1. Water Resources CHAPTER 15

2. Key H20 Characteristics OBJ 15.1
Water is the prime constituent of all living organisms.
Water moves easily-from one physical state to another, and from one place to another.
Water slowly absorbs and releases large quantities of energy.
Water is a superior solvent.
Michael D. Lee Ph.D. Geography and Environmental Studies
(Source: Wright & Nebel 2002)

3. Importance of Water Properties
Running water can quickly erode topsoil rendering farmland infertile and streams contaminated.
Lack of access to clean water supplies can quickly lead to dehydration and death.
Chemical spills, excess nutrients & acids dissolved in H20 can lead to massive die offs.
Michael D. Lee Ph.D. Geography and Environmental Studies

4. Available Water OBJ 15.2 Total = 326 million cubic miles
                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                    
OBJ 15.2
Available Water
Total = 326 million cubic miles
97% of Earth’s water is in oceans
2.997% is locked up in ice caps and glaciers
0.003% is easily accessible
Soil moisture
Groundwater
Water vapor
Lakes
Streams

5. Water Supply & Use

6. Water Cycle
SW%20Management.htm

7. Hydrologic Cycle Powered by solar energy and gravity
Evaporation and precipitation
Continuous recycling of water
Runoff
Infiltration
Evaporation
Temporary storage as snow and ice
Temporary storage in lakes
Temporary storage in plants (transpiration) and animals
Chemical reactions with rocks and minerals
Volcanism also causes melting of snow caps and mudflows as melted water mixes with ash
Source of additional water? volcanism (steam)

8. Surface Water
Surface runoff flows into streams, lakes, wetlands and reservoirs
A watershed or drainage basin
Region that drains into a streams, lakes, wetlands or reservoirs
watershed.asp

9. Groundwater
As precipitation infiltrates and percolates through voids in soil and rock
Pores, fractures, crevices, etc.
Shallow rock has little moisture
Zone of saturation is at a depth were ground is filled with water
Top of this zone is water table
Falls in dry weather
Rises in wet weather

10. HOW RIVERS WORK: the role of groundwater
OBJ 15.3
outlines/groundwater.html

11. Aquifers
Porous, water-saturated layers of sand, gravel or bedrock through which groundwater flows
Area of land that supplies water to aquifer is called the recharge area
Natural recharge is when water percolates downward, but sometimes lateral recharge occurs

12. Groundwater Movement
Groundwater moves from recharge area through an aquifer and out a discharge area
well, spring, lake, geyser, artesian well, steam, ocean
Normally moves downhill at only a meter per year
Some aquifers get little recharge and were formed thousands of years ago
Removal from these nonrenewable resources is called water mining

13. Use of Fresh Water OBJ 15.4 United States China 41% agriculture
38% power plant cooling
11% industry
10% public
China
87% agriculture
7% industry
6% public

14. Water Use Globally People and Planet
70 per cent of all water withdrawn for human use on an annual basis is soaked up by agriculture (mostly in the form of irrigation)
Industry accounts for 23 per cent
Domestic use (household, drinking water, sanitation) accounts for about 7 per cent

15. Water Use People and Planet
The average person needs a minimum of five litres (1.3 gallons) of water per day to survive in a moderate climate at an average activity level, according to UN figures.
The minimum amount of water needed for drinking and cooking, bathing and sanitation is 50 litres (13 gallons).

16. Water Use - (minimum 13 gallons) People and Planet
The average person in the United States uses between to 300 litres of water ( gallons) per day for drinking, cooking bathing, and watering their yard.
The average person in the Netherlands uses 104 litres per day (27 gallons).
The average person in the African nation of Gambia uses litres per day (1.2 gallons of water).

17. Water Use - United States
In 1990, about 408,000 million gallons (Mgal/d) of water were used each day
Of that, about 339,000 Mgal/d was fresh water and about 69,400 Mgal/d was saline water
California used the most water, about 46,800 Mgal/d, with most of that going towards irrigation
The state with the second-highest water use was Texas, with about 25,200 Mgal/d, mostly for use in the power-production industries and for irrigation

18. 1 Mgal/d = 1.547 cubic feet per second
Some conversions:
1 Mgal/d = cubic feet per second
1 Mgal/d = thousand gallons per minute
1 Mgal/d = 1,121 thousand acre-feet per year
1 million gallons = 3.07 acre feet

19. Too Little Water Causes OBJ 15.5 Dry climate
Drought - a period in which precipitation is much lower and evaporation is much higher
Desiccation - drying of soil because of such activities as deforestation and overgrazing
Water stress - low per capita availability of water caused by overpopulation

20. Precipitation Varies Greatly
US cities vary in their precipitation from an average of less than 8 to 60 inches a year.
Globally, the extreme is even greater – averages of less than 1 inch to more than 70 inches per year.
However, this masks variations between years.
Some locations may get ten times more, or less than 1/10 of their annual average from year to year.
Meeting demands for water when precipitation is so highly varied creates many challenges.

