Final Report On Waste Dumping Case Study

Each person will submit a report containing the following information. Use the list below as section headings and be sure to include all sections in your report. You can and should collaborate on the gathering of data and the interpretation of that data.

However, the information and analysis contained in your individual final report is a reflection of your personal understanding, interpretation, and decisions.

A "Waste Dumping Report Template" is also available on Blackboard to give more guidance for what to include in the final report. Be sure that any maps and/or figures that you include are accompanied by a caption explaining their significance. Be sure to reference all material that comes from a published source.

1. Introduction

This section contains an introduction to and overview of the environmental and economic issues related to the disposal of waste material into the water ways of your particular location.

2. Description of Affected Area

This section includes a written description of the area that has been affected by waste disposal. This includes all biological, geological, economic, and cultural information that is germane to the environmental problem. This can and should include maps and other data representations. Each figure used must contain a caption and be referred to in the written narrative portion.

3. Water Quality Impact Potentials

Discuss the sources of contamination and potential impacts to water quality. What contaminants cause the most concern for your particular area.There should be some attempt to assess both current and future impacts of waste disposal. This includes an assessment of the available data and the confidence in the projections and models created from that data.

4. Other Impact Potentials

Each of the following should be considered in your review of your area, Not all areas may see the same impact5s on each of the following groupings.

a. Impact on Historical and Cultural Sites

Although this section is not directly informed by natural science, it is potentially an important set of factors in decision making concerning coastal water pollution. As in the other sections you must indicate the data that is supporting the assessment of impact and the confidence you have in that data.

b. Social and Economic Impacts

This includes communities that are the source or in the area affected by the waste dipsoal. For example, a community far downstream from a factory may be affected by water pollution from toxins entering the river at the factory site. Included in this section is information relating impacts on communities in terms of infrastructure, employment, recreation, fishing, as well as aesthetics.

5. Long-Term Affects

Will reclamation and/or mitigation efforts be required? Will long-term monitoring be required? What is the expected coast or duration of any proposed clean-up? What is the anticipated duration of any environmental damage that has already occurred?

6. Range of Alternatives

Now it is time to consider the complete range of alternatives. What actions can be taken? Are there alternative approaches that could be employed in dealing with waste in the future? The range of possible decisions that could be made in response to the proposal must be addressed. Each alternative must be accompanied by a discussion of the evidence in support of that alternative as well as the trade-offs associated with that alternative.

7. What Do You Propose?

After all of the data is collected, speakers heard, opinions voiced, passions exposed, you must make a personal decision on what should be done. What is yours and what is the rationale/reasoning for that decision. Explain your analysis of the data as well as the role of your personal values and opinions in making the final decision.