Phreatic Water

{
  "id": "MLC-T-ENV-020966",
  "term": "Phreatic Water",
  "field": "Environment",
  "definition": "1. Water found below the surface of the land, usually in porous rock formations. Ground water is the source of water found in wells and springs and is used frequently for drinking.\n\n2. The supply of fresh water found beneath the earth's surface, usually in aquifers, which supply wells and springs. Because groundwater is a major source of drinking water, there is growing concern over contamination from leaching agricultural or industrial pollutants and leaking underground storage tanks.\n\n3. Water that flows or seeps downward and saturates soil or rock, supplying springs and wells. The upper surface of the saturate zone is called the water table.\n\n4. Water stored underground in rock crevices and in the pores of geologic materials that make up the Earth's crust.\n\n5. In hydrologic terms, water within the earth that supplies wells and springs; water in the zone of saturation where all openings in rocks and soil are filled, the upper surface of which forms the water table.",
  "references": [
    "Environmental Issues Glossary",
    "Urban Watershed Management Research Terminology",
    "USGS Water Science Glossary of Terms",
    "NOAA National Weather Service Glossary"
  ],
  "url": "https://mlchart.com/terminology/environment/phreatic-water/"
}