Activity
6 Tucson Waterways Research Project:: How
is Tucson changing and what are you going to do about it?
You’ll
find a list of project topics below with associated research questions and
internet links to get you started. Once
you read the project ideas and choose a project, read the Research Guidelines
carefully before getting started.
Your
ultimate goal:
Make a power point presentation
that reports all of the information you gather on your issue. You will present this information to the
class and need to convince them that your issue is important.
You must create at least 3 slides
for each of the questions below and for the individual questions specific to
your research topic. Use the web for
images to illustrate you issue. You will be provided several sources you may
want to investigate for images.
Project
topics:
Water supply and demand
CAP water
TCE
Sewage
Population: transportation,
urban/rural, farming, city limits
Plant and animal habitats
Living with rivers
Water quality
Water rights
People of
Water Conservation
Alternative energy sources
How to
research your topic:
You must answer the questions that
are listed below. Use a separate sheet
of notebook paper to research each question. You will hand in your research
notes, so keep careful track of them.
You’ll be able to find out most of
the information from the background material.
Check out the websites we suggest (or other ones you find) for
additional information. If you do use
additional websites or books, write the site addresses or book titles down so
we know where you got the information. Some of the questions require your
opinion - you can’t find the answers anywhere except by thinking yourself. SO
THINK.
The questions
you must answer:
- Define
your issue and explain why your issue is important.
- What
is the present situation of your issue?
- What
is the history behind your issue?
- What
are the future components to your issue?
Are there foreseeable problems associated with it?
- How
does the issue affect your life?
- How
does your issue affect the DVHS area?
- What
are your proposed solutions to the problem? Justify your solution. Provide two explanations/reasons that
support it. Identify two drawbacks
to your solution.
- What are
other opinions on the issue and your proposed solutions? Ask as many people as you want and
report their response. Ask a
classmate, a family member – what does the person you interviewed think
about this. Do they care? If not, explain to them why they should.
- The
additional questions which accompany your research topic. Use a separate
sheet of paper to research each of those questions.
Research
Guidelines:
- Keep all the questions in
mind when reviewing the readings. Do not expect to answer one question
completely and then move on to the next. You can work much more
efficiently by gradually completing all the questions.
- Skim the readings. You do not
need to read every detail. Review the information with an eye for what you
want to learn from it. Look for key words, read the section headings and
read the figures. Then if there's something that you need more details on,
investigate further.
- When you think you have
enough information on one topic, move on and focus on those that you know
less about.
- To answer the research
questions first use the information you've gathered from your class
readings and activities. When you've exhausted the information from your
personal experience and from class, go to the links assigned for your
specific research topic.
- Make sure to report facts and
concepts in your own words. If you have questions about terminology, look
it up on the web or in the dictionary. Remember that if you don't
understand something your classmates (who you're reporting to) probably
won't either.
- Feel free to explore the
links provided. There is often more information on a web site beyond the
page where the link takes you. So press "next" or
"continue" to see if the linked web pages contain more
information on your topic.
- If you feel you need more
information on a topic, you are free to explore other websites. A good
search engine to use is Google.
The
Topics (choose one)
In ways does climate change affect
- Ways in which the climate can
change.
- Ways that these changes in
climate can affect our lives.
- What
People in
- What are the water supplies
in
- How does
- Does
Today's
water suppliers
History
of Tucson water supply and demand
Tucson
water supplies
Water
uses (demand) in Tucson
Considering
sustainability in Tucson
Conservation water casa,
brochures on conservation tips
Electrical
plant water use
History
of Pima County Water use
Basic
Pima County water issues
Glossary
of water terms
Tucson Regional Water Council:
"Myths and Facts"
Game that tests your green
knowledge
The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices by Michael Brower and
Warren Leon, 1999
CAP
water
In addition to defining CAP water and reviewing its past, present and
future role in the Tucson's water supplies be sure to cover the following in
your presentation:
- Pros and cons associated with
CAP water.
- What complaints did
- How have these concerns since
been addressed?
