Watersheds and Pollution

How does agriculture (farming) affect the water in an area?

• fertilizer adds too many nutrients to the water when it is carried by runoff

• too many plants fill up the riverbanks

• less erosion causes more soil to flow into the water

• the plants absorb too much water, making the rivers salty

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS3-4

NGSS.MS-LS2-1

NGSS.MS-LS2-4

Rivers can pick up human pollution and carry it out towards the ocean

• True

• False

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-5

Which of the following is a positive way humans can impact a watershed?

• industrial waste poured out from a factory drain

• fertilizer runoff from farms

• leaking gasoline from underground tanks

• recycling household waste

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-5

Which part of the water cycle can carry pollution into lakes and oceans?

• Evaporation

• Condensation

• Precipitation

• Runoff

Pollution can percolate (go down into) the groundwater and contaminate it

• True

• False

Which would have the least effect on pollution in the watershed?

• A factory makes smoke and air pollution

• Fertilizer from a farm is carried away by runoff

• Water falls as rain into rivers and tributaries

• Groundwater rises and causes a city to flood

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS3-4

Permeability means...

• water can flow through a substance

• water cannot flow through a substance

• there are only small spaces (pores) between the rock

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-4

Silt was less permeable than gravel because it is less porous (has fewer pore spaces)

• True

• False

More permeable surfaces are more likely to cause flooding, because the water cannot flow through.

• True

• False

Which of the following items found on a beach is not part of human-caused pollution?

• Plastic bottles and aluminum cans

• Shells and driftwood

• Glass and Styrofoam cups

• Oil spills