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About the Project |
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Lynnhaven River Now
About the Project
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Our Watershed
Project Description
The Lynnhaven River is legendary for its world famous oysters and rich history. Our school and surrounding neighborhoods are part of the Lynnhaven River watershed which covers 67 square miles within the city of Virginia Beach. We are in a highly developed setting with a large percentage of impervious surfaces (parking lots, roads, buildings). This has negatively affected the river due to the inability of such surfaces to act as “buffers”. The overall health of this great resource, particularly water quality, is currently degraded as a result of the decrease of natural filters (forests, oysters, and wetlands) and an increase in pollutants entering the river. Our rain garden provides an answer to this environmental problem by collecting, temporarily storing, and cleaning water that would ordinarily run-off our school building and property. The cleansing occurs as pollutants are trapped, nutrients are removed by the plants, and sediment is contained. The replacement of this natural, nutrient filtering process will reduce the total contaminants entering the Lynnhaven River.
The primary objective of Lynnhaven Legacy is to use environmental education/stewardship as a tool to improve the water quality of the Lynnhaven River, enhance the learning environment for our students, and serve as a model for the improvement, protection, and conservation of natural resources. This real-world environmental issue will encourage critical thinking and problem solving through collaboration with community partners, city agencies and local environmental groups.
4 Goals of the Project |
The Need for this Project |
1) to
create three natural water filtering zones (rain gardens) that
intercept storm water runoff created by the impervious surfaces
around our school building, 2) design and construct
an outdoor classroom within one of these rain gardens 3) establish baseline data to measure and examine changes in water quality (pH, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, nutrient pollution) and the biodiversity (protozoa, phytoplankton, zooplankton, macro invertebrates, fecal coli form, insects and birds), and 4) identify characteristics and adaptations of species within each habitat. |
Lynnhaven
Legacy emphasizes thinking globally while acting
locally. Our school's non-point source (NPS) pollution
problem is a microcosm of the problem affecting the Chesapeake
Bay. Students currently participate in an oyster growing
and water quality-monitoring program on the Lynnhaven River.
Students have identified NPS pollution as a local environmental
issue and created a solution that can serve as a citywide model. NPS
pollution is a nationwide problem affecting the health of aquatic
ecosystems. According to information provided by Lynnhaven
River 2007, a watershed containing 10% of impervious surfaces
will be classified as “impaired.” 35% of
the Lynnhaven River watershed is impervious. The Lynnhaven
River is now listed on the National Impaired Waterways
List. |