Seattle Public Schools, Middle School Science
Investigating Wastewater: Solutions & Pollution (SEPUP) Curriculum Workshop
Activity 2: Pollution in My Backyard? No Way! (From Water, Science, and Civics ©2011 Facing the Future)
Activity 2 (1 class session)
Pollution in My Backyard? No Way!
Activity Overview
As a follow-up and reinforcement to the “Lost and (Puget) Sound” movie, students complete an activity to
reinforce their understanding of the differences between point and non-point source pollutants. The demonstration
activity simulates real nonpoint source pollutants and how they enter Puget Sound stormwater runoff. Student
then discuss how this pollution might be prevented.
WA STATE 6-8 SCIENCE STANDARDS
INQE Models
CONCEPTS, PROCESSES, AND ISSUES
point source pollution
nonpoint source pollution
impervious
OBJECTIVES
Students will:
 Differentiate between point and nonpoint source pollution
 Understand how nonpoint source pollution reaches Puget Sound through stormwater runoff
 Consider ways to prevent nonpoint source pollution
MATERIALS
Handout of “Puget Sound Pollutants”, 1 for each pair of students or place a copy under a document camera and
project for the class
Large clear plastic container (if doing as a small group activity, each group of 4 will require one small or
medium clear container)
 Fill ¼ with warm water
Aluminum foil:
 Cover the open area of the plastic container(s) with the foil, and create a slight depression in the surface
by gently pinching the foil down along the inside rim of the bowl
 Cut a small hole in the center of the foil
Masking tape:
 Tape the edges of the foil to the outside of the bowl, to keep the foil cover in place
 Trim any excess foil below the masking tape to ensure a clear view of the water through the container
Seattle Public Schools, Middle School Science
Investigating Wastewater: Solutions & Pollution (SEPUP) Curriculum Workshop
Activity 2: Pollution in My Backyard? No Way! (From Water, Science, and Civics ©2011 Facing the Future)
Simulated pollution materials (if doing activity in groups, you will need one set of “pollutants” for each group;
this could be done with baggies and a measuring spoon):
 Vegetable oil (motor oil – oils/grease)
 Green food coloring (pesticides - toxins)
 Red colored sugar (lawn fertilizer – excess nutrients)
 Chocolate sprinkles (pet waste - bacteria)
 Small scraps of plastic and paper (litter)
 Dirt and sand (erosion, sediment)
 OPTIONAL: Silver dragee balls - decorative cookie toppers sold in the baking aisle (heavy metals)
Rain simulator cup – poke several small holes in the bottom of a plastic cup. (a squeeze bottle, small watering
can or droppers could also be used)
Additional water for the rain simulator cup
Advanced Preparation



Prepare clear plastic container with foil and masking tape prior to the start of class
Have all simulated pollutant materials portioned into baggies or film cans and labeled with their pollutant
name- provide a small measuring spoon for students to use when adding to the container
Have extra water for the rain simulator cup nearby
Teaching Suggestions
GETTING STARTED (modified from original lesson)
1. Ask the class to generate a list from the “Lost and Sound” DVD of some of the pollutants that flow into Puget
Sound (e.g.; household chemicals, pesticides, pet waste, motor oil, etc) after ending up on the street, sidewalk or
people’s lawns. Make a list on the board.
2. Discuss whether these pollutants were coming from “point sources” of pollution (factories that release
pollution) or from “nonpoint sources” (multiple sources that cannot easily be identified). A good way to think
about these sources of pollution is that you cannot “point” to them because they come from so many different
sources.
3. Have students work with a partner to look at the pollution pictures. Do they see any pictures that represent the
pollutants on the class list? Which ones? Can they identify which pollutants are “nonpoint” and which are
“point”? How do they know?
4. Ask the class to recall how much of Puget’s Sound pollution comes from “nonpoint” sources – 75%!
5. Recall for students that they learned from the video that “nonpoint” sources of pollutants they see in the
pictures reach the Puget Sound as a result of stormwater runoff washed into storm drains on the street. Ask
students to work with a partner to define, in their own words, stormwater runoff. Have student pairs offer to share
their definitions.
