Science Needs You

For decades, researchers have been tracking the health of the second largest estuarine complex in the United States. Use this article from Coastwatch in your classrooms.

North Carolina Standard Course of Study

8^th grade science:

• 8.E.1 Understand the hydrosphere and the impact of humans on local systems and the effects of the hydrosphere on humans.
• 8.E.1.3 Predict the safety and potability of water supplies in North Carolina based on physical and biological factors, including:
  • Temperature
  • Dissolved oxygen
  • pH
  • Nitrates and phosphates
  • Turbidity
  • Bio-indicators
• 8.E.1.4 Conclude that the good health of humans requires:
  • Monitoring of the hydrosphere
  • Water quality standards
  • Methods of water treatment
  • Maintaining safe water quality
  • Stewardship
• 8.L.3 Understand how organisms interact with and respond to the biotic and abiotic components or their environment.

HS Biology: 

• Bio.2.2 Understand the impact of human activities on the environment.
• Bio.2.2.1 Infer how human activities (including population growth, pollution, global warming, burning of fossil fuels, habitat destruction and introduction of nonnative species) may impact the environment.

HS Earth/Environmental Science:

• EEn.2.4 Evaluate how humans use water.
• EEn.2.4.2 Evaluate human influences on water quality in North Carolina’s river basins, wetlands, and tidal environments.

Ocean Literacy Standards

• 1 The Earth has one big ocean with many features.
• 1.e Most of Earth’s water (97%) is in the ocean. Seawater has unique properties. It is salty, its freezing point is slightly lower than freshwater, its density is higher, its electrical conductivity is much higher, and it is slightly basic. Balance of pH is vital for the health of marine ecosystems, and important in controlling the rate at which the ocean will absorb and buffer changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide.
• 1.g The ocean is connected to major lakes, watersheds, and waterways because all major watersheds on Earth drain to the ocean. Rivers and streams transport nutrients, salts, sediments, and pollutants from watersheds to coastal estuaries and to the ocean.
• 5 The ocean supports a great diversity of life and ecosystems.
• 5.i Estuaries provide important and productive nursery areas for many marine and aquatic species.
• 6 The ocean and humans are inextricably interconnected.
• 6.d Humans affect the ocean in a variety of ways. Laws, regulations, and resource management affect what is taken out and put into the ocean. Human development and activity lead to pollution (point source, non-point source, and noise pollution), changes to ocean chemistry (ocean acidification), and physical modifications (changes to beaches, shores, and rivers). In addition, humans have removed most of the large vertebrates from the ocean.
• 6.e Changes in ocean temperature and pH due to human activities can affect the survival of some organisms and impact biological diversity (coral bleaching due to increased temperature and inhibition of shell formation due to ocean acidification).
• 6.g Everyone is responsible for caring for the ocean. The ocean sustains life on Earth and humans must live in ways that sustain the ocean. Individual and collective actions are needed to effectively manage ocean resources for all.

Guiding Questions

Use the article, as well as the resources below, to respond to the following focus questions.

1. What is a citizen scientist?
2. Why are contributions from citizen scientists useful?
3. Describe the ecological functions of an estuary.
4. Why are estuaries so valuable to commercial fisheries in North Carolina?
5. Why is monitoring water quality in the Neuse River estuary important?
6. Define the acronyms for AVPs, ModMon and FerryMon.
7. Compare and contrast water-monitoring methods (frequency of sampling, parameters measured, collection sites, etc.) for the three projects.
8. Explain the value of historical water quality data.

Lesson Links and Resources

iFlood Phone App for Outer Banks Area Only – iFlood is a citizen science app that is a partnership between researchers at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the towns of Nags Head and Duck, funded by the U.S. Coastal Research Program. iFlood submissions assist researchers in developing models for episodic flooding due to ocean storms and rainfall.

CoastSnap Beach Monitoring – Help researchers monitor beach response to changing weather and wave conditions, as well as extreme storms. This citizen science project began in Australia; its only U.S. location to participate is at Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head.

North Carolina Observations in iNaturalist – Our state has its own observation section in iNaturalist, an extremely popular nature app for identifying plants and animals. By entering observations into iNaturalist, people help researchers add to their baseline knowledge about our natural world.

North Carolina King Tides Project – Citizen scientists are documenting extreme high tides or king tides with photographs. Join in the experience.

North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences – The museum conducts various citizen science projects onsite or remotely. Check out the opportunities at this website.

Assist with the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) – The Ocean Conservancy has coordinated the ICC since 1986, collecting over 337 million pounds of trash since its inception. Volunteer groups and individuals collect trash and data to reach the goal of trash-free seas. Check out the CleanSwell app from the Ocean Conservancy, which allows individuals who pick up ocean trash along any beach to record that trash and share information with family and friends.

Marine Debris Phone App for Collecting Data from Trash – This mobile app for tracking litter is a partnership between NOAA’s Marine Debris Program and the Southeast Atlantic Marine Debris Initiative at the University of Georgia. Not just for coasts, the app also allows users to enter debris collected from any waterway or coastline. Available for both iPhone and Android.

Find a Citizen Science Project that Interests You – SciStarter offers information on over 3,000 citizen science projects with a searchable database to filter by location, topic, age level, etc.

Community Collaborative Rain, Hail & Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) – A nonprofit community-based group of volunteers working together to measure and map precipitation (rain, snow, and hail).

Citizen Science Projects for Birders – Holbrook Travel has put together a list of five projects that birders may enjoy. From watching birds at your own feeders to assisting with banding hummingbirds, there should be something for all levels of citizen scientists.

Estuary Education Resources from NERRS – Broad collection of educational materials from the National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERRS).

Eyes on the Bay Lesson Plans – Use Chesapeake Bay remote sensing data to gather information and interpret those data that focus on salinity, dissolved oxygen, and harmful algal blooms. These activities are aligned with Maryland Voluntary State Curriculum standards for grades 6-8 and 9-12.

Bridge Ocean Science Education Data Archive – A collection of activities developed by marine education specialists with Virginia Sea Grant based on research data. The data activities below correlate with this Coastwatch article and are appropriate for grades 9-12.

• Conductivity: Exploring Salts Using Data Buoys – uses real-time data to explore the effect of salinity, pressure, and temperature on conductivity of water.
• Harmful Algal Blooms – uses NOAA data to compare concentrations of harmful algal blooms.  
• The Dead Zone: A Marine Horror Story – uses data to track dead zones (areas of low oxygen) in the Gulf of Mexico.