21. whyfiles.org/131fresh_water/ 2.html
atmos.htm
whyfiles.org/131fresh_water/ 2.html

22. Global Precipitation Patterns
Wright and Nebel, 2002.
Michael D. Lee Ph.D. Geography and Environmental Studies

24. In most areas of Nevada and California, potential transpiration and evaporation is in excess of precipitation, which causes a net moisture deficit

25. Drought may spark food price hike Tuesday, November 12, 2002
SYDNEY, Australia -- All but one percent of Australia's most populous state, New South Wales, has been bit by the country's worst drought in a century, with retailers warning that if rain does not fall soon, the country will likely face massive food price hikes.

26. Water Water Pollution Dams and Reservoirs and Transferring water
Supply, Renewal and Use
Too little Water
Dams and Reservoirs and
Transferring water
Groundwater and Saltwater
Efficiency
Too Much Water
Water Pollution

27. Water and Civilization
Many anthropologists and historians believe the need to manage water played a major role in the development of early systems of government.
In Mesopotamia, the Fertile Crescent where the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers come together, water allowed the rise of irrigation-based agriculture, but this required coordination and rules to permit equitable access to water downstream.
Proto-laws and governments were thus developed some 4,400 years BP
Ancient communities that prospered were those that generally well managed their water supplies.
Michael D. Lee Ph.D. Geography and Environmental Studies

28. Examples of Water Management
Many civilizations built impressive water management systems – to bring water to places where people wanted to be or where crops could be grown, but where it was naturally insufficient.
Egyptians built dykes, canals and water lifts to extend agricultural limits.
Middle East and North African nomads built qanats (underground chain wells).
Nabateans built runoff harvesting systems – cisterns and flood terraces.
Incas built canals to catch snowmelt from the Andes to the coastal desert, and terraces to flood for farming.
Romans built municipal aqueducts and sewers to serve burgeoning settlements.
For a good, fun site on water history go here.
Michael D. Lee Ph.D. Geography and Environmental Studies

29. Egyptians perfected the shadouf to draw water from canals and the river to the adjacent bank and into ditches.
Michael D. Lee Ph.D. Geography and Environmental Studies
Nomadic herders and, later, sedentary civilizations developed chains of wells – qanats, karez, foggaras, falaj – to route water across miles of desert from distant aquifers.

30. Water for Power
In addition to its uses for municipal purposes (drinking, sanitation, etc.) and for farming, moving water also has tremendous power to do work.
This too has been harnessed for millennia – first to lift water out of the river itself, then to grind grain and turn gears for machinery like looms, and then for electricity.
Water wheels have been in use for more than 2,000 years and were thought to have been a major factor in the advancement of European societies in the middle ages, as labor was freed for other purposes than farming.
Following the discovery of electricity and the pioneering of electric light by Edison, in the 1880s hydropower systems were built to generate electricity to send through transmission lines to homes and businesses.
Michael D. Lee Ph.D. Geography and Environmental Studies

31. Example of noria – water driven wheels lifting water into irrigation ditches or elevated aqueducts (This is in Vietnam)
Slaters Mill in Rhode Island, one of the earliest American water powered industrial systems.
Artists impression of the Three Gorges Project, Yangtze River, China – world’s biggest hydropower project 19 m kW.
Michael D. Lee Ph.D. Geography and Environmental Studies

32. Increasing Water Supplies
OBJ 15.6
Increasing Water Supplies
Build dams and reservoirs to store runoff
Bring in surface water from another area
Withdraw groundwater
Convert salt water to fresh water (desalination)
Improve the efficiency of water use

33. Chinese Dam Fish Bypass System Earthen Dam Aswan Dam, Egypt Hoover Dam

34. Large Dams - Pros Collect and store water from rain and snow
Produce electricity
Irrigate land below the dam
Control flooding
Provide water to cities, towns and rural areas
Provide recreational activities such as swimming, boating, fishing

35. Large Dams - Cons Enormous loss of water due to evaporation
Mass of water can cause earthquakes
Flooded land destroys forests or cropland and displaces people
Danger of Dam collapse
Downstream areas deprived of nutrient-rich soil, which will eventually clog the reservoir
Migration and spawning of fish disrupted
Expensive to build

36. isis.csuhayward.edu/alss/geography/ mlee/geog4350/4350c6f01.ppt
Case Study:
California
CSU Hayward Dept. Geography and Environmental Studies GEOG 4350 Fall 2001 Class 6
isis.csuhayward.edu/alss/geography/ mlee/geog4350/4350c6f01.ppt

