Name
Data Nuggets developed by Michigan State University fellows in the NSF BEACON and GK-12 programs
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Love that dirty water
Featured scientists: Jonathan Thompson from Harvard University and Drew Guswa
from Smith College. Written by Tara Goodhue and Joshua Plisinski.
Research Background :
Forests, wetlands, and other green spaces
are natural filters for water; water is cleaned
as it is used by plants and travels through
soils. As green spaces are lost to make room
for homes and businesses, ecosystems are
less able to provide this service. Without
natural filtration from green spaces, humans
must build expensive water treatment
systems or risk drinking contaminated water.
Impervious surfaces, like roads, buildings,
and parking lots, do not allow water to pass
through. When it rains or snows on an
impervious surface, water cannot soak into
soil or be used by plants. Instead, it quickly Drew and students measuring river flow rate.
flows into nearby streams and rivers. If too much water runs off too quickly, it
overwhelms local sewer systems, getting into rivers before it can be filtered. This dirty
water may carry human waste and toxic materials.
Impervious surfaces have become a major problem for both the health of river
ecosystems, and the health of people who depend on them as a clean source of
drinking water. How land is used in a watershed, or the network of land and rivers that
flow to a single point as they empty out into the ocean, is an issue of great concern.
Jonathan is a scientist studying land use. He became interested in science after
traveling around the country and working as a wilderness ranger and wildland firefighter.
At the Harvard Forest, members of his lab study how land use decisions affect the
environment. They used computer simulations to create maps of what New England’s
landscape could look like under different possible futures. Their web-tool is called the
New England Landscapes Futures Explorer. Jonathan’s lab works with Drew, a civil
and environmental engineer who loves biking and hiking. Drew and his lab at Smith
College are interested in the relationship between land use and water. Together,
Jonathan and Drew’s labs teamed up to study how future increases in impervious
