Unit 6: Water Flowing Around Us
River users activity guide and handout
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Unit 6: Water Flowing Around Us
River users activity guide and handout
Estimated duration: 60 ‐ 120 minutes Aim • • •
To gain an understanding of the use of the river from different stakeholders To develop skills in interviewing and information gathering And/or organise a speaker for a group presentation
Outcome By the end of this class, students will be able to: • have an appreciation of the different stakeholders in a river catchment • identify and describe how and why different people use rivers • prepare and plan an interview • or liaise with community groups and organise a presentation
Resources • • • •
computers with internet access computer and projector for showing the videos River users student handout (included below) Downloads of short videos and the accompanying teachers’ guides from http://www.environmentvictoria.org.au/content/storylines
Activity Description Get students to either research a river user or organise a speaker, and then to watch and discuss the stories from river users. The handout lists websites which will help them with researching river users. 1. Research a river user Ask the students to research one of the agencies or groups that is interested in the rivers in your catchment. Ask students to interview (by phone or visit) a person from one of the following agencies of groups:
Government Dept. of Sustainability and Environment Dept. of Primary Industries Water Authority Catchment Management Authority Local government (council/shire) Environment Protection Authority (EPA) Federal Dept. of Environment, Water,
Non‐government Farmers Irrigators Industry Canoeist Anglers Recreationists (campers/picnickers) Town residents Page 2 of 5
Heritage and the Arts (DEWHA) School students WaterWatch facilitator Tourism operators WaterWatch community monitor Environmental groups Local Landcare group Indigenous group Land developers Focus Questions: What is the groups’ connection with the river? How do they use the water in that river? How does their water use affect the rivers, creeks and estuaries? How do they affect the community? 2. Organising a speaker It may be more appropriate to ask the students to organise a water manager in your region to give you a talk about their job and their involvement with the river. Alternatively, you may like to organise a speaker beforehand to speak in this class. They could be from any of the above suggested options. 3. Stories of river users There are a number of short videos of river users available via internet download from Environment Victoria. Between 2007 and 2009, Environment Victoria produced two hugely popular Storylines DVDs, comprising a total of 22 personal stories. Under the guidance of filmmaker and social historian, Malcolm McKinnon, these unique digital storytelling projects brought together diverse groups of people to share and record the story of their personal connection to the Murray River wetland wonders of the Hattah Lakes and the stunning Gunbower, Koondrook and Perricoota (GKP) forests. These collections of stories testify to the rich social, cultural and ecological values of these precious sites and present compelling arguments for why they must be protected and restored. Both these Storylines come with a teachers’ guide to help discuss the stories. Both the stories and guides can be downloaded from: http://www.environmentvictoria.org.au/content/storylines There are opportunities for students to either discuss the stories as a group, in small groups or answer the questions provided in the Storylines teachers’ guide in a written format.
Student Roles and Responsibilities Participate in agreed tasks Contribute to class discussions Work cooperatively with others Participate in research and collect information Write or present a report Identify other sources of information Page 3 of 5
Seek teacher assistance and support when needed
Level of Teacher Support Facilitate discussion Organise materials and equipment Provide encouragement Introduce tasks and activities Provide assistance when requested Provide advice on how to research and identify sources of information Remind students about timelines and commitments
Assessment To use this learning activity as an assessment task, collect evidence such as: Teacher checklist and observation Student research notes and report Interview notes Photos or videos of the seminar Student documentation of planning and organising the seminar Notes from meetings or phone calls Initial timeline and allocated tasks
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Unit 6: Water Flowing Around Us
River users student handout Some useful starting points for researching river users: Melbourne Water • •
• • • • • •
www.melbournewater.com.au/ Drainage and Stormwater: www.melbournewater.com.au/content/drainage_and_stormwater/drainage_and_s tormwater.asp?bhcp=1 Water storage information: www.melbournewater.com.au/content/water_storages/water_report/water_report .asp Frog census: http://frogs.melbournewater.com.au/ Melbourne Waterwatch: www.waterwatchmelbourne.org.au/ Education: http://education.melbournewater.com.au/ Conserve water: http://conservewater.melbournewater.com.au/ Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD): http://wsud.melbournewater.com.au/
Other useful websites • • • • •
• • • • • • • • • • • •
Local councils ‐ Municipal Association of Victoria: www.mav.asn.au Department of Sustainability and Environment: www.dse.vic.gov.au EPA Victoria: www.epa.vic.gov.au Environment Victoria: www.environmentvictoria.org.au ‘Friends Of’ groups: www.melbournewater.com.au/content/rivers_and_creeks/our_programs_and_proj ects/community_engagement_programs/community_websites.asp Greening Australia: www.greeningaustralia.org.au Landcare Australia: www.landcareaustralia.com.au Merri Creek Management Committee: www.mcmc.org.au Parks Victoria: www.parkweb.vic.gov.au Port of Melbourne Corporation: www.portofmelbourne.com Victorian Waterwatch www.vic.waterwatch.org.au Waterwatch Australia: www.waterwatch.org.au Victorian Litter Action Alliance: www.litter.vic.gov.au Victorian Water Resource Data Warehouse: www.vicwaterdata.net Yarra Riverkeepers: www.waterkeepers.org.au/yarra/ Yarra Valley Water: www.yvw.com.au Yarra River Business Association: www.yarrariver.info
Catchment Management Authorities There are 10 CMAs covering the whole of Victoria. They are: • Corangamite CMA: www.ccma.vic.gov.au • East Gippsland CMA: www.egcma.com.au • Glenelg Hopkins CMA: www.glenelg‐hopkins.vic.gov.au • Golbourn Broken CMA: www.gbcma.vic.gov.au • Mallee CMA: www.malleecma.vic.gov.au • North Central CMA: www.nccma.vic.gov.au • North East CMA: www.necma.vic.gov.au • Port Phillip and Westernport CMA: ppwcma.vic.gov.au • West Gippsland CMA: www.wgcma.vic.gov.au • Wimmera CMA: www.wcma.vic.gov.au Page 5 of 5