37. Most of the land in Nevada and southern California is desert shrubland, because these areas receive little precipitation. By contrast, wetter areas of central and northern California are forested where mountainous and developed as farmland and urban areas are flatter

38. California’s Water Water Law California’s Water Projects
Los Angeles Aqueduct
Hetch-Hetchy
Salton Sea
Colorado Aqueduct
Central Valley Project

39. Water Law Riparian Rights (Sharing)
from English Common Law
applies to surface waters
owner of waterfront land to use amounts correlated with other riparian owners.
Works well in areas with water surplus
Prior Appropriation (1st come, first served)
from Spanish law
no preference given to those adjoining water course
water rights based on use; earliest has rights
use protected as long as it is continuous and “reasonable”

40. Water Law Correlative Rights The California Doctrine
applies to ground water
about 40% of all California water (not a sustainable withdraw)
Overlying landowners entitled to “reasonable” use. Rights are correlated with other landowners overlying the aquifer
The California Doctrine
1928 amendment to California Constitution
“Most reasonable beneficial use”
Blend of riparian and appropriation rights
Problem: California water geography is unbalanced. Plenty of water in the north. Most people in the south.

41. California Water Code Highest priority for domestic use
Second priority goes to irrigation
Applications by municipalities for use of water by residents given priority over most other uses.
Water Board determines allocation to serve public interest. Board must work within state water plans.
Owens Valley issue highlights how contentious this process can be.

42. Los Angeles Aqueduct (DWP) Eastern Sierra
Started in 1908 by William Mulholland
appropriated water feeding Owens Valley
taps surface flow from Eastern Sierra south
250 miles, cost $25,000,000 and took five years
pipe and flume, tunnel, and trench
gravity feed, no pumping
generates hydroelectric power
L.A. purchased riparian land, used appropriation rights to get away with this. Ranchers in Owens Valley fought back with dynamite and guns - California’s only range war.

43. Mono Lake
In 1941, L.A. DWP started diverting Mono Basin streams to add to L.A. Aqueduct.
Mono Lake’s volume halved while salinity doubled. The simple ecosystem began to fail and threatened migrating birds and nesting gulls.
The state and courts now mandate raising the level of the lake 17 feet. It will take about 20 years.

44. Hetch Hetchy: San Francisco Water
Hetch Hetchy Valley, in Yosemite National Park, damned. Completed in 1931.
175 mile aqueduct and O’Shawnasy Dam, powerhouse, provide cheap power to the city of San Francisco.
95 mile Mokelumne aqueduct, starts at Pardee Dam and reservoir.
Together they provide about 1/3 of Bay Area water.
Controversy helped to strengthen John Muir’s Sierra Club.

46. Colorado River Aqueduct
Established 1928 to bring water to L.A. and rest of Southern California
First delivery in 1940; serves 15 million people
Lawsuit from Arizona (1953) finally began to be implemented in amount will decrease and this amount will be replaced by State Water Project water.
Five pumping stations
Diversions for agriculture

47. The State Water Project: The California Aqueduct
Constructed beginning in the 1960s.
About 1/2 for irrigation, about 1/2 for domestic use.
Domestic use supply helps offset that lost to Arizona in 1985 court case.
Includes the huge Oroville Dam on Feather River in Sierra foothills.
Pumps at Tracy lift water, then it flows by gravity to the Tehachapi Mountains.

48. California Aqueduct

49. Dams and Global River Degradation
Shasta Dam, CA
Aswan Dam, Egypt Lake Nasser

50. The Geography of Large Dams
Over 39,000 large dams by 1986

51. Upstream of Dams - Negative Impact
Environment
Loss of terrestrial/riparian habitat and species
Creation of artificial lacustrine (lakes) system
exotic species introductions
Reservoir/storage for contaminants
Cultural / social
Loss of cultural resources
Displacement of families (villages, regions)
Water quality hazard
Economic
Shift in land use / economy
Water loss via evaporation
Water loss via seepage
Aesthetic
landscape inundated

52. The ‘Dam’ Balance
Some dam removal (small dams) or operational changes (larger dams)
Bruce Babbit (Secretary of the Interior) oversaw the creative destruction of two California dams in 2000
Saelzer Dam on Clear Creek near Redding, for Salmon
Matilija Dam in Southern California
Dams continue to be built until good sites are gone, or it is not economic to build them.
Global numbers? We do not know

53. Three Gorges Dam
World's largest hydroelectric dam, Three Gorges, Yangtze River.
million people will be displaced.
The entire project is to be completed in 2009.

