What is a watershed?
What is a watershed, you ask? Oh dear, this is one thing
you will definitely want to learn. A watershed is an area of land in which all
the water (above ground in creeks, rivers, etc, as well as groundwater and
runoff) drains into one larger body of water.
In Rockbridge County, we
live in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. This means that all of water -- and
everything we put into it -- eventually ends up in the Chesapeake Bay. At
Boxerwood, our watershed address (the path our water follows) is as follows:
|
Nature
Lover &
Watershed
Friend |
|
|
Boxerwood
Spring
Woods
Creek
Maury
River
James
River
Chesapeake
Bay |
|
Knowing your watershed address is just as important as knowing your street
address, because everything you do to your water affects not only you and your
neighbors (humans, other animals & plants), but also every other living and
nonliving thing downstream. If you pollute here in Rockbridge
County, you're also polluting all the way across Virginia into the Bay and the
Atlantic Ocean.
Watersheds in Rockbridge County:
"Small" ones include Woods
Creek, Buffalo Creek, Colliers Creek, Irish Creek, etc.
They may flow
into the Maury River watershed, South River Watershed.
From there, all flow into the James River
And into the Chesapeake Bay.
| Pollution can come from many
sources, and it doesn't have to be directly dumped or thrown into the
water. When we think of pollution, we often think of litter
and toxic chemicals from factories, but there are other heavily
damaging ways we may be polluting our water without even realizing
it:
The biggest watershed pollution problem comes from
excess fertilizer,
which enters the groundwater in people's yards and farms, and then ends up
in our creeks and rivers. Fertilizer contains nitrates, a type of
nutrients that help plants grow. Just as it does on land, fertilizer
helps plants grow in the water. However, sometimes it causes too
much growth of plants and algae, which then greatly decreases the amount
of oxygen available to fish, oysters, clams, bugs and other water
creatures. Too much plant growth also decreases sunlight available
to bottom-growing grasses and causes the water to become cloudy.
|
| Cars with oil leaks pollute the watershed, because
rain washes oil and other fluids off the streets and into the groundwater,
or into storm sewers which drain into rivers. The same is true for soil
runoff -- if you cut down all the trees in an area, heavy rains will
wash sediment into the rivers, which can change the way rivers flow, as
well as harm living creatures, especially oysters. Sediment is a
major problem in the Bay right because it blocks the filters of oysters,
whose natural job is to filter and clean up water. If their filters
are clogged, the oysters can't help clean up, and the pollution problem
gets even worse. Dirty
soapy water from washing your car outside can even be a pollutant when
it runs into the storm drain and then down to the river -- next time, take
your car to a carwash where water enters a drain to be cleaned and
recycled before it enters the watershed. These are just a few
examples of major pollutants that we may releasing into the watershed
without even be aware of it. |
| At Boxerwood, watershed education is a
major part of our curriculum for elementary school children. Students
are taught about the importance of water, and that our water
travels all the way to the Bay. Water lessons might include
sending a special message through the creek to your favorite Bay animal,
painting watercolors of ocean creatures, water conservation games,
walking a portion of the Boxerwood watershed, studying the wetlands and
more! We also have a fantastic watershed model (thanks to
Boxerwood friend Will Norris) that allows our students to see how water
flows from Rockbridge County to the Bay, and to demonstrate how different
pollutants affect the water and those of us who live there. |
|
|
