Apes

A small amount of the earth's water ends up in the living components of ecosystems. As producers, plants absrob some of this water through their roots, most of which evaporates from plant leaves back into the atmosphere through transpiration; some of the water combines with carbon dioxide during photosynthesis to produce high-energy organic compounds such as carbohydrates. Eventually, these compounds are broken down in plant cells, which release the water back into the environment. Consumers get their wate from their food and by drinking it.

...

As nutrients move through their biogeochemical cycles, they may accumulate in certain portions of the cycles and remain there for different periods of time. These temporary storage sites such as the atmosphere, the oceans and other bodies of water, and underground deposits are called reservoirs.

...

Because water dissolves many nutrient compounds, it is a major medium for transporting nutrients within and between ecosystems. Water is also the primary sculptor of the earth's landscape as it flows over and wears down rock over years.

...

Evaporation changes liquid water into water vapor in the atmosphere and graviyty draw the water back to the earth's surface as precipitation (rain, snow, sleet, and dew). Over land, about 90% of the water that reaches the atmosphere evaporates from the surfaces of plants, through a process called transpiration, and from the soil.

...

Nutrients cycle within and among ecoysystems

...

Only about 0.024% of the earth's vast water supply is available to humans and other species as liquid fresh water in accessible groundwater deposits and in lakes, rivers, and streams. The rest is too salty for us to use, is stored as ice, or is too deep underground to extract at affordable prices using current technology.

...

The elements and compounds that make up nutrients move continually through air, water, soil, rock, and living organisms within ecosystems, as well as in the biosphere in cycles called biogeochemical cycles (literally, life-earth-chemical cycles), or nutrient cycles

...

The water cycle is powered by energy from the sun and involves three major processes- evaporation, precipitation, and transpiration. Incoming solar energy causes evaporation of water from the earth's oceans, lakes, rivers, and soil

...

These cycles, driven directly or indirectly by incoming solar energy and the earth's gravity, include the hydrologic (water), carbon, nitrogen, phosphorous, and sulfur cycles

...

Throughout the hydrologic cycle, many natural processes purify water. Evaporation and subsequent precipitation act as a natural distillation process that removes impurities dissolved in water. Water flowing above ground through streams and lakes, and below ground in aquifers (underground layers of rock, sand, and gravel where water is stored as groundwater) is naturally filtered and partially purified by chemical and biological processes- mostly by the actions of decomposer bacteria- as long as these natural processes are not overloaded. Thus, the hydrologic cycle can be viewed as a cycle of natural renewal of water quality.

...

most precipitation falling on terrestrial ecosystems becomes surface runoff. This water flows into streams, which eventually carry water back to lakes and oceans, from which it can evaporate to repeat the cycle

...

some precipitation is converted to ice that is stored in glaciers.. usually for long periods of time. some precipitation sinks through soil permeable rock formatuons to underground layers of rock, sand, and gravel called aquifers, where it is stored as groundwaterr

...

these cycles are an important component of the earth's natural capital, and human activities are altering these cycles

...

water returning to the earth's surface as precipitation takes various paths. Most precipitation falling on terrestrial ecosystems becomes surface runoff. The water flows into streams, which eventually carry water back to lakes and oceans, from which it can evaporate to repeat the cycle. Some surface water also seeps into the upper layers of soil where it is used by plants, and some evaporates from the soils back into the atmosphere

...

Three ways we alter the water cycle:

1) we withdraw large quantities of freshwater from streams, lakes, and aquifers sometimes a trates faster than nature can replace it. 2) we clear vegetation from land for agriculture, mining, road building, etc.. this increases runoff, reduces infiltration that would normally recharge groundwater supplies, accelerates topsoil erosion, and increases the risk of flooding, 3) we also increase flooding when we drain and fill wetlands for farming and urban development. Left undisturbed, wetlands provide the natural service of flood control, acting like sponges to absorb and hold overflows of water from drenching rains or rapidly melting snow.

The Water Cycle

The hydrologic cycle/water cycle collects, purifies, and distributes the earth's fixed supply of water

Carbon cycle

carbon is the basic building block of the carbohydrates, fats, proteins, DNA, and other organic compounds necessary for life. Various compounds of carbon circulate through the biosphere, the atmosphere, and parts of the hydrosphere, in the carbon cycle