What is a Watershed Webquest?

Name: Lauren Johnson

Access the following link and answer the questions:

http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/watershed.html

1. What is a watershed?
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The area of land where all of the water that falls in it and drains off of it goes to a common
outlet; A precipitation collector.

2. Watersheds can vary in size. True/False

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True

3. What type of watershed is shown in the map?

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Chesapeake Bay

4. The word watershed is sometimes used interchangeably with or .

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Drainage basin or catchment

5. Ridges and hills that separate two watersheds are called the .
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Drainage Divide

6. What does watershed consist of?

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Surface water: lakes, streams, reservoirs, and wetlands, and all the underlying ground water.

7. Larger watersheds contain many . It all depends on the

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Many smaller watersheds. It all depends on the outflow point.

8. What is the outflow point?

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The watershed for that outflow location.

9. Why are watersheds important?

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Because the streamflow and the water quality of a river are affected by things happening in
the land area above the river outflow point.

A Watershed is a precipitation collector:

1. Name 6 factors that determine how much of the streamflow will flow by the monitoring site?
- Precipitation, infiltration, soil characteristics, Soil saturation, land cover, slope of the land,
evaporation, transpiration, storage, water use by people.
2. What is the greatest factor controlling streamflow?
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Precipitation

3. The amount of water that will infiltrate (soak in over time) depends on which four characteristics?
- Soil characteristics, Soil saturation, land cover, and slope of the land.
4. Water from rainfall returns to the atmosphere largely through .
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Evaporation

5. The root systems of plants absorb water from the surrounding soil in various amounts through the
process of .
6.

Transpiration
store water and increase the amount of water that evaporates and infiltrates.

Storage

River Basins of N.C.:

http://www.eenorthcarolina.org/riverbasins-interactive.html
Choose one of the NC. River Basins and list out 10 facts about the one you
investigate. Also include one picture that best represents a main feature of
the River Basin.
Hiwassee river basin
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Hiwassees name comes from the Cherokee word Ayuhwassi,

which means savanna or meadow.

The origin of the river lies in the mountains of northern Georgia and
western North Carolina.
2

The river basin contains many jplant and animal species that are
endangered, threatened, or very rare.

It contain a freshwater snail, Christys elimia, that is endemic to the

basin ( It has been found nowhere else in the entire world).

Poor management of land activities has already compromised water

quality in several creeks and rivers in the basin.

A federal and state species of concern, the hellbender is a large

aquatic salamander inhabiting streams in the Hiwassee river basin
and requires cool, free-flowing waters free from excess sediments
and pollutants.

The Tennessee Valley Authority manages releases of water from

these lakes to produce hydroelectric power, improve navigation and
provide flood control.

In Cherokee County, citizens have established an outdoor education

center to preserve the communitys cultural and natural heritage
and provide a place of learning for students and residents.

Vegetation helps stabilize banks and filter sediments, and it shades

and cools the water.

Some fish species require the higher levels of dissolved oxygen

found in cool, clear water.

Since most streams drain undeveloped mountain areas, water

quality in the basin generally remains good but future growth of the
basin has to be managed wisely to keep the streams and rivers
clean.