Detailed Study Guide on Waterway Impairments and Hydrologic Cycle

Overview

  • The discussion begins with the speaker's location in Spring Lake, highlighting the local geography and hydrology.

Spring Lake System

  • Location: Spring Lake area, characterized by a significant lake and tributary streams and rivers.

  • Current Concerns: No significant environmental concerns reported for Spring Lake at the moment.

Impaired Waterways

  • Observation of Tributaries: Some streams and rivers flowing into Spring Lake are marked as impaired.

  • Identification of Issues: When a water body is clicked on the map, details about the impairment are displayed.

Homework Assignment

  • Instructions: Students need to investigate the issues related to impaired waterways in their chosen ZIP code.

  • Common Confusions:

    • Students often misinterpret questions related to the assignment.

    • Clarification provided that the ZIP code is simple to report, but the focus should be on impairment issues rather than simply naming water bodies.

Specific Task

  • Identifying Impairments:

    • Choose several waterways that are marked red on the map as impaired.

    • Click on these waterways to learn about their identified impairments.

    • Examples of impairments include:

    • Grenadry

    • PCBs (Polychlorinated Biphenyls)

    • E. Coli

  • Select Issues:

    • From a displayed list, choose two specific impairment issues to focus on in the assignment.

  • Water Body Information: The speaker emphasizes that the specific names of rivers or streams (like huc0405000060711) are not the required answers; instead, substantial information about the impairments themselves is essential.

Gathering Information

  • Details to Explore:

    • Click on identified impairments for further information, including:

    • Effects on water quality

    • Impacts on human health

    • Effects on ecosystems

    • Research Minimized Information: The EPA website provides some answers, but additional research may be necessary to fully understand the impacts of the impairments.

Follow-Up Questions

  • Students need to:

    • Describe the nature of the impairment.

    • Discuss how these impairments affect human health and ecological systems.

    • Identify sources of the pollutants affecting local waterways.

  • Note on Details: Some answers may require further Googling or searches outside provided information to gather pertinent details.

Learning Objectives

  • Focus of the Week: This week's learning will center on the hydrologic system and running water.

    • Students will learn about:

    • Different reservoirs through which water moves.

    • Various paths water takes in the hydrologic cycle.

  • Review Assurance: These concepts should be familiar, and the speaker hints at this being review material for the students.