THE COMMUNITY WATER PROJECT: STUDENT EXPLORATION OF THE GEOSCIENCES IN THE CONTEXT OF STORMWATER MANAGEMENT IN NORTHEAST OHIO

Increasingly, stormwater management is a concern for communities in Northeast Ohio. Rising water levels in rivers and lakes, and marked increases in stormwater runoff in urban areas necessitates a workforce trained in the cross-disciplinary strategies to respond to this ongoing challenge. Toward this end, an experiential learning Community Water Team worked for eight weeks during the summer of 2021, learning field and lab techniques to evaluate and plan for stormwater increases in Northeast Ohio. Together, the six student members and two peer mentors collected raw data from field sites, mined information from online databases, and analyzed findings collaboratively. Component projects included water quality, soil hydrology, tree-ring analysis, environmental monitoring with dataloggers, and climate analyses.

The Water Team partnered with experts (our clients), produced five original client reports, and an initial draft of an Ohio Non-Point Source Implementation Strategy (NPS-IS) for a local watershed. Site visits, professional training and discussions with clients provided expertise on water quality, stream restoration, and various perspectives to managing watersheds and stormwater. An additional component of the project included professional development and other skills helpful for these undergraduate STEM majors who are early in their academic careers. Exposure to the tools and opportunities unique to the Geosciences and shared with other STEM field is a step toward recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce needed to manage ongoing environmental challenges.