In the past, the term watershed was used for the division of a watershed. Since the United Nations Water Conference in Mar del Plata, Argentina, in 1977, however, the term watershed has also referred to the watershed itself [2]. These sample phrases are automatically selected from various online information sources to reflect the current use of the word “watershed”. The views expressed in the examples do not represent the views of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us your feedback. The Mississippi and Missouri rivers are the two longest rivers in North America and together form the backbone of the much larger Mississippi watershed, which provides fresh water to much of the continental United States. Therefore, a watershed is defined as any area from which runoff resulting from precipitation is collected and diverted by a common point. It is synonymous with watershed or watershed. A watershed can be as small as in small ponds or hundreds of square kilometres as in rivers. All water catchment areas can be divided into smaller submarine divisions” [5].
Water from hundreds and often thousands of streams and streams flows from the heights to the rivers that eventually end up in a larger body of water. As water flows, it often ingests pollutants that can have disastrous effects on the ecology of the watershed and ultimately on the reservoir, bay or ocean where it ends. The Chesapeake Bay watershed is home to 18 million people and covers 64,000 square miles. Water from areas as far away as upstate New York ends up in the Chesapeake, the country`s largest estuary. Watersheds can vary in size. A watershed for a small mountain stream can be as small as a few square meters. Some watersheds are huge and typically include many smaller watersheds. The Mississippi River watershed is the largest watershed in the United States, draining more than three million square miles (one million square miles) of land. The Mississippi River watershed stretches from the Appalachian Mountains in the east to the Rocky Mountains in the west. Thirty-one U.S.
states and two Canadian provinces lie within the Mississippi River watershed. A watershed is an area that drains or “releases” water into a particular body of water. Each body of water has a watershed. Watersheds channel precipitation and snowmelt into streams and rivers. These small bodies of water flow into larger ones, including lakes, bays and oceans. Gravity helps show the path water takes through the landscape. Watershed is originally a geographical term. The area that empties into a single river is the watershed of that river. Watershed can also mean a ridge formed by a mountain range that sends water to two different rivers on each side. From this importance, the watershed has become a turning point or a dividing line in social life. A watershed is an area that releases precipitation and snowmelt into streams and rivers.
Conservationist John Makombo has used watershed management in Uganda`s Bwindi Impenetrable National Park to create important habitat for mountain gorillas. Brazilian human rights defender Denise Rambaldi helped protect the rainforest in Brazil`s São João watershed. Rainforest conservation has saved a tiny monkey called the golden lion tamarin from extinction. The size of a watershed (also called a watershed or watershed) is defined on several scales – called hydrological unit codes (HUC) – based on the geography most relevant to its specific area. A watershed can be small, such as a modest inland lake or a single county. Rain and snowmelt from watersheds migrate along many paths to the sea. During periods of heavy rain and snowfall, water can flow on and off impervious surfaces such as parking lots, roads, buildings and other structures, as it has nowhere else to go. These areas act as “expressways” that carry water directly into rainwater drains. Excess water can quickly flood streams and rivers, causing them to overflow and potentially lead to flooding. Opinions on the literal geographic significance of the watershed are divided. On one side of the debate, there are those who think the word can only refer to a ridge that separates rivers and streams flowing in one direction from those flowing in the opposite direction.
This is the original meaning of the term, which is probably borrowed from the translation of the German watershed. On the other side of the argument, there are those who believe that the watershed can also apply to the area through which this divided water flows. The latter meaning is much more common in America today, but most Americans seem to have decided to leave the dispute to geologists and geographers, while figuratively using the term “turning point.” A turning point is a turning point or a historic moment. The day you removed your braces could have been a turning point in your life. Not all rain or snow that falls on a watershed flows this way. Some seep into the ground. It goes into underground reservoirs called aquifers. Other precipitation lands on hard surfaces, such as roads and parking lots, from where it can enter runoff into waterways. Conversely, some watersheds cover thousands of square kilometres and may contain streams, rivers, lakes, reservoirs and groundwater hundreds of kilometres inland. The largest watershed in the United States is the Mississippi River watershed, which drains 1.15 million square miles of all or part of 31 United States.
and two Canadian provinces stretching from the Rockies to the Appalachians! A watershed includes physico-biological as well as socio-economic and political characteristics that must be integrated into the planning and management process. While some watersheds are relatively small, others cover thousands of square kilometers and may contain streams, rivers, lakes, reservoirs and groundwater hundreds of kilometers inland. Shown here: an aerial view of Drakes Bay, which is part of California`s Tomales-Drake watershed. Image: Brian Cluer, NOAA Fisheries West Coast Region, California Coastal Office. For more information about user permissions, please see our Terms of Service. If you have any questions about content licensing on this page, please contact ngimagecollection@natgeo.com for more information and to obtain a license. If you have any questions about how to quote something on our website in your project or class presentation, please contact your teacher. He or she will know the preferred format. When you contact them, you need the page title, URL, and when you accessed the resource. Last update: 26.02.21 Author: NOAA How can I cite this article? The text on this page is printable and may be used in accordance with our Terms of Use.
Nature Conservancy, Earth Sciences, Geography, Physical Geography All interactive content on this site can only be read when you visit our website. You cannot download interactive elements. Watershed management is a term that describes the use of land, forests, and water resources in a way that does not harm the plants and animals that live there. Watershed management can include goals and processes such as reducing the amount of pesticides and fertilizers discharged from agricultural fields into nearby waters. Watershed management is closely linked to nature conservation. However, not all waters flow directly into the sea. When rain falls on dry soil, it can penetrate the soil or penetrate the soil. This groundwater stays in the ground, where it eventually seeps into the next stream.
Some of the water penetrates much deeper into underground reservoirs called aquifers. In other areas where the soil contains a lot of hard clay, very little water can enter. Instead, it quickly bumps into deeper ground. Audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited under the media element, with the exception of promotional images, which usually link to another page containing the media credit. The media rights holder is the named person or group. If an asset is ready to download, a download button appears in the corner of the Media Viewer. If you don`t see a button, you won`t be able to download or save the media.