Ground water: the hidden resource

General Information Product
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Abstract

Ground water is water underground in saturated zones beneath the land surface. Contrary to popular belief, ground water does not form underground "rivers." It fills the pores and fractures in underground materials such as sand, gravel, and other rock. If ground water flows from rock materials or can be removed by pumping from the saturated rock materials In useful amounts, the rock materials are called aquifers. Ground water moves slowly, typically at rates of 7 to 60 centimeters per day in an aquifer. As a result, water could remain in an aquifer for hundreds or thousands of years. Ground water is the source of about 40 percent of water used for public supplies and about 38 percent of water used for agriculture in the United States.
Publication type Report
Publication Subtype USGS Unnumbered Series
Title Ground water: the hidden resource
Series title General Information Product
DOI 10.3133/70047744
Year Published 1996
Language English
Publisher U.S. Geological Survey
Publisher location Reston, VA
Contributing office(s) Water Resources Program
Description Elementary School Poster; Middle School Poster; Black and White Poster
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