exploring urban watersheds 2012. exploring the urban watershed: a two-week environmental summer...
TRANSCRIPT
Exploring
Urban
Watersheds
2012
Exploring the Urban Watershed:
A two-week environmental summer program for rising 9th grade girls focused on scientific methodology and inquiry applied to source water assessment and protection in Philadelphia. After field trips to drinking water, wastewater and the central labs of the Philadelphia Water Department, they engaged in hands‐on fieldwork - sampling and analyzing the ecology of a local stream. Our goal was to expose participants to new and positive experiences in the sciences. The following is a digital scrapbook laying out their data.
Urban Watersheds
* What is a Watershed?
A watershed is the area of land around where water collects into a specific body of water
* * What makes an urban watershed different?- They are different because
there is more impervious surface and water runs off into storm drains & sewers
Watershed
Watershed
Water Water
Naomi
http://www.sustainable19125.org/wordpress/?p=294
Everybody needs clean water!
Our drinking water goes through a long process. 50% of the drinking water comes from the Schuylkill and 50% from the Delaware River. Our water goes through a filtration process to get small particles out and is also disinfected.
Sewage & Drinking Water
My tour of the sewage plant was eye-opening because I saw what wasn’t really flushable, like feminine products and that soap isn't removed from the sewage after all the treatments!
Everybody produces sewage. Sewage
comes from homes, stormwater run-off
and factories among other places .
Sewage is treated through a multistep
process . They physically and
biologically treat the water.
http://www.descco.com/display/process-piping/
Aleeyah
Invasive species are known as “super successful reproducers”. They cause ecological and health damage and can negatively impact native species. Some examples of invasive species are Zebra Mussel, Rusty Crayfish and Japanese Knotweed.
Stormwater poses as one of the biggest threats to our waterways. When it rains in the city, rainwater washes all of the trash, animal feces, car oils, etc. that is left on the street into our sewers. This runoff has a chance of ending up in our rivers and streams. Unlike a natural watershed, more than half (55%) of all stormwater ends up in our sewers.
Threats to Watersheds: Stormwater & Invasive Species
Roh
Watershed Study: Materials & Methods
Test Tubes
Dip Net
Microscope
Microscope Slides
Thermometer
LaMotte
(pH) Kit
Plankton Net
Secchi
Disk/notched
rope
PipetteJazmyn
Watershed Study:Data and Results
Melissa
Overall, Cobbs Creek had the clearest water when compared visually to the Schuylkill River and Naylor’s Run. This may be because Cobbs Creek was a smaller stream order and had mostly gravel sediment where as the Schuylkill River had more silt at the sample locations that can become stirred up and affect turbidity. Naylor’s Run also had a gravel bottom but had the slowest moving water and its source was from a stormwater outfall that could have affected the clarity.
Larger animal life, such as cormorants, were recorded at the Schuylkill River than seen at both Cobbs Creek and Naylor’s Run. This could be because cormorant birds eat fish and the Schuylkill River has a larger supply of fish.
Naylor’s Run did not have a variety of macroinvertebrates while Cobbs Creek did have a variety of macroinvertebrates. A lack of biodiversity can indicate that there is pollution problem. Naylor’s Run is a stormwater outfall so stormwater runoff may negatively affect water quality.
Watershed Study:Data and Results
Location &
Observation
Waterway: Schuylkill River Cobbs Creek Naylor's Run
Sample Location:
East Above Dam
East Below Dam/Esplanade
West Below Dam/Fishway
Shade Sun
GPS:39° 58' 0" N 75° 10'
55" W39° 57' 0" N
75° 10' 59" W
39° 58' 9" N 75° 11' 19" W
39° 55' 60" N 75° 14'
20 "W 39° 56' 46" N 75° 14' 41" W
Start Time:9:55 AM 10:30 AM
10:48 AM 11:50 AM 1:35 PM 12:15 PM
Weather:Sunny, very
hot outShady and cooler air
Sunny, hot
Extremely hot and sunny
Cloudy, cool airSunny, clear
sky
Land Use: Park Park Park Highway ParkStorm water drain, park
Sample Location Specifics
Watershed Study:Data and Results
Waterway: Schuylkill River
Cobbs Creek
Naylor's Run
Sample
Location:
East Above Dam
East Below Dam/Esplanade
West Below Dam/Fishwa
y Shade Sun
Reach:
Reach (ft): N/A N/A N/A N/A 168 feet 41.5 feet
FlowMedium/
slowMedium
/fastMedium
/fastMedium
/fastSlow Very Slows
Turbidity Clear Clear Clear Clear ClearA little
cloudy, but mostly clear
Stream Order
estimate:7 7 7 7 3 1
Stream Reach (length)
Watershed Study:Data and Results
Waterway: Schuylkill River Cobbs Creek Naylor's Run
Transect 1 (T1)
*Except Schuylkill
Habitat Channel Channel Channel Channel Upstream end of
RiffleRiffle
pH 7 8 8 8T1 E Bank: 8 T1 Channel: 7
T1 Bank: 8 T1 Channel:
7.5
Prevalent Gravel
Category
Silt & Bedrock
Silt & Bedrock
Silt & Bedrock
Silt & Bedrock
Gravel Gravel
Macros N/A N/A N/A N/A
Mayfly, Caddisfly Larva, Crayfish, a
bunch of Threadworms
Mayfly Nymph, Tubifex Worm
Animal LifeFish,
Cormorant
Geese, Turtle,
Cormorant
Geese, Turtle,
Cormorant
Fish, Cormorant
Crayfish, Cicadas, Fish,
Flies, Butterflies
Cicadas, Fish, Flies
Transect 1 - line that cuts across the Reach
Watershed Study:Data and Results
Waterway: Schuylkill River Cobbs Creek Naylor's Run
Transect 2
Habitat N/A Riffle Riffle, Pool
pH N/AT2 E Bank: 7.2 T2
Channel: 6.8T2 Bank: 8
T2 Channel: 8
Prevalent Gravel
CategoryN/A Gravel Gravel
Macros N/A
Cloeon Mendax, Cranefly Larva,
Tubifex Worm, Isopod or Aquatic Sowbug,
Mayfly Nymph
None
Animal Life N/ACrayfish, Cicadas,
Fish, Flies, ButterfliesCicadas, Fish, Flies
Transect 2 - line that cuts across the Reach
Focusing on Careers
When we went to the Bureau of Laboratory Services we explored lots of careers and met scientists.
Chemist: Are people that study chemistry substances like H2O & 02 (water & oxygen) and do experiments understand what something is made of
Microbiologist: Are people that analyze the structure and processes of microorganisms especially cellular tissue.
Aquatic Biologist: Work with living organisms in bodies of water and study the environmental impact of industry and human expansions.
Kadeeja
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank The Cobbs Creek Community Environmental Education Center for allowing us to use their beautiful laboratory.
We would like to thank the Bureau of Laboratory Services (PWD), especially Laura Eyring, Anne Harvey, Marla Schechs and Yaeisha Slack.
We would like to thank Philadelphia Futures, Charmayne Thompson, for sharing her resources about college preparations.
We appreciate Gerald Bright, Environmental Program Scientist PWD, for taking the time to speak to us about stormwater and giving a site tour of an infrastructure project.
We thank Anne Faulds, NOAA Sea Grant, for giving her time to educate us on invasive species in the area.
The project was funded in part by a grant from the Society of Women Environmental Professionals, thank you for your generosity.