Purple Plow | Go With the Flow Challenge

When rain falls or snow melts, it does not simply stay in one place or seep into the ground to replenish groundwater; most of it begins to move. When water flows over land, it is called surface runoff, and it is an important part of the water cycle, but have you ever wondered where your runoff is running off to? What’s in your runoff? What is the runoff doing to the environment once it has settled? Around the world, there are more than 400 dead zones in oceans and lakes, where the water contains so little oxygen that aquatic life can no longer survive. In large part, this is due to excess nutrient pollution found in our runoff as a result of home, agricultural, and industrial practices as well as population growth. In this challenge, students will learn about the impact of runoff in rural and urban areas and its effects on the environment as well as plan for solutions to this growing issue of dead zones, hypoxia, and overall water quality.