Please refer to the College Board Course Exam Description for more details about the standards correlation. This lesson plan correlates directly to the main ideas, enduring understandings, learning objectives, and essential knowledge. These course modules would fit under Unit 8: Aquatic and Terrestrial Pollution.
- Topic 1.3 Aquatic Biomes
- Enduring Understanding: ERT-1 Ecosystems are a result of biotic and abiotic interactions
- Learning Objective: ERT-1.C Describe the global distribution and principal environmental aspects of aquatic biome
- Essential Knowledge ERT-1.C.1 Freshwater biomes include streams, rivers, ponds, and lakes. These freshwater biomes are a vital resource for drinking water.
- Learning Objective: ERT-1.C Describe the global distribution and principal environmental aspects of aquatic biome
- Enduring Understanding: ERT-1 Ecosystems are a result of biotic and abiotic interactions
- Topic 8.1 Sources of Pollution
- Enduring Understanding: STB-3 Human Activities, including the use of resources have physical, chemical, and biological consequences for ecosystems.
- Learning Objective STB-3.A Identify differences between point and non-point sources of pollution
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.A.1 A point source refers to a single identifiable source of a pollutant, such as a smokestack or waste discharge pipe
- Essential knowledge STB-3.A.2 Non-point source of pollution are diffused and can therefore be difficult to identify, such as pesticide spraying or urban runoff.
- Learning Objective STB-3.A Identify differences between point and non-point sources of pollution
Topic 8.2 Human Impact on Ecosystems
- Enduring Understanding: STB-3 Human activities, including the use of resources, have physical, chemical, and biological consequences for ecosystems.
- Learning Objective: STB-3.B Describe the impacts of human activities on aquatic ecosystems
- Essential Knowledge: STB-3.B.1 Organisms have a range of tolerance for various pollutants. Organisms have an optimum range for each factor where they can maintain homeostasis. Outside of this range, organism may experience physiological stress, limited growth, reduced reproduction, and in extreme cases, death
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.B.3 Oil spills in marine waters cause organism to die from hydrocarbons in oil. Oil that floats on the surface of water can coat the feathers of birds and fur of marine mammals. Some components of oil sink to the ocean floor, killing some bottom-dwelling organism.
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.B.4 Oil that washes up on the beach can have economic consequences on the fishing and tourism industries.
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.B.5 Oceanic dead zones are areas of low oxygen in the world’s oceans caused by increased nutrient pollution
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.B.6 An oxygen sag curve is a plot of dissolved oxygen levels versus the distance from a source of pollution, usually excess nutrients and biological refuse.
- Essential Knowledge: STB-3.B.7 Heavy metals used for industry, especially mining and burning of fossil fuels, can reach the groundwater, impacting the drinking water supply.
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.B.8 Litter that reaches aquatic ecosystems besides being unsightly can create intestinal blockage and choking hazards for wildlife and introduce toxic substances to the food chain.
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.B.9 Increased sediment in waterways can reduce light infiltration, which can affect primary producers and visual predators. Sediment can also settle, disrupting habitats
- Essential Knowledge STB-3-B.10 When elemental sources of mercury enter aquatic environments, bacteria in the water convert it to highly toxic methyl-mercury
- Learning Objective: STB-3.B Describe the impacts of human activities on aquatic ecosystems
- Topic 8.3 Endocrine Disrupters
- Enduring Understanding: STB-3 Human activities, including the use of resources, have physical, chemical, and biological consequences for ecosystems.
- Learning Objective: STB-3.C Describe endocrine disruptors
- Essential Knowledge: STB-3.C.1 Endocrine disruptors are chemicals that can interfere with the endocrine system of animals.
- Learning Objective STB-3.D Describe the effects of endocrine disrupters on ecosystems
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.D.1 Endocrine disruptors can lead to birth defects, developmental disorders, and gender imbalances in fish and other species.
- Learning Objective: STB-3.C Describe endocrine disruptors
- Enduring Understanding: STB-3 Human activities, including the use of resources, have physical, chemical, and biological consequences for ecosystems.
