1d - Earth System & Resources - Understanding Watersheds Activity

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Miami Dade College, Miami *

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2635

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Geography

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Apr 3, 2024

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docx

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Understanding Watersheds and Pollutants Name _ Dillon Singh, Javier Lewis, Kicharbinoh Ceraphin __________ Date _1/25/24________________ Period _7th_________ Use Your Head, Protect Your Watershed! Adapted from The University of Arizona Dr. Kitt Poe Purpose: To describe and identify the land use activities within a watershed by analyzing its water quality. Background: A watershed is an area of land from which all the water drains to the same location such as a stream, pond, lake, river, wetland, or estuary. A watershed can be large, like the Mississippi River drainage basin, or very small, such as the 40 acres that drain to a farm pond. Large watersheds are often called basins and contain many smaller watersheds. Nonpoint source pollution has many different sources, usually associated with rainfall and snowmelt runoff moving over and through the ground, carrying natural and human-made pollutants into lakes, rivers, streams, wetlands, estuaries, and underground water. Pollutants accumulate in watersheds as a result of various practices and natural events. These pollutants, while sometimes inevitable, drastically alter the state of the ecosystem. If we can determine the type of pollutant, then we can not only classify the source of the pollutant, but take preventative measures to alleviate any further contamination. Materials:  candy - M & M’s  plastic baggies (1 per student or per group of students; snack or sandwich size)  graph paper (1 sheet per student or per group of students)  Pencil (colored) /pens to draw graph Procedure: 1. Each group of four students will receive a baggie with approximately 30 pieces of candy. Each baggie represents a watershed. 2. Use the table at the end of this section to initiate a discussion about the pollution that can come from different land use activities. Use the guide provided to shade your charts based on the number and color of the M & M’s you receive in your baggie 3. Each pollutant is represented by the color of candy. For example, Orange =fertilizers and nitrogen, Green = pesticides, and Brown = sediments from grating and clearing land. There is chart at end of this section, which gives an example of a color/contaminant chart. 4. Each group of two will receive a baggie with candy. Separate and count the number of each color and graph them on the graph paper provided. Use the shading guide provided. 5. Use the graph paper to each student (or group). Draw a bar graph of the pollutants in their watershed. Give each group a baggie with candy. Have the students separate and count the number of each color and graph them on the paper. The students can use colored pencils to draw in the bars. Have the students try to determine what land use activities are occurring in their watershed by the pollutant profile. a. Label the x-axis with the names of the candy colors or pollutants and the y-axis with numbers. b. Use the shading chart provided at the end to identify each candy

Land use, their associated activities, and resulting pollutants. Land Use Activities Pollution Problems Orange Agriculture Tillage, cultivation, pest control, fertilization, animal waste management Sediment, nitrate, ammonia, phosphate, pesticides, bacteria Brown Construction Land clearing and grading Sediment Green Forestry Timber harvesting, road construction, fire control, weed control Sediment, pesticides Yellow Wastewater Disposal Septic systems Bacteria, nitrate, phosphate Blue Surface Mining Dirt, gravel, mineral excavation Sediment, heavy metals, acid drainage, nutrients Red Urban Storm Runoff Automobile maintenance, lawn and garden care, painting Oil, gas, antifreeze, nutrients, pesticides, paint Each student is to answer the following questions on their own paper. 1. Discuss how each watershed is different and while some watersheds might contain an abundance of one certain type of pollutant, that almost all forms of pollutants can be found (even in small amounts). Can they classify their watershed, i.e., agricultural, industrial, urban, forest? Watersheds differ based on geography and human activities, leading to unique pollutant profiles. Though certain types may dominate, a variety of pollutants can be found in small amounts. Classifying watersheds by land use (agricultural, industrial, urban, forest) aids in pinpointing pollution sources for effective management. The watersheds are different because of the environment and the influences humans had in that area. These factors can transform the watershed and the pollutants that are inside of it. In this scenario the yellow (bacteria etc.) are dominate in the watershed but other pollutants also inhabit it albeit not the same amount. Yes, they can classify their watershed by using agricultural, urban, etc to observe the sources of pollution in the area. Watersheds are shaped by geography and human activities, resulting in distinct pollutant profiles. Classifying these by land use helps identify pollution sources for effective management. Different factors can transform watersheds and the pollutants within them, influencing the presence of certain types. Construct a chart of your pollutants based on your sample of M&M’s The x- axis should be the candy colors/pollutants The y-axis should be labeled with numbers to represent the number for each color/pollutant

2. Do we have any natural watersheds around us? Discuss. Yes, Florida has numerous watersheds due to its extensive network of rivers, lakes, and coastal areas. The state's watersheds vary in size and characteristics, influenced by factors like land use, climate, and hydrology. Managing these watersheds is crucial for preserving water quality and ecosystems, especially given Florida's unique environmental challenges, including issues related to agriculture, urban development, and conservation. Yes, Florida has multiple watersheds because of it’s large variety of water sources such as rivers, lakes, ponds, and beaches. The watersheds and their conditions are all influence by Florida’s differentiating climates and large forms of human activity. Yes, Florida's diverse watersheds, influenced by land use, climate, and hydrology, are crucial for preserving water quality and ecosystems. These watersheds are shaped by agriculture, urban development, and conservation issues, highlighting the need for effective management. 3. Discuss how you can minimize one of the pollutants found in your watershed. Minimize watershed pollutants through best practices: manage stormwater, adopt sustainable agriculture, reduce chemical use, and promote responsible waste disposal. Community education and collaboration are key to successful pollution prevention. Being able to conserve water sources with less littering and pollution can be an excellent way to minimize the pollutants in watershed. Preserving the watershed with the protection of things such as the law can severely reduce the number of pollutants in these watersheds. To minimize watershed pollutants, manage stormwater, adopt sustainable agriculture, reduce chemical use, and promote responsible waste disposal. Community education and collaboration are crucial. Conserving water sources and preserving them with legal protection can significantly reduce pollutants. 4. Based on your sample, which land use represented the most pollutant? Yellow Wastewater Disposal. 5. Read the Human Impacts below. List two things you learned from the reading. Be specific a. Humans had changed the ecosystem of the Everglades by slowly whittling it down to only 50% of what it used to be. b. Changes in the land use of the Everglades allow for great ecological changes in the environment. 6. Based on your pollutants found in your watershed, where do you think it might be located in Florida? Justify your answer using the information from your textbook and the reading below. Watersheds in Florida are abundant, spanning rivers like the St. Johns and Suwannee, lakes such as Lake Okeechobee, and coastal areas like the Indian River Lagoon. The diverse geography of Florida results in numerous watersheds across the state. Since our watershed contains a lot of bacteria Bonita Beach, Caloosahatchee seems to fit the bill. Florida's diverse geography results in numerous watersheds, including Bonita Beach, Caloosahatchee, which is rich in bacteria due to its diverse geography. 7. Discuss the two most prominent pollutants in your watershed. Discuss why you believe they are point or nonpoint sources. What can be done to clean up and/or minimize these pollutants in your watershed. The figure below shows a watershed that drains into a river.

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