Water
quality in CAP water
Quality
issues related to CAP
CAP
water overview
Problems with pipes and CAP
water
Basic
Pima County water issues (look at pages 11-17 specifically)
WRRC Chp 2 pp 9-13
Glossary
of water terms
Tucson Regional Water Council:
"Myths and Facts"
Game that tests your green
knowledge
The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices by Michael Brower and
Warren Leon, 1999
TCE
The presence of TCE and other toxins in
- Health hazards associated
with TCE.
- Other groundwater
contaminants that should concern
- Precautions that
Pharmaceuticals in
water supply
TCE
overview
Safe
water drinking act
Public
health assessment of Tucson Airport area
Tucson Airport Remediation
Poplar
trees for TCE remediation
TCE health hazards: fact
sheet
Basic
Pima County water issues
Glossary
of water terms
Tucson Regional Water Council:
"Myths and Facts"
Game that tests your green
knowledge
The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices by Michael Brower and
Warren Leon, 1999
Sewage
When you flush the toilet or dump something down the drain, where does it
go? Wastewater management is an important issue in
- What is wastewater? Where
does it go? And how is it treated?
- What are the different kinds
of wastewater? How can they be re-used?
- What are the pros and cons of
implementing the various kinds of wastewater re-use?
- Suggest a list of concrete
ways in which you think wastewater should be used in
Wastewater
treatment in Tucson
More
on wastewater treatment in Tucson
Treated
effluent
Effluent and reclaimed water
Basic
Pima County water issues (look at pages 21-26 specifically)
WRRC Chp 2 pp 14-15(16)
Glossary
of water terms
Tucson Regional Water Council:
"Myths and Facts"
Game that tests your green
knowledge
The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices by Michael Brower and
Warren Leon, 1999
Population:
transportation, urban/rural, farming, city limits
We all know that
- Facts on population growth in
- Your own observations on
population growth. How can you tell that there are more people?
- The effects on population
growth on the quality of life in
- Sustainability: How many more
people can
Effect of landuse and urban sprawl on rivers
NWF population and environment
Interactive Population growth site
(look at "The world today", "Towards a stabilization?" and
"Questions for the future"
Information of
population grown and its effects
Population facts by state
Tucson
population compared to the rest of AZ and US
2000 Tucson
census info
Considering
sustainability in Tucson
Basic
Pima County water issues (look at pages 33-36 specifically)
WRRC Chp 2 pp 7-11
Glossary
of water terms
Tucson Regional Water Council:
"Myths and Facts"
Game that tests your green
knowledge
The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices by Michael Brower and
Warren Leon, 1999
Plant
and animal habitats
For this topic you'll research local plants and animals. The success
of plant and animal habitats are often good indicators of how climate
change, population growth and development effect our local environments.
- What are the plant and animal
habitats around
- List the plants and animals
do you find around DVHS or your house. Include drawings or photographs.
- What specific factors affect
the success of plant and animal habitats? Think about what plants and
animals need and then think about the human factors that affect these
needs (good or bad).
Riparian
habitats in Tucson
Desert questions
and answers from the Sonoran Desert Museum
Sonoran Desert habitats
Tucson Wildlife Rehabilitation Council
Santa Cruz
River Habitat Project
Catalogue of
plants in the Tucson Mountains
Water
management for species preservation
Call for
preservation of endangered riparian bird
Basic
Pima County water issues
Glossary
of water terms
Tucson Regional Water Council:
"Myths and Facts"
Game that tests your green
knowledge
The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices by Michael Brower and
Warren Leon, 1999
River
formation and control
- Why do
- Identify some of the big
floods in
- How have humans altered
Flooding
in Tucson
Flooding
strategies
Basic
Pima County water issues
Glossary
of water terms
Tucson Regional Water Council:
"Myths and Facts"
Game that tests your green
knowledge
The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices by Michael Brower and
Warren Leon, 1999
Water
quality
Water is a precious and scarce resource in
- List the components that are
used to judge water quality.
- How do we ensure water
quality? How is water treated?
