How does nature recycle water?
The earth constantly recycles water through the hydrologic cycle. Water in streams and rivers, which contain contaminants and pollutants, is warmed by the sun, causing an increase in evaporation. Water lost through the leaves of green plants is call transpiration. The gaseous water raises, and is cooled in the atmosphere, making clouds. When conditions are right, the water falls to the Earth as rain, refilling the streams, lake, oceans, and aquifers. The processes of evaporation and transpiration purify the water. In lakes and streams, algae and microbes eat certain contaminants, removing the pollutants from water.
