Read Aloud the Text Content
This audio was created by Woord's Text to Speech service by content creators from all around the world.
Text Content or SSML code:
We know that water purification is one of the SDG goals (Sustainable Development Goals). Many villages, all around the world have access to impure water, which causes many diseases, such as diarrhoea and cholera. Surprisingly, water is purified by nature itself! Groundwater is one of our most valuable resources—even though you probably never see it or even realize it is there. Most of the void spaces in the rocks below the water table are filled with water.These rocks have different porosity and permeability characteristics, which means that water does not move around the same way in all rocks below ground.Underground water does not have any suspended impurities. This is due to the one and only - Aquifers!!! An aquifer is a body of rock and sediment that contains groundwater.Groundwater is the word used to describe rain that has infiltrated the soil beyond the surface and collected in empty spaces underground. There are two types of aquifers: confined and unconfined.Confined aquifers have a layer of impenetrable rock (clay) above them, while unconfined aquifers lie below a permeable layer of soil. Different types of rocks can form aquifers, including gravel, sandstone, conglomerates, and broken limestone.A common misunderstanding about aquifers is that they are underground rivers or lakes. While groundwater can flow into or out of aquifers due to their permeable nature, it cannot move fast enough to flow like a river.The rate at which groundwater moves through an aquifer varies depending on the rock’s permeability. Groundwater can finish up if we use it at a faster rate than it can replenish itself.The replenishment of aquifers by precipitation is called "recharging". Depletion of aquifers has increased due to rising agricultural irrigation.Groundwater can become contaminated. Thus, we have to take precaution.Aquifers can help filter water naturally! However, we have to make sure we use groundwater wisely. We owe to nature for the good water we get from it.