- Topic 8.5 Eutrophication
- Enduring Understanding: STB-3 Human activities, including the use of resources, have physical, chemical, and biological consequences for ecosystems.
- Learning Objective STB-3.F Explain the environmental effects of excessive use of fertilizers and detergents on aquatic ecosystems
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.F.1 Eutrophication occurs when a body of water is enriched in nutrients
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.F.2 The increase in nutrients in eutrophic aquatic environments causes an algal bloom. When the algal bloom dies, microbes digest the algae, along with the oxygen in the water, leading to a decrease in dissolved oxygen levels in the water. The lack of dissolved oxygen can result in large die-offs of fish and other aquatic organisms
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.F.3 Hypoxic waterways are those bodies of waters that are low in dissolved oxygen
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.F.4 Compared to eutrophic waterways, oligotrophic waterways have very low amounts of nutrients, stable algae populations, and high dissolved oxygen
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.F.5 Anthropogenic causes of eutrophication are agricultural runoff and wastewater release
- Learning Objective STB-3.F Explain the environmental effects of excessive use of fertilizers and detergents on aquatic ecosystems
- Enduring Understanding: STB-3 Human activities, including the use of resources, have physical, chemical, and biological consequences for ecosystems.
- Topic 8.6 Thermal Pollution
- Enduring Understanding: STB-3 Human activities, including the use of resources, have physical, chemical, and biological consequences for ecosystems.
- Learning Objective: STB-3.G Describe the effects of thermal pollution on aquatic ecosystems
- Essential knowledge STB-3.G.1 Thermal pollution occurs when heat released into the water produces negative effects to the organisms in that ecosystem.
- Essential knowledge STB-3.G.2 Variations in water temperature affect the concentration of dissolved oxygen because warm water does not contain as much oxygen as cold water
- Learning Objective: STB-3.G Describe the effects of thermal pollution on aquatic ecosystems
- Enduring Understanding: STB-3 Human activities, including the use of resources, have physical, chemical, and biological consequences for ecosystems.
- Topic 8.7 Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs)
- Enduring Understand: STB-3 Human activities, including the use of resources have physical, chemical, and biological consequences for ecosystems.
- Learning Objective STB-3.H Describe the effect of persistent organic pollutants on ecosystems
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.H.1 Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) do not easily break down in the environment because they are synthetic, carbon-based molecules (such as DDT and PCBs)
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.H.2 Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) can be toxic to organisms because they are soluble in fat, which allows them to accumulate in organisms’ fatty tissue
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.H.3 POPs can travel over long distances via wind and water before being redeposited
- Learning Objective STB-3.H Describe the effect of persistent organic pollutants on ecosystems
- Enduring Understand: STB-3 Human activities, including the use of resources have physical, chemical, and biological consequences for ecosystems.
- Topic 8.8 Bioaccumulation and Biomagnification
- Enduring Understand: STB-3 Human activities, including the use of resources have physical, chemical, and biological consequences for ecosystems.
- Learning Objective STB-3.I Describe bioaccumulation and biomagnification
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.I.1 Bioaccumulation is the selective absorption and concentration of elements or compounds by cells in a living organism, most commonly fat-soluble compounds
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.I.2 Biomagnification is the increase in concentration of substances per unit of body tissue that occurs in successively high trophic levels of a food chain or in a food web
- Learning Objective STB-3.J Describe the effects of bioaccumulation and biomagnification
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.J.1 Some effects that can occur in an ecosystem when a persistent substance is biomagnified in a food chain include eggshell thinning and developmental deformities in top carnivores of the higher trophic levels
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.J.2 Humans also experience harmful effects from biomagnification, including issues with the reproductive, nervous, and circulatory systems
- Essential Knowledge STB-3.J.3 DDT, mercury, and PCBs are substance that bioaccumulate and have significant environmental effects
- Learning Objective STB-3.I Describe bioaccumulation and biomagnification
- Enduring Understand: STB-3 Human activities, including the use of resources have physical, chemical, and biological consequences for ecosystems.