- What is the water quality
difference between
- How do you think water
quality has changed over the past 100 years since people have more densely
inhabited
Providing
safe water
Glossary
of water terms
Tucson Regional Water Council:
"Myths and Facts"
Game that tests your green
knowledge
The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices by Michael Brower and
Warren Leon, 1999
Wateramily:Arial'>Tucson. Be sure
to include your responses to the following questions in your presentation:
- What are water rights?
How do you think water rights should work? Who should be allowed to access
and/or regulate the water in aquifers beneath private land or on flowing
on the surface in rivers?
- How is the issue of
water rights related to population growth? Do you need a system of water
rights when there are only a few people living in an area? If a population
grows should its water allotment grow too?
History
of water supplies in Tucson
Indian
water rights overview
Indian
groundwater claim
Indian rights
Basic
Pima County water issues
Glossary
of water terms
Tucson Regional Water Council:
"Myths and Facts"
Game that tests your green
knowledge
The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices by Michael Brower and
Warren Leon, 1999
You're going to report on the Sonoran
Desert Conservation Plan. Be sure to address the following:
- Why is the Plan important?
What's the main goal?
- What are the pros and cons of
the Plan?
Since
there's a lot to cover in the plan, pick one element to research in detail. You
can focus on any of the following aspects, clearly define whatever you choose: riparians zones, ecotourism, biodiveristy,
ranch land, historical and cultural implications or the parks and reserves.
Considering sustainability in Tucson
National
Geographic report
Sonoran
Desert Conservation Plan homepage
SDCP
explanation (newsletter accessed from SDCP homepage)
Sonoran Desert
conservation agenda in Mexico (in Spanish)
Basic
Pima County water issues
Glossary
of water terms
Tucson Regional Water Council:
"Myths and Facts"
Game that tests your green
knowledge
The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices by Michael Brower and
Warren Leon, 1999
People of
- What peoples live or have
lived in the
- For each group, how are
environmental issues addressed? How does each culture "use" the
land? Does the use have a positive impact on the environment? Give
specific examples.
- Discuss how the Hokoham peoples managed their water resources.
Cultural adaptations
The Hohokam - Desert Museum site
The Hohokam - UA Press site
Mexican American
culture
Anglos
List of Tucson
human impact publications
Glossary
of water terms
Tucson Regional Water Council:
"Myths and Facts"
Game that tests your green
knowledge
The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices by Michael Brower and
Warren Leon, 1999
Water
Conservation
Water
in
Explain
why we need to conserve water by reporting how much water is available and how
much water
- List ways that
- Rank the water
conservation methods by the amount of water they conserve.
- Rank the methods by
their convenience.
- List the methods that
you will support with your own actions, and defend your choices.
Individual
water use strategies
Water
rates and conservation
Ways to conserve from
Water Casa
Considering
sustainability in Tucson
Basic
Pima County water issues, ways of addressing the problem of water shortage (look
at pages 26-33 specifically)
Gray water
site (filter through it to see what's useful)
Wetlands and
wastewater
Basic
Pima County water issues
Glossary
of water terms
Tucson Regional Water Council:
"Myths and Facts"
Game that tests your green
knowledge
The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices by Michael Brower and
Warren Leon, 1999
Alternative
energy: solar power
Renewable energy: sun, wind and water
Solar energy is a kind of renewable energy. Respond to
the following in your presentation:
- What is renewable
energy? Why do we need it? List the different kinds of renewable energy
and briefly describe how they work.
- Describe the pros and
cons of implementing solar energy.
- State your opinion on
solar energy in
Information
on renewable energy
Information
on solar energy
Energy saving tips from the
Arizona Dept of commerce
Pictures of solar
sites in Arizona
Solar
power FAQs
TEP interactive Sunsite
Funsite
DOE solar information
Basic
Pima County water issues
Glossary
of water terms
Tucson Regional Water Council:
"Myths and Facts"
Game that tests your green
knowledge
The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices by Michael Brower and
Warren Leon, 1999