the activities
We Are All in the Same Boat (Comparison of Water Issues Between Urban and Rural Areas) Description: Students will learn what issues involving water scarcity and quality affect rural and urban areas. They will compare the two and understand what causes the differences. They will be involved in activities that help give understanding to the relationship between increased population (urbanization) and water scarcity and quality. Students will also look at issues across their home state and neighboring states involving interbasin transfer. They will examine what is being done, what has been done, and what could and should be done to make this process more efficient. . Go directly to:
Science:
Geography:
History:
Environmental:
Behavioral:
In the documentary, "Troubled Waters: The Illusion of Abundance," Billy Ray Hall, President of the North Carolina Rural Center speaks about the importance of water to both the rural and urban communities to North Carolina and his daily job. In his words, "Water is a critical natural resource to our current and future development." When asked where he would place water issues with regard to other issues he is working on Mr. Hall stated, "When you talk about the big issue in rural North Carolina, they obviously evolve and revolve around our people. People are what we are about. When you think about water as a critical, natural resource for living, for doing day-to-day life, for jobs, it is the critical natural resource for our state's natural resource base. Being able to afford water and to have it in the quantity and quality that you need to survive and to produce is an absolute first priority. What we look at everyday, is how critical this first priority is in terms of shortage, in terms of availability and in what we should be doing." Both rural and urban areas are facing problems with water availability, but quality is also a problem. The urban areas face the problems of water quality because as people increase in these areas, so do the industries and need for more transportation which all have the capability of creating and letting of chemicals and other pollutants that can easily get into the water supply. Rural areas on the other hand face the problem of quality from the chemicals and pollutants from factories and agricultural chemicals as well as other pollutants such as waste that can flow into the water supply. The difference between the two though, is that the urban areas tend to have more money to available to purify and treat the water supplies that have been polluted. The urban areas on the other hand usually don't have the monies available to treat these troubled waters. So now we are not only faced with a lack of water, but also a lack of clean water. Rural areas tend to be on the back end of the deal when dealing with the water situation. In many cases, water from rural areas is taken to be used in urban areas. A great example of this is occurring in Virginia Beach where an interbasin transfer project is in place where water from Lake Gaston (mainly in rural areas) is being transferred to areas in the jurisdiction that are in need of the water. Lake Gaston originates in Virginia but flows into North Carolina and many issues have arisen in the past because of this. This characterizes what can happen when an urban area (Virginia Beach) takes water from a rural base. However, it also is an example of the negative impact of interbasin transfer, where wtaer is taken from one basin and discharged into another. These are only a small portion of the troubles facing rural and urban areas. It is necessary to continue to examine the issues and keep on the path to solving the problem. It is necessary to reach out to our lawmakers and offer ideas and express our thoughts on situations such as this. It all begins with you. Teacher will set up a two-day field trip to either an urban area or rural area (if the class is in a rural area, they will travel to the closest urban area.if the class is in an urban area, they will travel to the closest rural area). They will observe, research, and make comparisons on the following (i.e. one day they will observe away from their area and the other day they will observe their area):
ii. Students will summarize the data found and make comparisons between rural and urban areas. iii. Students will then create mathematical and statistical data charts, graphs, and tables (either manually or electronically) from their comparisons. iv. Students will make posters and/or collages with pictures and graphics as well as the charts, graphs, tables, and pertinent facts from the field trip. These may be displayed on the walls or bulletin board outside the classroom to inform other students what they have learned. v. Students will compile theire findings and decide the most appropriate way to lobby local officials, or they may perpare a community-wide, city-wide, or regional campaign to educate about the current urban and rural issues, as well as the overall crisis of water scarcity.
i. Actions should be based on previous knowledge gained on rural
and urban communities so that they can show scarcity, abundance, quality,
and other results.
Focus on ideas for conservation, ways to accommodate population growth, and how to prevent runoff into the streams in both urban and rural areas. A great way to get the ball rolling is to have the class take a look at the Lake Gaston Project in more detail. Have your students get online in groups and see what is current with the Lake Gaston Project. Students should learn what led to the water crisis in Virginia Beach and surrounding areas. Students may write a short responsive paper to the Lake Gaston / Virginia Beach interbasin transfer conflict. http://www.ncsu.edu/ncsu/CIL/WRRI/news/jf99pov.html http://www.mfa.gov.tr/grupa/ad/adg/adga/Chap6b.HTM http://www.ioe.ucla.edu/academic/Fall2002/lectures/WaterDemand
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