals.

Local Water Sources Most communities get their water from lakes and rivers. Water supplies depend on how much rain and snow falls during a year. When rain or snow falls it collects in a watershed. A watershed is an area of land in which water runs off into a particular system of creeks and rivers.

A community may be able to take its water directly from the rivers of a watershed. The amount of water in a river changes from season to season. Many communities build dams to store water for dry seasons.

A dam is a barrier across a river that controls its flow. Water collects behind a dam to form a reservoir. A reservoir is a body of water stored for future use. California’s largest reservoir is Shasta Lake built in 1945

If a community uses more water than is available from its watershed, they may need to bring water from another watershed. An Aqueduct is a pipe or channel used to transport water.

Ground water About 40% of California’s population uses groundwater. Groundwater is water under Earth’s surface located in the spaces between rocks and soil. The water table is an imaginary line underneath the ground that everything below the line is filled with water.

Groundwater is found in rocks that have pores. A rock layer that can store a lot of water and let it flow through is called an aquifer. Water can be obtained from drilling wells. Over time a well can become dry if the water table drops below the depth of the well.

If an area’s groundwater is used up, it will take a very long time for the water to be replaced by rain.