Artifact 1 is notes from Geology 103: Environment of the Earth from class on 3/29/16.

These
notes are about water pollution and were supplemented by a lab activity that brought our class
outside to a creek on campus. The information presented in notes can sometimes feel
overwhelming to me, and I felt that the outdoor portion of this lesson that utilized inquiry-based
learning solidified my understanding of watersheds and point/non-point sources of pollution.

Water Pollution Notes 3/29/16

-Flint River
-Contaminated by years of industrial pollution
-Corrosive nature of the water (19x more corrosive than Lake Huron water)
-Was not treated with anti-corrosive agents
-Corrosive Flint River water eroded lead fittings in the plumbing service lines
-City switches back to Lake Huron water, but plumbing still leaches lead

-Pollution: decreased or diminished water quality, as measured by biological, chemical, or

physical criteria
-Pollutant: a material that in a known quantity is harmful to living organisms

-Average Residence Time (ART): ratio of reservoir size to the rate of transfer through the
reservoir.

-ART = Size = S Rate of Transfer F

-Reservoir size affects concentration of pollutant

-Water in rivers = short Residence Time (2 weeks)
-Water in groundwater = long Residence Time (100s-1000s of yrs)

-BOD = Biochemical Oxygen Demand: the amount of oxygen used for bacterial decomposition.
(measured in mg/l)
-High BOD = much decaying matter in the water consumed by bacteria Low BOD = much
dissolved O in the water for organisms
-These are disease causing microorganisms, like Cholera, Typhoid, Hepatitis, and Dysentery
-Measured by fecal coliform bacteria counts (the common and harmless bacteria in human
waste)

-Phosphorus and Nitrogen are introduced as runoff from fertilizers, detergents and sewage
treatment.

-CULTURAL EUTROPHICATION occurs when manmade sources of P & N create an

overgrowth of plant life.
-Algal Blooms can cause freshwater and marine life to die.
-Chemicals: insecticides, pesticides, herbicides Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) include
DDT, PCBs and are persistent due to
1. Carbon based structure
2. Manmade (synthetic)
3. Don’t break down in the environment; accumulate in tissue 4. Easily transported by
wind and water
-Biomagnification - elements deposited in soil are taken up by plants and transferred to
successively larger animals in higher concentrations. Radioactive Waste: Effects of long term
storage and exposure are not well known.

-Point sources – are discreet and confined (pipes)

-Nonpoint sources – diffuse and intermittent (runoff) Affected by land use, climate, geology,
vegetation, topography