Pre-lab Reading
When you turn on the faucet to get a drink or brush your teeth, have you ever wondered where this water comes from? All around the world the answer is the same: local rivers, lakes, wells, or aquifers. In Northern Virginia our public drinking water comes from the Occoquan and Potomac River watersheds, both of which eventually drain into the Chesapeake Bay. A watershed is the land area from which water, sediment, and dissolved materials drain to a common point along a stream, wetland, lake, or river. In other words, it is the area in which all water drains toward a common body of water (Figure 10.1).
Water bodies like rivers, streams, and lakes get polluted through two main sources: nonpoint source and point source pollution. Point source pollution is pollution from a specific point like a pipe from a factory or sewage plant that releases pollutants into a body of water. Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution is the result of precipitation, rain or snow, that runs across land and carries pollutants from the land into a body of water. NPS pollution can come from many different sources, but the most common ones that pollute the water in the Chesapeake Bay are fertilizers and herbicides from both agricul-tural and residential lands; oil and other toxic chemicals from urban areas; improperly managed soil from construction sites, agricultural land, and eroding streambanks; and bacteria and nutrients from livestock, pets, and faulty septic systems. Given all of these sources of pollution and the high density of people that live in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, the water in the bay has become quite polluted.
Figure 10.2. Chesapeake Bay region and surrounding watersheds
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay’s watershed includes land in Pennsylvania, Virginia, New York, Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia. Over 100,000 streams and rivers enter into the Chesapeake Bay. Each stream and river has its own smaller watershed. The Chesapeake Bay provides habitats important to many plant and animal species and historically has been a resource for commercial fisheries of crabs, oysters, and several fish species. In order for these species and others to survive, they need healthy, clear water. Unfortunately, as humans have popu-lated the watersheds of the Chesapeake Bay, the water that runs into the streams, rivers, and bay has become polluted, which in turn negatively affects the plants and animals that rely upon these bodies of water, as well as the people that depend on the Bay for their livelihood.
On-Campus and Online Pre-lab Assignment
Learn about the Chesapeake Bay water quality and the issues facing the health of the bay. For this pre-lab you will need to look beyond the pre-lab reading and use local newspapers or Google to find more information about issues facing the Chesapeake Bay.
List 5 sources of pollution that affect the quality of the water in the bay. (2 points)
Describe 2 ways in which these pollutants might affect human health. (3 points)
Online Lab 10: Methods
For this lab you will watch the water quality video and take a short online quiz based on the infor-mation covered in the video. The quiz is worth 5 points.
Your laboratory instructor will assign you a topic from the video, and you will research this topic as described in the Water Quality Project Guidelines in the next section. Your presentation will take the form of an infographic: a poster-style graphic of knowledge and information designed to present information quickly and clearly. Your instructor will share some examples of effective infographics with you. Your infographic will be shared with the class via the online discussion forum and used in Lab 11. The infographic is worth 20 points.
Water Quality Project Guidelines You will be responsible for researching a topic introduced during the PBS documentary Poisoned Waters. Group oral presentations will be made to class (On-Campus Lab) or individual info-graphics will be available on the class discussion forum (Online Lab) on Lab 11. To put together a successful project presentation, follow the guidelines below:
1. Choose a topic from the list provided. For the group oral presentations, discuss which group members will be responsible for each part of the presentation:
a. history of the issue b. the major conflict around the issue (who are the stakeholders?) c. possible solutions or actions to take
2. You can go back and watch Poisoned Waters to refresh your memory by following this URL: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/poisonedwaters/
For each topic, refer to the following sources of information to help you start your research:
a. Stormwater runoff pollution • primer: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/poisonedwaters/themes/runoff.html
• household “do”s and “don’t”s: https://www.cleanwaterhoward.com/what-is-stormwater/stormwater-dos-and-donts
• getting involved in the community: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/poisonedwaters/involved/
b. Legacy pollutants • primer: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/poisonedwaters/themes/legacy.html
• how to clean up a superfund site: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/poisonedwaters/themes/duwamish.html
• programs outside the USA: http://www.blacksmithinstitute.org/our-programs-and-projects.html
• Monsanto and PCBs: http://www.planetwaves.net/silence2.html
c. Development sprawl • primer: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/poisonedwaters/themes/sprawl.html
• Smart Growth America: https://smartgrowthamerica.org
• The Tysons Corner solution: http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/tysons/
• Measuring sprawl in your community: https://smartgrowthamerica.org/resources/measuring-sprawl-2014/
d. Clean Water Act •
summary of CWA: https://www.epa.gov/laws-regulations/summary-clean-water-act
• Clean Water Action: http://www.cleanwateraction.org
• EPA ideas: https://cfpub.epa.gov/surf/locate/index.cfm
• getting involved in the community: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/poisonedwaters/involved/
e. The business of farming • business view of fixing the environmental problem: https://www.perdueagribusiness.com/perdue-agrirecycle
•
interview with Jim Perdue: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/poisonedwaters/interviews/perdue.html
• Who’s responsible for that manure? http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/poisonedwaters/themes/chicken.html
f. Effect of chemicals in our food and life • endocrine disruptors, the canaries in the coal mine: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/poisonedwaters/themes/endocrine.html
• EPA endocrine disruptor screening program: https://www.epa.gov/endocrine-disruption
• everyday solutions (guide to going green): http://www.ewg.org/research/solutions
3. Properly cite all sources that you use at the end of your presentation. For Online Lab, include an extra page after your infographic for this purpose.
4. Note for Oral Presentations:
• Presentations should be approximately 10 minutes in length, and each member of the group is responsible for presenting some of the information.
• Presentations should be in PowerPoint format (you will download/upload your presentation to the computer in the lab). Each group member should present 2–3 slides about their topic.
• Groups observing other presentations need to pay attention and be ready to ask questions when the presenters are finished.
• As a group, practice giving the presentation before it is time to present to the class. It is obvi-ous who has prepared and practiced and who has not.
• Each member of the group will receive the same “base grade” on the presentation; points can be added or subtracted for any/all members based on peer evaluation at the discretion of the instructor.
5. Notes for Infographic Presentations: • Your infographic must be at least 11”x17”, but it may be as long as 11”x30”.•
Infographic may be constructed in any word processor or publisher program, but print to PDF before submitting.
• You should use at least 3 different visualization tools to make a persuasive infographic (consider data graphs, flow charts, illustrations, etc.). But be cautious to not overload your infographic with too much information.
• Remember to include an additional page to cite your sources for the project.