Madison Powers
Andover & Wilmot, New Hampshire
Thursday September 22, 2011
8:00 AM-9:10 AM
The drive in to school on Thursday morning was accompanied by the splash of rain drops on the windshield and a sticky humidity. To top the lovely weather off, I had to be at school early, for an AP Environmental Science field trip, headed by the class's teacher, Alan McIntyre. The purpose of this trip was to explore the local watershed and discover how we as humans impacted it.
We started our trip bright and early at 8:00 AM. It was slightly drizzling and the temperature was fairly warm for a September day. We boarded a Proctor minibus along with Alan and departed on our exploration, our first stop being the Blackwater River. 18,000 to 12,000 years ago, the Blackwater River was covered by an ice sheet nearly 8,000 feet thick. This heavy mass of ice, rocks, and sediment shaped the land, creating rivers such as the Blackwater.
Not having payed attention to where we were going on the bus, I immediately recognized where we were. We had just driven over one covered bridges in Andover, not too far from Proctor's campus. Exiting the bus, we made our way down a narrow road, covered in sediment from the river. The surrounding trees were mainly small oak and beach, accompanied by some small shrubs and grasses. Part of the road had been replaced with some crushed rock, most likely to hold the river bank in place during flooding. We reached a small beach on the Blackwater and Alan stopped, introducing us to the Blackwater. Students began conducting small test on the water. It was discovered that the water was 57 degrees Fahrenheit and the pH of the water was 6.2, a little bit acidic.
Alan began introduced a concept known as the ABCs of nature. A stands for "abiotic", the non-living part of nature. B stands for "biotic", the living part of nature. And C stands for "cycles" or "changes", what is constantly happening between the abiotic and biotic parts of nature. The river was a system that represented these ABCs. Alan stated that, "This system is alive, it's dynamic. It's constantly changing and moving." Alan describe how the abiotic features, such as the flow rate, turbidity, nutrients being carried in the water (such as nitrogen and oxygen), and sediment affected its biotic features, such as mosquitos (which seemed to be overwhelmingly present) and plant life. The water carries the abiotics, he said. Abiotics such as the flow of the water cut the river banks, shaping the river. The sediment, another abiotic, is then deposited on the banks, which gives plants nutrients to grow. The abiotic parts working with the biotic pieces help create a dynamic river system that flourishes
Our second stop on our journey was at the junction of Routes 4 and 4A, near the Blackwater Diner. We pulled off the road in a little turnaround, and were immediately met with a swarm of mosquitoes as we left the bus. With nets, insect guides, and a bag full of devices with all the bells and whistles in hand, we made out way down to the river bank. Alan made his way into the water, inviting anyone who was able to join him. There was a distinct line of debris about 6 or 8 feet back from the river's edge, possible from the recent Hurricane, Irene. There was also a large amount of pines in the area, their needles spread all over the ground. The water was not any warmer here, either, being measured at 55.9 degrees Fahrenheit.
Alan explained that this river was a tributary from the Eagle Pond to the Blackwater River. This area was much more open than the last, and, being nearer to the highway, cars could be heard zipping past. The openness had an impact on river life, too. Alan demonstrated this idea by reaching down and plucking a rock from the water, exclaiming, "The rocks are black!" He went on to say, "These rocks are covered in algae, they're active." The reasoning for this was because of the openness in the area which allowed for more sunlight to penetrate the water. With more sunlight, Alan explained, more photosynthesis could happen, which leads to more plant life. The water was also shallower, too, which helps with light penetration. A few students using a net captured a couple stone flies, which were fairly ugly to be honest. Alan said that stone flies were a species that could only live in low polluted areas, which meant that this part of the river had minimal pollutants.
Alan introduced the history of the area. Eagle Pond, which is located upriver, is located downriver of a landfill. In the 1970s, Eagle Pond turned and orangish-red color, due to the leaky landfill. These abiotic chemicals flowed downriver, into the Blackwater. Alan segwayed this into the impact that the nearby road has on the river. Alan said, "A whole new set of abiotic inputs are coming from the road." Salts, oils, antifreeze, and trashes are all abiotic materials that we don't intentionally put into the river, but end up in it. These contaminants flow into the Blackwater, and from the Blackwater to the Merrimack River, which in turn leads to the ocean. Essentially, humans are polluting the ocean due to the leaking of pollution into rivers.
The final leg of our trip was to Pleasant Lake in Wilmot, New Hampshire. The place we arrived at was the dam, a place I had caught crayfish and minnows at as a child during my summer days at the beach. Elkins was the headwaters to the Blackwater. Dipping my feet in, the water was much warmer, 64.7 degrees Fahrenheit to be exact. Alan explained that this was because, "Water resists change." The large body of water held the warm summer heat for much larger, making the lake warm and allowing for all sorts of life forms because of that energy, he explained.
When we arrived at the lake, one girl immediately recognized the place and said, "This is where we put my boat in." Alan brought up a similar point while we were all wading in the water. The water here was heavily impacted by humans. He pointed out all of the houses around the lake, and described how fertilizers and chemical run off from the houses ended up in the water. Not to mention, the water was also constantly impacted by boats, for example. Oil and human wastes end up in the lake. "What happens here flows down river, collects with all the other stuff, and eventually ends up in the ocean," Alan said. This idea is shocking, because the pollutants that we release in a small lake in New Hampshire can end up in all parts of the globe, impacting many life forms.
The areas of exploration were not new to me, being a local student. Growing up in Andover, I have visited these places numerous times and thought no more of them than a river or lake, taking them for granted. On the bus ride back, though, I reflected on what I had recognized for the first time in 16 years in the area. Our impact as humans on the local ecosystems can be huge. These impacts on local ecosystems can lead to impacts on large ecosystems, which can be a major problem.
The impacts we have on these ecosystems aren't only on the water., but on all life forms in those ecosystems. All of the plants, fish, insects, etc are being polluted with our abiotic chemical inputs, building up as they move up the food chain. Eventually, this negative impact is going to come back to us. Our Earth is in trouble, and to fix some of it's problems, we must think small, back to the sources of our issues, such as polluting our local rivers and lakes.
Satellite images © Google Maps
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