54. Summary of California Water Systems
Very complicated.
Politically controversial - Owens Valley, Dams, Habitat changes, reduced flushing of SF Bay Delta.
California has the most advanced and expensive water delivery system in the world.
Most of the water (about 80%) is used by agriculture; essential to California’s huge farm industry.
Michael D. Lee Ph.D. Geography and Environmental Studies

55. New Alaskan Pipeline A coastal, subsea pipeline has been proposed
2000 mile long from one or more rivers in Alaska to Shasta lake where it would join present system
$110 billion estimate in 1990
no leakage or loss due to evaporation from 14-foot diameter pipeline
4 million acre-feet of water transported per year
36 million acre-feet of water needed per year in 2010

56. OBJ 15.7
Tapping Groundwater
About half of the drinking water in the United States is pumped from aquifers
Roughly 40% of the water in streams/river is from groundwater
The number one removal of water from aquifers is for irrigation for farming

57. Groundwater Problems Aquifer depletion Aquifer subsidence
more water is removed than is naturally refreshed
Aquifer subsidence
land sinks due to withdrawal of groundwater (Mexico City)
Intrusion of salt water into aquifers
Contamination from multiple sources

58. Groundwater Depletion
Aquifer Depletion
95% of water removed from Ogallala Aquifer is for irrigation and the removal rate is greater than the refreshing rate
Saudi Arabia, China, northern Africa, southern Europe, Middle East, Thailand, India

59. Aquifer Subsidence
Well casing projecting from the ground (40 years)
Mexico City’s aquifer has shrunk enough that land has dropped up to 7.5 m

60. Salt Water Intrusion
“One-third of the water supply for coastal areas of Greater Los Angeles comes from local ground-water sources.
Saltwater has penetrated a part of the supply, and a significant part of the remaining supply is at risk.”
U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 030–02

61. Desalination Removal of salts from ocean water distillation
first land-based desalination plant was established in 1928 in the Netherlands
Unit/oea59e/ch21.htm

62. Desalination Removal of salts from ocean water
reverse osmosis
using high pressure
The Santa Barbara facility began operation in March 1992

63. OBJ 15.9
Reducing Water Waste
Up 70% of water is lost through evaporation & leaks
repair leaky pipes/canals
recycling
use of gray water (i.e. from shower) for irrigation etc.
water conservation
efficient toilets, faucets, & shower heads
irrigation efficiency (only 40% reaches crops)
drip irrigation, central–pivot, computer monitoring

64. Types of Benefits
Possible benefits of canal replacement with pipeline:
reduction in seepage losses
improvement of head and on-farm water delivery
better operation of distribution network
reduction in maintenance costs

65. Direct Potable Water Reuse
Drinking Water
Wastewater
Treatment

66. Direct Potable Water Reuse
Case Studies:
Windhoek, Namibia
Denver, Colorado
Health concerns
Public perception

67. Windhoek, Namibia Population: 220,000 Severe water shortage
First and only city using direct potable water reuse (Since 1968)

68. Windhoek, Namibia 40% of water demand returned as wastewater
2,000 m3/day of reclaimed water
Basic public acceptance
No significant epidemiological trends
Data consistent with WHO health trends

69. Denver, Colorado
Direct Potable Reuse demonstration project ( )
Drinking water influent is secondary treated wastewater
Several barriers of treatment
Standard Drinking Water Treatment
Carbon Adsorption
Ultraviolet Irradiation
Reverse Osmosis/Ultrafiltration
Air Stripping
Disinfection (ozonation and chlorination)

70. Denver, Colorado High water quality (meets all EPA standards)
No adverse health effects
Tested on animals
Carcinogenic and reproductive tests
Public awareness and education programs
Majority of acceptance if sufficient need exists

71. Specific Uses for Recycled Water
Toilet flushing
Subsurface drip irrigation
Safer
Non-aerosolizing of water and pathogens
More prone to clogging
Requires more maintenance
More efficient
Less evaporative water loss
Feeds roots of plants/grass directly

74. Too Much Water: Floods OBJ 15.10
Natural flooding is caused primarily by heavy rain or rapid melting snow.
This causes water in a stream to overflow it normal channel & flood the adjacent area, called a floodplain.
Floodplains, which include highly productive wetlands, help to:
Provide natural flood & erosion control
Maintain high water quality
Recharge groundwater
When the floodwater recede, deposits of silt are left behind, creating a nutrient-rich soil.

75. Too Much Water: Floods
People have been settling in floodplains for several reasons:
Fertile soil
Sufficient water for irrigation
Flat land suitable for agriculture
Use of nearby rivers for transportations
However, each year floods (“natural disasters”) kill thousands of people & cause tens of billons of dollar in property damage. Human activities have contributed to the sharp rice in flood frequencies which dramatically increased flood deaths & damages.

76. Flooding Human activities that increase flooding: removing vegetation
logging
overgrazing
forest fires
mining
destruction of wetlands
building on floodplains
urbanization
© Brooks/Cole Publishing Company / ITP

77. Too Much Water: Floods Natural phenomena
Aggravated by human activities
Renew and replenish
Floodplain
Levee
Flood
wall
Dam
Reservoir