Lesson 1 - Water: The Basic Resource
Topics:
Precipitation; Surface runoff; Groundwater; Municipal, industrial, and agricultural use; Waste disposal; Upgrading water quality
Learning Objectives:
– Name the continuing processes that make up the water or hydrologic cycle.– Describe the atmospheric process that produces precipitation.
– Identify the users of municipal water supplies.
– Point out some of the important advances made in water treatment since 1900.
– List the benefits of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendment of 1972.
Lesson 2 - Water Collection, Treatment, and Distribution
Topics:
Collecting surface water and ground water; Transmission of water; Treatment types; Distribution; Primary, secondary, and tertiary treatment
Learning Objectives:
– Explain the differences between a confined aquifer and an unconfined one.– Tell why it is necessary to treat water for drinking and for manufacturing purposes.
– Describe the treatment processes of sedimentation and coagulation.
– Describe how a system for the distribution of treated water operates.
– Tell what takes place during the primary treatment of wastewater.
Lesson 3 - Physical Properties of Water
Topics:
Color, taste, odor, and temperature of water; Solids in the water; Turbidity; Suspended matter; Measuring electrical conductivity
Learning Objectives:
– Distinguish between the apparent color and the true color of water.– Name the four basic tastes of water that a person can sense.
– Tell how a rise in temperature affects the various properties of water.
– Name the sources of organic and inorganic solids that pollute wastewater.
– Explain the differences between suspended solids and dissolved solids.
Lesson 4 - Chemical Properties of Water
Topics:
Atoms and molecules; Acids, bases, and salts; Ionization; Alkalinity and acidity; Hardness of water; Unwanted chemicals; Dissolved oxygen
Learning Objectives:
– Identify the particles in an atom, and tell how they fit together to form the atom.– Describe the relationship between a pH number and the concentration of H+ ions.
– Name the two color tests for alkalinity of water and tell what colors they produce.
– Describe the ion exchange and lime-soda processes for removing hardness from water.
– Tell why a certain amount of dissolved oxygen (DO) is necessary in surface water.
Lesson 5 - Biological Properties of Water
Topics:
Pathogenicity; Disinfection; Stabilization of organic matter; Biochemical oxygen demand; Bacteria; Viruses; Algae; Protozoa
Learning Objectives:
– List the methods commonly used to disinfect water.– Tell how temperature changes affect the rate at which living organisms grow in water.
– Tell how-and how rapidly-common bacteria reproduce.
– List the most effective methods used to inactivate viruses.
– Explain how the presence of algae speeds the process of eutrophication.
