Chapter 4, Lesson 2

Georgia’s Water Features

Rivers and Waterfalls

• Water on Earth is never lost.• It changes form and moves from place to

place.• When water falls to Earth as precipitation it

may evaporate.• Water could also fall into a body of water, soak

into the ground, o flow over the surface as runoff.

Water Cycle

Rivers in Georgia

Rivers in Georgia

• http://www.garivers.org/• The Savannah River is the major river flowing

eastward to the Atlantic Ocean. • http://www.gastateparks.org/Tallulah• The Tallulah George, a mile long canyon, and

has the largest water fall in the state.

Rivers in Georgia

• A fall line is the point at which waterfalls stop appearing on a river.

• Rivers are only navigable up to the fall line. • The Chattahoochee River is the major river

flowing down the western side of the divide into the Gulf of Mexico. It flows from the mountains to form lake Sidney Lanier and then merges with the Flint River into Florida.

What are Georgia’s Lakes?

• The landscape of Georgia is ideal for rivers, but it does not support the formation of large natural lakes.

• Two natural forms of lakes include oxbow lakes and sinkhole lakes.

Oxbow Lake

Sinkhole Lake

What are Georgia’s Lakes?

• The largest lakes in Georgia are reservoirs.• Reservoirs are created by building dams across

rivers.• Dams stop the flow of water and form a lake. • Reservoirs are used to regulate the flow of

water, flood control and water supplies. • Reservoirs are also a source of hydroelectric

power, or electricity produced by moving water.

Hydroelectric Power

What is a swamp?

• The Okefenokee Swamp is the largest swamp in North America, covering 1,800 square miles.

• The swamp is a wetland area that has shrubs and trees. The spongy ground helps with flood control and is a natural water filter.

What is a swamp?

• The history of the Okefenokee Swamp can be traced back 65 million years, when the area was covered by seas.

• The soil is very acidic, so only plants with special adaptations for this environment can grow here.

• http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/life/plants/

Okefenokee Swamp

• http://www.fws.gov/okefenokee/