1997: Climate Variability Impacts on Water Resources and Agriculture

As the Impacts team, our main focus is to investigate climate variability impacts on water resources and agriculture. This summer we will add a new facet as we also explore these impacts on biological species, i.e, local fish populations, more specifically, the Atlantic Sturgeon. Water quality issues will also factor into our study, through the relationship forged between CCNY and the ICP.

Through our investigation we intend to set in motion, research activities designed to build an understanding of the following:

1. the hydrologic cycle and the numerous pathways of water after entry therein
2. the impacts of land use changes on water quality, specifically noting suspended solids and microbial organisms, e.g., cryptosporidium
3. the influence of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) / El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), on climate variability on the Eastern coast of the United States, e.g., impacts on the hydrologic cycle (precipitation, water resources, sea level, etc.)
4. the correlation between variables; precipitation, temperature and streamflow on the Atlantic Sturgeon population

The items listed below are the anticipated learning outcomes of the research this summer and into the academic year.

• use of the Internet and the World Wide Web as a major source of scientific data and information
• ability to collect, manipulate and analyze data
• demonstrate the ability to integrate numerical data into various graphs
• comprehend and apply newly learned scientific applications, e.g., chemical reactions occurrence in water
• relate the importance of physically related scientific concepts to biologically connected abstractions, e.g., the decrease in water level related to the oxygen content of said water and the response of fish/crops to this situation
• ability to place emphasis on process and higher order thinking skills, e.g., the application of the NAO to climate variability and the subsequent impacts of this on fish populations and water resources
• forge a working relationship with faculty, scientists and students of the NASA GISS program

The understanding of the following processes related to our study include: atmospheric circulation, hydrological cycle, ocean circulation.

Fundamental concepts we will need to master include: convection, kinetic energy, hydrocarbons, specific heat, ecosystem diffusion, oxidation, endothermic, condensation, absorption, transpiration, exothermic, sublimation, evaporation, reservoir, photosynthesis, variability, watershed.

The atmospheric and climate applications include: flood, El Nino, pollution, soil moisture, La Niña, evapotranspiration, North Atlantic Oscillation, Greenhouse Effect.

Students will be assigned research tasks as outlined above with supervision and assistance by staff and scientists. We will all be responsible for the contribution to the storyboard and development of research activities (one of us will be selected to be our "go-between" for the eventual Web site). Bill and Allison will spearhead the development of instructional materials based on the research, with the support and testing of these materials by the team. Jennifer will guide our scientific research.

Web products, to date, that we expect to furnish include background activities related to building graphing skills, regression analysis, an understanding of the water cycle and the scientific method. A background site explaining the NAO, ENSO and other concepts/processes related to our work should also be created. Further, research related Web products include a site to explore impacts on water quality due to land use changes, using the current CCNY research as an example. Eventually, we desire to have a link to climate data through the ICP site that we can utilize to create graphs via Excel. Data that we anticipate wešll need access to includes streamflow, precipitation, groundwater levels, temperature, and sea level and possibly more. We will need access to Excel and a database program at this point.

The work this summer will culminate in activities and materials that teachers can access via the Web and use in their classrooms. In the 1997-1998 academic year, it is intended that the work done at the ICP will translate into on-going, extra-curricular research teams at both George Washington High School and School of the Future. A continued collaboration between these institutions and CCNY (as well as the ICP) is expected. An emphasis on having our ICP students train others in the research process and computer (Web, Excel and database) skills will be emphasized. Presentations of our research to the various constituencies, through the upcoming year is not unlikely.