Developing a Watershed Area with the End in Mind

Transcription

1 Developing a Watershed Area with the End in Mind Lesson Overview In this lesson students will consider the relationship between environmental charters, stewardship and watersheds. They will investigate and design a proposal to develop a watershed area. The development proposal must adhere to the principles contained in a class-constructed environmental charter. Grade Level Grade 9 Time Required Two 60 minute periods Curriculum Connection (Province/Territory and course) Alberta Social Studies Additional Resources, Materials and Equipment Required Appendix A: Environmental Charter Stewardship Watersheds (attached) Appendix B: Developing a Watershed Area with the End in Mind (attached) Appendix C: Alberta Watersheds (attached) Appendix D: Alberta Rivers (attached) Student access to computers and the internet Websites Canadian Atlas Online Watershed Awareness theme &lang=en Canadian Atlas Online Watersheds theme eds_flow_canadaswatersheds&lang=en Main Objective Students will understand how sustainable practices can be used successfully in the development of watershed regions. Learning Outcomes By the end of the lesson, students will be able to: understand their rights to a safe and healthy environment; define environmental charter, stewardship, and watershed; apply the ideals of watershed management and stewardship within the framework of an environmental charter; devise a plan to develop a watershed with the health of the environment in mind; appreciate that there are many stakeholders involved in the development of watershed areas.

2 The Lesson Introduction The Lesson Teacher Activity Ask students if they are able to list some of their rights and freedoms as outlined in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Record responses. Probe further: does the Charter guarantee Canadians a safe, uncontaminated and natural environment? [No, the Charter does not.] Have the class come up with a definition for the work charter [a grant or guarantee of rights, or privileges from the sovereign power of a state or country; a written instrument that creates and defines the franchises of a city, educational institution, or corporation]. Student Activity Participate in the brainstorming session. Distribute Appendix A: Environmental Charter Stewardship Watersheds. Read it over with the class. Instruct them to define: environmental charter, stewardship, and watershed. Draw a Venn diagram on the board and discuss how they are all related. Read Appendix A: Environmental Charter Stewardship Watersheds. Define environmental charter, stewardship and watershed. Participate in the discussion. Based on these discussions, ask the class to develop an environmental charter for the development of watersheds that could be used by businesses and industry leaders in Alberta. (The main points can be written in point form, but there should be consensus in the class and one common document that can be used as a reference later in the lesson.) Develop a classconstructed environmental charter for the development of watersheds.

3 Lesson Development Conclusion Inform students that they will play the role of a development company that has just purchased a million-dollar piece of property on the Little Smoky River. Distribute Appendix C: Alberta Watersheds and Appendix D: Alberta Rivers. Ask the students: 1. What is the geographic location of the Little Smoky River in Alberta? 2. In what watershed is it located? Indicate to the students that they must develop their property with two aims in mind: 1. It must generate money (a business or industry of sorts). 2. It must take into account an environmental sustainability charter that they have agreed to as developers. Distribute Appendix B: Developing a Watershed Area with the End in Mind Read it over with the students and clarify any questions they have. Instruct them to work through the activity. Share the reports with the class once they are completed. Listen and ask questions as needed. Respond to questions. Write the one-page report. Share the report with the class. Lesson Extension Engage students in a role play where they assume the roles of various stakeholders in a watershed area that is being developed. Stakeholder groups could include community members, Aboriginal peoples, conservationists, government officials, local businesses. Assessment of Student Learning Assess the written report as well as contributions to class discussions. Further Reading Watersheds of Canada poster-map Protect Your Watershed: An interactive guide to taking action

4 The Source of life Canada s watershed protection action guide RBC Bluewater Foundation The Atlas of Canada Watersheds Link to Canadian National Standards for Geography Essential Element #1: The World in Spatial Terms Location/allocation situations Essential Element #2: Places and Regions Physical and human processes shape places and regions Interdependence of places and regions Critical issues and problems of places and regions Essential Element #3: Physical Systems Components of Earth s physical system (hydrosphere) Essential Element #5: Environment and Society Use and sustainability of resources Geographic Skill #1: Asking Geographic Questions Plan and organize a geographic research project (eg. Specify a problem, pose a research question or hypothesis and identify data sources) Geographic Skill #4: Analyzing Geographic Information Use the processes of analysis, synthesis, evaluation and explanation to interpret geographic information from a variety of sources. Geographic Skill #5: Answering Geographic Questions Formulate valid generalizations from the results of various kinds of geographic inquiry. Evaluate the answers to geographic questions.

5 Appendix A: Environmental Charter Stewardship Watersheds Environmental charters provide a guide for responsible environmental decision-making within a company. An environmental charter contains a set of principles relating to the company s environmental management system. By signing a charter, a company publicly declares its intention to carry out its environmental management activities in accordance with these principles. In respect to watersheds, stewardship is integral. In this case, stewardship means the careful and responsible management of natural resources. Stewardship of watersheds means that companies make conscious decisions every day to conserve, protect and enhance Alberta's water and associated fish and wildlife habitat and resources. These efforts occur within a local 'watershed', an area of land which is bounded by topographic features, that drains water to a shared destination such as a lake, river or ocean. Signing a charter is one way that a company can demonstrate it is taking the attitude of stewardship towards its environmental management. Even if a company does not wish to sign up to a particular charter, charters can be used as a source of ideas and inspiration on environmental management, particularly when a company is creating its environmental policy. Charters for sustainability are good-faith agreements among area residents and companies as they work towards the social, economic and environmental sustainability of the watersheds. Such charters are usually not legally binding, nor do they interfere with any existing laws, agreements, treaties or policies. The companies, individuals, organizations, governments and communities who support such charters accept the overall intent and principles of the charter and agree to do their part to pursue the goals. A Charter concerning a watershed means that planning and decision-making occur within watershed boundaries. Watershed boundaries remain stable over time, are easily recognized and provide natural limits for managing social, economic, environmental and institutional connections.

6 Appendix B: Developing a Watershed Area with the End in Mind Imagine that as a developer you have just purchased a million-dollar piece of property on the Little Smoky River in Alberta. Your aim is to develop the natural resources of the area in the watershed in which it is located. You must: 1. Have a business plan: what is the name of your company, how does it plan to make money and where will it be located and why? 2. Take into account an environmental sustainability charter that you have agreed to as a developer. Using the Canadian Atlas Online Watersheds and Watershed Awareness themes as a source of inspiration to write a one-page report detailing the above as well as how your company has: exploited and conserved the river/watershed dealt with: citizen groups, diversions, and water usage followed the Environmental Charter for the benefit of all stakeholders Resources: Canadian Atlas Online Watershed Awareness theme En Canadian Atlas Online Watersheds theme w_canadaswatersheds&lang=en

7 Appendix C: Alberta Watersheds Source:

8 Source: Appendix D: Alberta Rivers atershed.png&imgrefurl= 7tH2542Ay2lB2sSJLsPYfqaXYec=&h=1019&w=808&sz=864&hl=en&start=2 9&zoom=1&tbnid=0hvLV5rhOZK7PM:&tbnh=134&tbnw=106&ei=E- GJTcHUGNCztwf394zjDQ&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dalberta%2Bwatersheds%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26 sa%3dn%26biw%3d1436%26bih%3d744%26rlz%3d1r2adfa_enca423%26tbs%3disch:1&um=1&itbs =1&iact=rc&dur=281&oei=CuGJTbb9BcOCgAeThdzHDQ&page=2&ndsp=29&ved=1t:429,r:25,s:29&tx=39 &ty=109