- Topic 8.11 Sewage Treatment
- Enduring Understand: STB-3 Human activities, including the use of resources have physical, chemical, and biological consequences for ecosystems.
- Learning Objective: STB-3.N Describe Best practices in sewage treatment
- Essential Knowledge: STB3.N.1 Primary Treatment of sewage is the physical removal of large objects, often through the use of screens and grates, followed by the settling of solid waste in the bottom of the tank
- Essential Knowledge STB3.N.2 Secondary treatment is the biological process in which bacteria break down organic matter into carbon dioxide and inorganic sludge, which settles in the bottom of the tank. The tank is aerated to increase the rate at which bacteria break down organic matter.
- Essential Knowledge STB3.N.3 Tertiary treatment is the use of ecological or chemical processes to remove any pollutants left in the water after primary and secondary treatments.
- Essential Knowledge STB3.N.4 Prior to discharge, the treated water is exposed to one or more disinfectants (usually chlorine, ozone, or UV light) to kill bacteria
- Learning Objective: STB-3.N Describe Best practices in sewage treatment
- Enduring Understand: STB-3 Human activities, including the use of resources have physical, chemical, and biological consequences for ecosystems.
- Topic 8.12 Lethal Dose Response
- Enduring Understanding: EIN-3 Pollutants can have a direct and indirect impact on the health of organisms including humans
- Learning Objective EIN-3.A Define Lethal Dose 50% (LD50)
- Essential Knowledge EIN-3.A.1 Lethal dose 50% (LD50) is the dose of a chemical that is lethal to 50% of the population of a particular species
- Learning Objective EIN-3.A Define Lethal Dose 50% (LD50)
- Enduring Understanding: EIN-3 Pollutants can have a direct and indirect impact on the health of organisms including humans
- Topic 8.13 Dose Response Curve
- Enduring Understanding EIN-3 Pollutants can have a direct and indirect impact on the health of organisms, including humans
- Learning Objective EIN-3.B Evaluate Dose Response Curves
- Essential Knowledge EIN-3.B.1 A dose response curve describes the effect on an organism or mortality rate in a population based on the dose of a particular toxin or drug.
- Learning Objective EIN-3.B Evaluate Dose Response Curves
- Enduring Understanding EIN-3 Pollutants can have a direct and indirect impact on the health of organisms, including humans
- Topic 8.14 Pollution and Human Health
- Enduring Understanding: EIN-3 Pollutants can have both direct and indirect impacts on the health for organisms, including human
- Learning Objective EIN-3.C Identify sources of human health issues that are linked to pollution
- Essential Knowledge EIN-3.C.1 It can be difficult to establish a cause and effect between pollutants and human health issues because humans experience exposure to a variety of chemicals and pollutant
- Essential Knowledge EIN-3.C.2 Dysentery is caused by untreated sewage in streams and rivers
- Learning Objective EIN-3.C Identify sources of human health issues that are linked to pollution
- Enduring Understanding: EIN-3 Pollutants can have both direct and indirect impacts on the health for organisms, including human
- Topic 8.15 Pathogens and Infectious Diseases
- Enduring Understanding: EIN-3 Pollutants can have both direct and indirect impacts on the health of organisms including humans
- Learning Objective: EIN-3.D.1 Explain human pathogens and their cycling through the environment
- Essential Knowledge EIN-3.D.2 Specific Pathogens can occur in many environments regardless of the appearance of sanitary conditions
- Essential Knowledge EIN.3.D.4 Poverty-stricken, low-income areas often lack sanitary waste disposal and have contaminated drinking water supplies, leading to havens and opportunities for the spread of infectious diseases.
- Essential Knowledge EIN-3.D.12 Cholera is a bacterial disease that is contracted from infected water
- Learning Objective: EIN-3.D.1 Explain human pathogens and their cycling through the environment
Required Legislation Covered in this Unit:
Safe Drinking Water Act
Clean Water Act
CERCLA