Year 11 Environmental Science class visited the Barwon River at seven locations for water quality monitoring.
Challenging Climate Change MELISSA BARNES, LEADER OF LEARNING YEARS 9-12
As the world watched the leaders of our nations gather and discuss the environmental issues facing our planet at the UN Climate Change Conference, The Geelong College students undertook their research into Australian ecosystems on the brink of collapse. We offer numerous opportunities for students to explore local, Australian and global environmental issues and solutions. Year 9 Science students learned the fundamental basis of ecology with knowledge of energy transfer through an ecosystem, food webs and food chains, Indigenous seasons and bushfires. Students engaged in exploring biomes under threat and ways to mitigate damage. The stimulus for their research was the Australian Geographic identification of 19 Australian ecosystems at a tipping point. Students selected one of the systems to explore in-depth, including, for example, the Great Barrier and
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Ningaloo Reefs, wet tropics, mangrove forests, tropical savannahs, great southern kelp forests or Antarctica.
They analysed and graphed data identifying trends of decreased water quality at each point downstream.
The Year 11 Environmental Science class undertook a hands-on investigative project visiting the Barwon River at seven locations from Winchelsea downstream to Barwon Heads for water quality monitoring. They tested physical and chemical bio-indicators, including turbidity, pH, conductivity (measuring dissolved salts), depth and flow rates, phosphate levels (reflecting what enters the water and organisms using it) and dissolved oxygen. The students grew cultures back at school to identify E. coli from faecal contaminants from farmland.
While limited to online visits due to upgrading facilities, our Year 12 Environmental Science students enjoyed a virtual tour of the Western Treatment Plant for a sustainability project exploring the environmental benefits of careful waste management. Relying on virtual drone tours, students considered four aspects of the facility: water treatment, wetland management, methane generation, and recycling. They noted the diversity of birdlife in the wetlands and the value of methane production and recycled water for Werribee market farmers from what
