Water - Planning for the Future

OVERVIEW: The student will understand that water resources include both surface water and ground water. The student will investigate the increases (or decreases) for water user groups - irrigation, municipal, manufacturing, steam electric power generation cooling, livestock, and mining. The student will use percentage change during the investigation. Graphs will be used by the student to relate the data as part of a written report.Environmental Science Institut

How Texas is Planning to Manage its Water

OVERVIEW: The student will research water management strategies in Texas to meet the projected demand for water in the year 2050. The student will interpret graphs and tables and then discuss the data as part of a written report.Environmental Science Institut

Just What IS a Watershed?

OVERVIEW: The student will observe the elements of a local watershed and begin to develop an appreciation for the need to protect watersheds as valuable resources. The student will observe the interdependence of a variety of factors on a watershed. These factors include local geology, the ecology of the watershed, and the effect of man’s influence.Environmental Science Institut

Let's Settle It

OVERVIEW: All living things need water to be able to survive. One of the main concerns of all settlers to a new area was a consistent water supply. By mapping the early Spanish and American settlements, the students will discover that a water supply was a determining factor in the settlement’s location. This activity is to be used in addition to the classroom lesson on the settlement of Texas.Environmental Science Institut

What Makes Up a Heatlthy Watershed?

OVERVIEW: The student will observe the elements of a local watershed and develop an appreciation for the need to protect watersheds as valuable water resources. The student will observe the interdependence of a variety of factors on a watershed. These factors include local geology, the ecology of the watershed, and the effect of man’s influence.Environmental Science Institut

North Campus Open Space Restoration Project Restoration Plan

This Restoration Plan is the result of a collaborative effort between UCSB’s Cheadle Center for Biological Diversity and Ecological Restoration (CCBER) and a team of consultants lead by Environmental Science Associates (ESA). ESA conducted studies and prepared the design and construction documents for the earthwork to restore the landform of the project site to conditions suitable to support estuarine and transitional habitats, and to restore the South Parcel mesa to topography similar to its historic form. True Nature Design led the design of public access elements and designed the recycled water irrigation system to provide establishment irrigation to the restored native plant communities. Stantec provided civil engineering designs for the structural components of the project public access elements (crossing structures and finished trail surfaces). CCBER designed the plan for the matrix of aquatic, wetland, and upland habitats to be restored to the site, including species selection; planting methods; and habitat features to benefit wildlife. CCBER also lead the development  of the maintenance and monitoring methods and adaptive management strategy.The intent of this Restoration Plan is to describe the methodology for post grading restoration, enhancement, monitoring, and management of native habitats within the North Campus Open Space (NCOS) Restoration Project

Solving a 3.2-Million-Year-Old Mystery: How Lucy Died

Since its discovery in 1974, Lucy, a 3.2-million-year-old specimen of Australopithecus afarensis - or “southern ape of Afar” has provided invaluable information about human evolution. However, Lucy’s death has always remained a mystery. Over forty years after its discovery, Dr. Kappelman shares the remarkable story of how he studied Lucy’s bones along with his insights into how Lucy died, cracking one of the coldest cases in history. What do Lucy’s remains tell us about her life and death?Environmental Science Institut