Seattle Public Schools, Middle School Science
Investigating Wastewater: Solutions & Pollution (SEPUP) Curriculum Workshop
Activity 2: Pollution in My Backyard? No Way! (From Water, Science, and Civics ©2011 Facing the Future)
INVESTIGATING: DEMONSTRATION ACTIVITY
1. Tell students that they will be observing a demonstration of how stormwater runoff carries pollution in to the
Puget Sound.
2. Place the large container covered topped with foil in the center of the room where it will be visible to all
students.
3. Explain that the bowl represents a model: The foil represents impervious surfaces in Seattle (ground that does
not absorb water). The water represents the Puget Sound (or Lake Washington) and the hole in the center of the
foil represents a storm drain where stormwater runoff gathers and empties into the waterway.
4. Revisit the list of pollutants students generated at the start of the lesson. Go through the list one at a time; when
one of the simulated pollutants is listed, ask students to describe a human activity that would result in this
pollutant getting onto the street and washed into a storm drains. (If the class list includes human activities (e.g.;
fertilizing lawns) then press students to identify what pollutants are generated by the activity (excessive nutrients
like nitrates and phosphates).)
5. Have students volunteers take turns coming up to the model and placing a sample of the simulated pollutant on
the top of the foil cover. Once a sample of each pollutant tell them that precipitation has been forecasted for
Seattle. Ask them to thinks about:
What will happen to the pollutants they’ve placed on the foil’s surface?
What will happen to the Puget Sound below?
6. If possible, gather students closely around the model. Have one student volunteer come up ot the model and
hold the rain simulator above the foil surface. As you pour water into the cup, ask them to move the rain simulator
around so that some precipitation reaches all of the foil surface.
7. Remove the foil and allow students to take turns coming closer to observe the model (or place it under the
document camera).
8. Ask students to describe what the observed in the model (pollutants were washed into the storm drain by the
rain flowing over the ground.)
9. Help students make connections between the model and stormwater runoff in the “Lost and Sound” DVD:
 The foil represents the impervious surfaces in our city such as roofs, roads, parking lots and even lawns.
Water does not soak into impervious surfaces.
 When rain falls on our watershed, instead of soaking into the ground as it would in a forest, the
stormwater flows over the ground picking up pollution off of yards and streets and driveways along the
way.
 The stormwater runoff flows directly into storm drains on the street.
 Many storm drains in Seattle area are not connected to the sewer system; this means that the dirty water
does not get treated or cleaned. Instead, it flows directly from storm drains into to nearby waterways and
eventually to lake Washington or Puget Sound.
 Stormwater runoff is the biggest source of water pollution in the Puget Sound.
SYNTHESIZING
In their science notebooks, students should answer the following questions in complete sentences:
1. Draw a labeled diagram of the model that shows how the parts of the system (precipitation, pollutants,
runoff, impervious surface, pollutants and water body) interact to contaminate the “Puget Sound”
Seattle Public Schools, Middle School Science
Investigating Wastewater: Solutions & Pollution (SEPUP) Curriculum Workshop
Activity 2: Pollution in My Backyard? No Way! (From Water, Science, and Civics ©2011 Facing the Future)
2. What types of common human activities create “no-point” pollution?
3. What are some examples of pollutants that flow into Puget Sound?
4. Describe how these pollutants reach the Puget Sound.
5. Think about the model we created. Describe how the simulation might be different if the foil, which is an
impervious surface, was replaced with a material that absorbs water.
6. What are three things that people can do in their neighborhoods to reduce the amount of nonpoint
pollution
7.
Describe two ways that the amount of nonpoint pollution entering Puget Sound could be reduced. For
each way claim you make about how to reduce the amount of nonpoint source pollution, you must
provide a reason or evidence for your claim.