TN Science Standards: 9–12.ESS2.5 · 9–12.ESS3.1 · HS-ESS2-5
Reading the hydrographs
4.Look at the three demonstration wells. Which well shows the deepest water level? What is its context (wellfield, recharge zone, or breach-adjacent)?
5.Each well has a "12-month change" value. Which well is deepening the fastest? What might explain this?
6.The lesson mentions a ~3–5 ft seasonal swing. In which months is the aquifer typically deepest? Shallowest? Why?
Interpretation
7.If you saw a well's DTW suddenly drop 10 ft in one month, list two possible causes.
8.The "breach-adjacent" well is near a known UCCU breach. How might a breach affect water levels compared to an intact confining layer?
Water Budget tool
9.Open /tools/water-budget. Under the "stressed" preset, how many MGD of total demand are modeled? How does this compare to the historical recharge of 220 MGD?
10.Based on the Water Budget tool, what happens to the aquifer balance when industrial demand (like xAI) is added on top of existing MLGW pumping? What long-term trend would you expect to see in monitoring wells?
Extension
Data task: Visit USGS NWIS Groundwater and look up a real well in Shelby County, Tennessee. Download 1 year of data and sketch the hydrograph. How does it compare to the demonstration wells in the lesson?