WHAT IS A WATERSHED? Is a Storm Drain a Trashcan? Objective: Students will understand the relationship between neighborhood litter, floatable debris, and storm drains (a.k.a. catch basins). Students will survey the amount of litter in different areas of their neighborhood and graph and compare their results. Materials: Storm Drain Data Sheets (one per street corner), pencils, map of the neighborhood, paper, and markers or chalkboard to make graphs. ACTIVITY SUMMARY: Students will survey their neighborhoods for litter and graph their results. BACKGROUND INFORMATION: Floatable debris is any sort of people-generated trash that floats. It includes fishing debris, trash left by beach goers, and most significantly, trash that originated from illegal dumping and littering on our city streets. This debris washes into what is commonly referred to as the sewer or storm drain. These are actually called catch basins. They help city streets manage the extra runoff. In natural areas, rainwater soaks into the soil. In cities, the impervious surfaces prevent infiltration and send water rushing downhill, carrying antifreeze, cigarette butts, and other debris left on the streets into catch basins located on street corners and in other places. Floatable debris poses a significant risk to marine life. Plastic sixpack rings, discarded fishing lines, or nets can strangle marine animals. Fish and turtles can ingest items they think are food. To a sea turtle, a plastic bag looks very much like a jellyfish. Autopsies of marine life can show digestive tracts clogged with plastic. EVERYBODY IN THE CLASSROOM OUTSIDE (NEIGHBORHOOD) Skills: Reading/Writing, Using Scientific Tools, Teamwork, Observe/Compare. Subject/Discipline: Science, Math. Science Standards: S2, S3, S4, S5, S6, S7, S8 Grades 4 12 Time: Two or more class meetings to prepare the students, survey the outdoor area, and assess the results. The Inside Track: See WHAT IS A WATERSHED for more information about the sewer system and water management in our city. Also, contact NYC DEP at educationoffice@dep.nyc.gov or visit: http://www.cwconline.org.wat eredu/watersheded.html This Catskill Watershed Corporation site features links to watershed education resources in the region. Floatables can also be hazardous to humans: in the late 1980s several NY beaches were closed when medical waste washed ashore. Even when not medically dangerous, beach debris can discourage tourism and hurt local economies. Floatable debris does not recognize political boundaries. Westchester County s street litter is indistinguishable from the Bronx s when it clogs the Bronx River corridor. Furthermore, given the interconnectedness of ocean waters, debris can circle the globe many times before ever washing ashore.
To prevent floatables from entering Long Island Sound, NYC DEP placed a boom across the Bronx River just south of Westchester Avenue in 1995. A subcontractor regularly services the boom via skimmer boat to remove the captured debris. Since its installation, the average annual load captured in the boom is 400 yd³, with approximately 12-15% of the material directly discharged by the two upstream Combined Sewer Outflows (CSOs) and the remainder from branches and leaves, illegal, and other non-point sources.* *Source: The Bronx River Waterbody/Watershed Facility Plan, 4-200. New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Environmental Engineering. March 31, 2004. We can greatly reduce or even prevent floatable pollution by taking action: stop littering, report illegal dumping, and reducing, reusing, and recycling cans bottles and other items before they can enter the waste stream or the river s stream. PROCEDURE: In the Classroom 1. Using a map of the neighborhood, assign each student a corner or multiple corners. A photocopied or hand drawn close up of this map may be helpful to demonstrate where students should focus their data collection. 2. Share the datasheets with the students. Students will be responsible for filling in the datasheets. Explain that each individual piece of litter is to be recorded; this includes pieces of plastic, soda cans, newspapers, broken umbrellas, etc. 3. Explain to the students what happens to litter on our streets. (See Inside Track box above for more resources.) In the Neighborhood Students will take the Catch Basin Data Sheet out to their assigned sites. They will survey the area for: Availability of trashcans. Conditions of present trashcans. Location of storm drain. Condition of storm drain. Any litter within 25 feet of the corner. This information should be recorded on the data sheet.
Back in the Classroom 1. Students bring the data back to the classroom and create graphs. Graphs assist a viewer in synthesizing different data. The visual representations of bars, lines, or pie charts allow for easy side-by-side comparisons, and allow one to identify trends more easily than viewing lists of numbers. Suggested graphs: a. Litter per corner. b. Litter per intersection. c. Total count (with types of litter). d. A comparison of corners with and without trashcans. 2. Some basic questions to ask: ß Which corner has the most litter? ß Which corners had trashcans? And which of those were overflowing? ß What is most often seen as litter on the streets? ß Did having a trashcan on the corner help with the litter on that corner? ß Is there any pollution OTHER THAN LITTER entering the catch basins? 3. Students can use their data and answers to write a summary of their results. EXTENSIONS: 1. Try the activity The Long and Winding Road to find out what happens to trash on the street and in storm drains. 2. Create a campaign to stop littering. The EPA and NYC DEP sponsor the CLEAN STREETS = CLEAN BEACHES Program to educate the public about floatable debris in the storm water system. Contact educationoffice@dep.nyc.gov for more information, and create your own Bronx River campaign. You can learn more about floatables by visiting this NYC DEP website: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/html/float.html.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has more information about the connection of streets and beaches here: http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/beaches/. The American Littoral Society organizes beach cleanups and floatable debris monitoring projects: http://www.alsnyc.org. 3. Create a Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle campaign. The New York City Department of Sanitation has information on recycling in schools and offers the K-5 NYC Teachers RRResource Kit: RRR You Ready? http://www.nyc.gov/html/dsny/html/education/education.shtml. 4. Call 311 to report clogged catch basins, street litter, or illegal dumping. If you see illegal dumping in progress, call 911. This is considered a serious crime. 5. Fighting Floatables: The Bottle Bill The Oregon Bottle Bill of 1971 requires that soft drink and beer containers are returnable for a minimum refund value. Passing such a bill has decreased roadside pollution of this type by 85%. This inspired many states to adopt similar laws. New York adopted such a bill in 1982 and the return value of the containers is $.05. The New York State Legislature is currently considering an expansion of the bottle bill to included noncarbonated beverages (e.g. water bottles). Have students research the history of Bottle Bills. Are they still effective? What could be added or changed to make them more effective? What effect would the expanded legislation have on floatable pollution in New York City? Lesson and background submitted by Karlee Yurek and the New York City Soil and Water Conservation District. Additional content by Jill Weiss and Anne-Marie Runfola. Edited by Jill Weiss, Anne-Marie Runfola and Kim Estes-Fradis.
Storm Drain Data Sheet Your cross streets Your corner (north, south, etc., plus any features) Does your corner have a trashcan? Yes No Is it full? Yes No Is it overflowing? Yes No Does your corner have a storm drain/catch basin? Yes No If yes, is it: Clear Obstructed Type of Litter Quantity Ex.: Plastic wrapper 4