This PowerPoint file contains information

about ground water basics. The slide show

includes information about what ground
water is, how much of it there is, how much
we use, where it comes from, where it goes,
and how we use it.
Ground water is an important part of the
water cycle

United States Geological Survey (http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/watercycle.html)

Ground water is the water in saturated pores of soil
or rock. The point separating the saturated and
unsaturated soil or rock is called the water table.

water
table
About 1% of the earth’s total water and 22% of the
earth’s fresh water occurs as ground water

United States Geological Survey (http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/waterdistribution.html)

 Ground water is important because 75% of us get
our drinking water from ground water. Lakes and
rivers also get a lot of their water from ground water

EPA Region 2
(http://www.epa.gov/region2/water/grndtop.htm)

EPA
(http://www.epa.gov/seahome/gr
oundwater/src/geo.htm)
Ground water starts as rain, melted snow, or water
from a lake, river or wetland that percolates (seeps)
through the soil

Pennsylvania League of Women’s Voters – Water Resources Education Network

(http://pa.lwv.org/wren/pubs/primer.html)
 An aquifer is a geologic formation that yields a
useable amount of water. A confining layer does not
yield water fast enough to be used.

EPA (http://www.epa.gov/seahome/groundwater/src/geo.htm)
 An unconfined aquifer has no confining unit separating it
from the land surface. The water level in a well rises to the
top of the aquifer. A confined aquifer has one or more
confining units above it. Water in a confined aquifer is under
pressure and the water level in a well rises above the aquifer.

EPA (http://www.epa.gov/seahome/groundwater/src/geo.htm)
Aquifers may consist of sand and gravel, limestone
that is fractured or partly dissolved, or sandstone
that is fractured. Clay, shale and crystalline rocks
are usually confining materials.

Pennsylvania League of Women’s Voters – Water Resources Education Network

(http://pa.lwv.org/wren/pubs/primer.html)
Ground water flows from high to low elevations.
Areas of high elevation are recharge areas.

Pennsylvania League of Women’s Voters – Water Resources Education Network

(http://pa.lwv.org/wren/pubs/primer.html)
 Ground water flows very slow. For example, water
in a river flows about 1000 to 10000 times faster than
in an aquifer, and a billion times faster than in a
confining material

10000000

100000
Feet per day

1000

10

0.1

0.001

0.00001
River Limestone Sand Clay
Ground water flows towards and discharges
to rivers, lakes, wetlands, springs, or wells.

In this
diagram,
ground water
discharges to a
well and a
stream

United States Geological Survey (http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/earthgwdecline.html)

We get ground water from a well. A well is a
pipe that is drilled down into an aquifer. We
get the water out of the well with a pump.
United States Geological Survey
(http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/earthgwwells.html)

A 2 inch diameter well is being driven on the left with a

drill rig. Wells can also be drilled or dug (above). The
pump on the left is placed below the water level and
pushes water up the well.
 Additional Sources of Information
• http://www.epa.gov/seahome/groundwater/s
rc/ground.htm
• http://pa.lwv.org/wren/pubs/primer.html
• http://www.issaquah.org/COMORG/gwac/
Hydro.htm
• http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/
naturalresources/DD5867.html