Water quality is a complex issue. We all use water and goods grown or manufactured with water, so water quality is a responsibility that we all share.
At times, there can be an urban-rural split when it comes to water quality issues. Diffuse pollution is a major cause of water pollution. It can come from land use and underperforming wastewater and stormwater systems in urban areas and from intensified farming/horticulture in rural areas.
The following resources may be useful when managing discussions about water quality.
- The article Teaching ethics collates Hub resources that can be helpful when dealing with difficult issues. It includes the Ethics thinking toolkit and the Ethics in science planner.
- Concept cartoons can be used to show a range of viewpoints to engage students and stimulate discussions.
These Rivers and Us resources are in a downloadable PDF format.
- Water use amounts
- The stormwater problem
- What happens to the water used to wash a car?
- Discussion cube prompts
Acknowledgement: Polluted water illustration by Gabriel Jose, 123RF Ltd. Copyright The University of Waikato Te Whare Wānanga o Waikato
