Geology: Groundwater and Infiltration

Groundwater and Infiltration

Groundwater is extremely important to our way of life. Most drinking water supplies and often irrigation water for agricultural needs are drawn from underground sources. More than 90 percent of the liquid fresh water available on or near the earth's surface is groundwater. Hot groundwater can also be a source of energy. Groundwater is derived from rain and melting snow that percolate downward from the surface; it collects in the open pore spaces between soil particles or in cracks and fissures in bedrock. The process of percolation is called infiltration.