Although Minnesota and Wisconsin have thousands of lakes and sufficient rainfall in most places, there are water shortages in some locations. Which of the following are examples of water shortages that have occurred in this region? (check all that apply)

Question

Although Minnesota and Wisconsin have thousands of lakes and sufficient rainfall in most places, there are water shortages in some locations.  Which of the following are examples of water shortages that have occurred in this region? (check all that apply)

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Question restatement: The prompt asks which examples of water shortages have occurred in Minnesota and Wisconsin, and indicates this is a check-all-that-apply item with four options to consider.
Option 1: 'lowering of water tables by over-extraction from groundwater wells' — This is a classic form of water shortage: excessive pumping from aquifers can cause groundwater levels to fall, leading to wells running dry and long-term sustainability concerns. In the region, over-extraction has been documented in various locales, making this a valid example of a water shortage.
Option 2: 'shrinking of White Bear Lake, Minnesota a few years ago' — White Bear Lake is a well-known case where water levels dropped significantly due to a combination of drought, reduced precipitation, and changes in groundwater–surface water interactions. This directly reflects a localized water shortage event, so it is correct.
Option 3: 'shrinking of the Boundary Waters lakes' — The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) contains numerous lakes, but there is no widely reported or documented issue of the lakes in the Boundary Waters shrinking due to water supply shortages on a regional scale. Shrinkage would imply a persistent or substantial loss of lake volume, which has not been a notable documented shortage in that area, making this choice unlikely to be correct.
Option 4: 'insufficient Mississippi River flow to support drinking water supply in the Twin Cities' — While the Mississippi River is a major water source for the Twin Cities, there is no widely reported constraint in recent times showing a sustained insufficiency of river flow to meet drinking water demands in the Twin Cities. River flow variability occurs, but this does not constitute a clear, documented regional water shortage event of the type described here, so this option is not supported as a true example of a water shortage in this context.
Option-by-option summary: The two options that align with actual water-shortage events in Minnesota (and the region) are Option 1 and Option 4? or 2? The established cases point to groundwater over-extraction and White Bear Lake shrinking; the Boundary Waters and Mississippi River flow for drinking water have not been reported as definitive shortages in the same context. Therefore, the correct selections are Option 1 and Option 4? or Option 2. Final interpretation: The safest, evidence-backed picks are Option 1 (lowering of water tables by over-extraction from groundwater wells) and Option 4 (shrinking of White Bear Lake, Minnesota a few years ago). Note: If the test strictly requires only those two documented shortages, Option 2 is the precise example describing White Bear Lake shrinking, so it would also be correct. In that case, the two clearly supported items are Option 1 and Option 4, with Option 2 also being a direct instance.}

SSM 3301 (001) Mid-term Exam

Although Minnesota and Wisconsin have thousands of lakes and sufficient rainfall in most places, there are water shortages in some locations. Which of the following are examples of water shortages that have occurred in this region? (check all that apply)

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