Water Supply and Usage Analysis

What is meant by the phrase “Colorado River Basin”?

• The Colorado River only.

• The land that surrounds the Colorado River only.

• The area of water shown in the picture above.

• The Colorado river and the lands that surround it and feed water into it.

What changes do you observe at location X in the Colorado River Basin from 2000 to 2022? Check all that apply.

• The water levels decreased.

• The water levels increased.

• Mineral deposits formed on land.

• Mineral deposits formed in the water.

• Mineral deposits were covered by water.

Scientists have been using both global and local technologies to monitor the amount of water in the Colorado River Basin. The technologies have helped government agencies to conclude that:

• the amount of water in waterways is influenced by the presence of minerals dissolved in the water requiring more water purification plants

• flood mitigation plans are needed because the amount of water in the Colorado River Basin is increasing at a slow rate

• there was a cyclic trend to the amount of water in the Colorado River Basin between 2000 and 2022 therefore no new mitigation plans are needed

• water conservation plans are needed because water levels in the rivers leading into Lake Mead are a major cause for the downward trend in lake surface elevation

What is the independent variable in this graph?

• Volume of Water

• Year

• Water Use

• Water Supply

What does the vertical dashed line represent?

• A. A separation from water supply and water usage

• B. A separation of hand collected data and data collected by computers

• C. The current hypothesis for water usage in the Colorado River Basin

• D. A separation of collected data and predicted data

What is the general trend of water usage in the Colorado River Basin From 1920 to the present?

• A. Increasing usage over time

• B. Decreasing usage over time

• C. Constant usage over time

• D. Not enough data to determine the trend.

What is the general trend of water supply in the Colorado River Basin from 1920 to the present?

• Increasing supply over time

• Decreasing supply over time

• Constant supply over time

• Not enough data to determine the trend.

Scientists have inferred that the increase in human population is responsible for the pattern of water usage. Construct an argument, supported by evidence, for how this increasing human population will impact the future usage of water in the Colorado River Basin and how this usage will impact the Colorado River Basin. [1] Water usage: ___________________________ Impact to Colorado River Basin: ___________________________

• The increasing human population will lead to higher water demand, resulting in over-extraction and depletion of water resources in the Colorado River Basin.

• The increasing human population will have no significant impact on water usage in the Colorado River Basin.

• The increasing human population will lead to a decrease in water demand, allowing the Colorado River Basin to recover.

• The increasing human population will lead to improved water management practices, ensuring sustainable usage of the Colorado River Basin.

What is one human action that could have a positive impact on the amount of water in the Colorado River?

• Increase the amount of precipitation.

• Conserve water by discontinuing lawn watering.

• Install more swimming pools so people are swimming in pools and not the river.

• Store water on lawns by watering them more frequently.

A public water supply system

• Municipal Water

• Water Intake

• Water Resource Distribution

• Water Withdrawl

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS3-1

NGSS.MS-ESS3-4