Summit County: Sampling the Blue River

Middle schoolers explore the connections between forests and rivers in their watershed studies unit

Ethan Minard and Dylan Berwyn turn over rocks in the Blue River looking for aquatic insects.

Story and photos by Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — Watershed health is more than a buzzword in a headwaters area that helps supply water not only to local towns, but to farmers, ranchers and even distant cities like L.A. and Phoenix.

Summit Middle School eight-graders took that to heart last week as part of their final science unit of the year. learning about different natural processes and human activities that all affect the health of local streams. During a field trip, they studied forest plots, erosion, measured dissolved oxygen and minerals, and even sampled the Blue River for macroinvertebrates to assess the state of the local river.

Next week, it all comes together in a town meeting format, when the students will discuss what they’ve learned in the context of watershed management.

The field trip started with an orientation session in the school auditorium.

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