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Yes. The main body of subsurface water is found in the
saturated zone of aquifers. Aquifers can be only a few feet
below the surface or more than a thousand feet deep.
Aquifers are the primary source of drinking water in arid
and semi-arid parts of the United States where the amount of
surface water (water in streams, lakes, and reservoirs) is
limited. There is also subsurface water in soils (which is
mostly used by plants), and in the zone found between the
soil zone and the saturated zone of aquifers. This zone is
called the unsaturated zone. The unsaturated zone includes a
layer directly above the aquifer called the capillary fringe
where water in the saturated zone is drawn upward by
capillary action. |
