Terrestrial Water Stores
Harriet, Annabel, Anoushka

Wetlands

  • Areas of marsh, fen or peatland
  • Water in a wetland can be either static or flowing
  • These wetlands can be temporary or permanent
  • A dominance of vegetation is seen [supporting both aquatic and terrestrial life]
  • 0.000078% of global water

Residence time for water wetlands can be anything between 1-10 years in swamps and marshes

Largest wetland

  • Water covers the soil and is present consistently all year
  • Level of water saturation can determine the development of the soil
  • Wetlands are most often found in the 'polar regions of the tropics'

Across 3 countries - Bolivia, Brazil ,Paraguay

42million Acres (slightly larger than england)

Centre of South America

The Pantanal

Lakes

Rivers

Soil Water

Ground Water

Biological water

35% loss of wetlands globally since 1970 [the most threatened ecosystem] however they absorb carbon up to 55x faster than tropical rainforests

Soil water can be held in associated with air in unsaturated superficial layers of the earth, it is a key variable in controlling exchange of heat and water between land and atmosphere through evaporation and evapotranspiration; aiding precipitation

Key statistics

  • Residence time: 2 weeks-1 year
  • Size of store: 0.0456%
  • State of water: Gas and Liquid
  • Inputs: All other stores
  • Exists in plants and animals
  • Based in the lithosphere [outer section of the earth including the mantle
  • Water is taken up by plants providing a reservoir of water that enables us to keep climates stable

However if vegetation is destroyed this water evaporates into the atmosphere

  • Residence time: 1 week
  • Size of store 0.000078%
  • State of water: Gas and liquid

Can act as a store and a transfer of water; often referred to streams in a defined channel

Make up 0.000147% of global water

River, source, tributary, confluence to the mouth, all gradually increase in storage capacity/water volume

  • Residence time: 2 weeks
  • state of water: liquid [however due to outputs water surrounding the river is often in gaseous or water vapour form due to high temp]

Largest River

Largest river by discharge of water in the world

South America

The Amazon

209,000m3/s [greater than the next 7 rivers combined]

Collections of fresh water found in hallows on the land surface. They are generally deemed a lake if they are greater than 2 hectares in area [below is a pond]

  • 0.00627% of global water
  • Residence time of 10years
  • Make up majority of fresh water and often lie in the Northern Hemisphere at higher latitudes
  • The freshwater becomes more saline in the south where there are fewer rivers flowing into it

Inputs and outputs between lakes evaporation transpiration precipitation fog drip dew or near vegetation that can feed directly into the lake

Largest Lake

Caspian Sea

7800km3

remnant of an ancient ocean

about 5.5 millions years old

Water that collects underground [in rock pore spaces] this water culminates in saturated areas beneath the surface of the land

Ground water aids the flow of our rivers and its largest use is for crop irrigation and agricultural purposes. As a result of this it is in rapid decline

Residence time is anywhere from 2weeks to 10,000 years

Terrestrial water store -
Terrestrial water storage can be defined as the summation of all water on the land surface and in the subsurface