158 Protec ting Watersheds
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This activity helps people understand how a watershed works and how all things
within a watershed are important to the health of all the people living in the area.
Time: 30 to 45 minutes
Materials: For each group a large sheet of paper, a basin or pan, colored pencils or
water-based colored pens, and water
➊ Divide into groups of 3 to 5 people.
➋ Each group takes their large sheet of paper, crumples it up, and then partly
smoothes it out, being sure to leave some ridges and raised areas.
➌ The group colors different features of the watershed on the paper, showing ridges
in brown, valleys in green, rivers and waterways in blue. Then different colors can
be added to show what people have added to the watershed: red for waste dumps,
black for pesticides, gasoline, and other chemicals, and so on.
➍ Place the paper in the pan or basin and fix the shape so that it resembles a
watershed, with creased lines to show ridges and depressions to show valleys.
➎ People in the group wet their fingers with water and gently flick water on top
of the watershed until the colors begin to run on the paper. Within each group,
discuss what happens to the colors as they run down into the lowest parts of the
watershed.
➏ Bring the groups together to discuss how what they have seen represents what
happens in a real watershed. Note the distance that things can travel and the way
different elements mix within the watershed.
Questions for discussion:
• What health problems can runoff from waste dumps (red color) and
pesticides (black color) cause for people living downstream?
• What changes do you think your community would see if the watershed
were damaged?
• What actions could your community take to protect or restore the
watershed?
A Community Guide to Environmental Health 2012