Using GIS Tools to
Analyze
Animal Waste
Vs. Water Quality
in
Harrisburg, PA
ArcView Map View 1
[ With Introduction to Interacting
with an Online Stella
Model, "River Web" ]
Overview
Science Standards
"River Web" Discussion
ArcView/ArcVoyager Tools
I.Lesson
Overview
A.
Estimated time: Two to three 50 minute class periods
B. Materials:
ArcVoyager
Software (download free from ESRI)
C.
Student Activity Sheet
D. Assessment
Guide for Teachers
E. National
Science Education Standards and PA Science Standards which this project
addresses.
F. Objectives:
Students will be able to
-
Manipulate map projections and orientations
using GIS technology.
-
Compare various layers of data with each other
in order to search for relationships.
-
Locata data on the Internet which is in a GIS
format usable by ArcView (or ArcVoyager)
-
Perform several ArcView functions in order to
adapt/create a viable GIS program.
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II.Teacher Notes
Introducing
the Concepts:
A. Unit from Environmental
Science: Cycles of Nature: Water Cycle and Human Impact on Water
Review concepts from textbook and Env. Science syllabus
B. Suggestion:
Begin this section with discussion of the Hydrologic Cycle and whether
(and how) animal wastes runoff may/may not affect the local stormwater.
C. Let students interact
with the Online Stella Model,
"River
Web" and discuss how different factors
affect each other. Then OFFLINE, begin
a discussion of whether animal waste from private neighborhoods could cause
a decrease in the quality of their nearby stream(s).
STELLA: created by High Performance Systems
Discussion
Question Starters: What animals do students own? Approximately how
much waste do these animals generate per day/ week/ month? Will it (if
so, how will it) find a path to the nearest stream? What in animal waste
is most hazardous to water bodies? Are there laws
in Harrisburg that require owners to pick up their animal's waste? (If
not, do you think it is necessary?)
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D. 
Introducing
ArcView/ArcVoyager as an Analysis Tool ...Create
an ArcView document [N.B.
The ArcVoyager tool is a FREE non-saving version from ESRI.] * Also, free
live training workshops using ESRI products are available at: http://campus.esri.com/camus/seminars
and here.
to Determine where water samples should be tested to see if there is evidence
for the
Hypothesis:
Animal
Waste Runoff May Contribute to Decreased Quality of local Water bodies.
Suggested
Investigative Questions:
** What layers (themes) do
we need to search for relationships in our local area? [Students
may activate the Themes which already exist on the ArcView program or they
may create the themes by following directions in "Getting to Know ArcView
GIS" [Online
at ESRI's Library].
1) What county do you live in? Add
a County Theme:
http://www.esri.com/data/download/census2000_tigerline/index.html
2) What towns are in your county? Add
a Places Theme: Tigerline
site
3) Where's the center of Harrisburg? Add a
City Theme: Tigerline
site
4) Where are the larger lakes and rivers in the Harrisburg area?
Add a Lake/Stream Theme: Tigerline
site
5) Where are the small streams in your region? Add
a SmallStream Theme: Tigerline
site
6) Where are the streets in your city? Add
a Street Theme: Tigerline
site
7) Where do each of the students with pets (or their neighbors with pets)
live? "Decoding
Addresses from Point Layers" (from ESRI)
8) Is your home on an elevation or at a lower level than the nearest stream?
Add a Physical County Map (Digital Elevation Model or DEM data) by downloading
this from www.gisdatadepot.com.
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E. Students can now observe
and analyze the location of streams with respect to animal owners' homes,
and note any relationships. Search for evidence validation for any cause/effect
possibilities. Which interfacing layer combinations are needed for each
consideration?
** Field Trip / Individual
Student In situ Water Testing: [Students can bring in morning water samples
from each of the test sites. At the site, each student needs to record
lat/long, time sample was procured, temperature of water (in both Celcius
and Fahr. degrees), and Dissolved Oxygen test results (if enough kits are
available).]
Before school, students can run tests on
their water samples, and input data on a Ms.Excel spreadsheet. This document
can later be incorporated into the ArcView model. Tests (besides those
DO and temp.) include: testing for phosphates and nitrates.
Arview 3-D Map View 2
III.Extensions
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A. Work within an adapted Stella Water Cycle model, through which
one can forecast the local long term effects of waste runoff on water in
the stormdrain.
[N.B. Free, read-only Stella
software [NetSim Creator 2.0]
is available online to view and investigate / interact with Stella models.
Also, a beginning list
of Stella simulations for several different subject-areas can be found
at: High Performance Systems, which produces Stella]
B. Invite students to explore some of these topics: Where does the
groundwater go? What happens to groundwater during a drought (like some
USA states during Summer of 2003)? If one increases runoff, what
happens to groundwater? (If one decreases runoff...) If precipitation increases,
how does this affect groundwater?... stormdrains? (If precipitation decreases,
how does this affect groundwater?... stormdrains?) ** How does HUMAN
IMPACT affect stormdrains? ... groundwater? ...
surface water?
IV.Evaluation (Each
aspect earns 5 points, totaling 25 points = 100%)
Teacher Assessment of Students.
A. Assess the general
quality of student's work. (i.e. Completeness, on-time, etc.)
B. Worked
with others in student's small group in a cooperative manner.
Worksheet Questions for Students:
C. Which part
of Dauphin County do most of the students in our class live?
D. How high
is the elevation at your home?
E. What comparisons/
relationships did you observe from your field data?
1) How does the pH at Point A compare with any other points on the map?
2) How does the phosphate results at Point A compare with any other points
on the map?
3) How does the nitrate results at Point A compare with any other points
on the map?
4) How does the temperature at Point A compare with any other points on
the map?
5) Which data set varied the most between any 2 points?
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PA Science Standards Addressed with this project
