Tuesday, September 18, 2018

Episode 438 (9-17-18): Following Florence with a Sampler of Hurricane Facts and History


CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (5:03)


Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, images, and additional information follow below.

Except as otherwise noted, all Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 9-14-18.
 

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO

From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of September 17, 2018.

MUSIC – ~ 6 sec

This week, that excerpt of “Storm,” by Torrin Hallett, introduces an episode marking the Atlantic Coastline arrival of Hurricane Florence on September 14.  At about 7 a.m. Eastern Time that morning, the center of that large tropical cyclone made landfall near Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, bringing with it high winds, storm surge inundations, and heavy, flood-causing rainfall that would affect areas far beyond coastal Carolina.

The unwelcome arrival and impacts of Hurricane Florence made this week an appropriate time for reviewing some basics about hurricanes.  Following are six brief fact sets, based on a Frequently Asked Questions Web page from the Hurricane Research Division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA.

1. A hurricane is the strongest type of tropical cyclone, a rotating area of low pressure not associated with a weather front.  Hurricanes are called typhoons in certain regions of the world.

2. Hurricanes are ranked by sustained wind speed on the Saffir-Simpson intensity scale, as follows: Category 1, 74 to 95 miles per hour; Category 2, 96 to 110; Category 3, 111 to 129; Category 4, 130 to 156; and Category 5, over 157 miles per hour.  Each category has associated estimates of expected damages.  The highest hurricane wind speed recorded was 253 miles per hour from Tropical Cyclone Olivia in Australia in 1996.

3. Hurricane intensity is also measured by how low the sea-level air pressure goes.  The lowest pressure measured for an Atlantic basin hurricane was 882 millibars during Hurricane Wilma in 2005, compared to standard sea-level pressure of about 1013 millibars.

4. Hurricane intensity is essentially independent of hurricane size, so an intense hurricane is not necessarily a big one, as was the case with intense but relatively small Hurricane Andrew in Florida in 1992.

5. Storm surge is storm-generated, abnormal rise of water generated by a storm above the expected astronomical tide.  Storm surge flooding is one of the major threats from hurricanes, including Florence.

6. In United States history, the largest non-inflation-adjusted monetary damage caused by hurricanes was the estimated $125 billion dollars by Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and by Hurricane Harvey in 2017.  Adjusted for inflation, though, the most costly U.S. hurricanes were the 1926 Great Miami Hurricane and the 1900 Galveston, Texas, Hurricane.

There’s lots more to know about hurricanes, not least of which is how to prepare for them.  You can get preparedness information from many sources, including the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, online at vaemergency.gov/hurricanes (http://www.vaemergency.gov/hurricanes/).

Thanks to Torrin Hallett for permission to use this week’s music, and we close with another hurricane-appropriate piece by Torrin. Have a listen for about 30 seconds to “Tropical Tantrum.”

MUSIC – ~ 26 sec

SHIP’S BELL

Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment.  For more Virginia water sounds, music, or information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call the Water Center at (540) 231-5624.  Thanks to Ben Cosgrove for his version of “Shenandoah” to open and close the show.  In Blacksburg, I’m Alan Raflo, thanking you for listening, and wishing you health, wisdom, and good water.

AUDIO NOTES AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

“Storm,” a movement within “Au Naturale,” is copyright 2017 by Torrin Hallett, used with permission. “Tropical Tantrum” was composed for Virginia Water Radio by Mr. Hallett in May 2017. Mr. Hallett is a 2018 graduate of Oberlin College and Conservatory in Oberlin, Ohio. More information about him is available online at http://www.torrinjhallett.com/.

Previous episodes featuring music composed by Torrin Hallett include the following:
Episode 335, 9-26-16 on the Canada Goose – “Geese Piece”;
Episode 338, 10-17-16, on rainfall measurements – “Rain Refrain”;
Episode 343, 11-21-16, on the Wild Turkey – “Turkey Tune”;
Episode 349, 1-2-17, on the New Year – “New Year’s Water”;
Episode 362, 4-3-17, on hail, and Episode 377, 7-17-17, on clouds – “Storm,” from “Au Naturale.”
Episode 369, 5/22/17, and Episode 423, 6/2/18, on the upcoming Atlantic tropical storm seasons in 2017 and 2018, respectively – “Tropical Tantrum.”

Click here if you’d like to hear the full version (2 min./22 sec.) of the “Shenandoah” arrangement/performance by Ben Cosgrove that opens and closes this episode.  More information about Mr. Cosgrove is available online at http://www.bencosgrove.com.

IMAGES


Hurricane Florence centered over southeastern North Carolina, in a satellite photo as of 9/14/18, 4:37 p.m. EDT. (NOTE: UTC, or Coordinated Universal Time, shown on the photo is 4 hours ahead of EDT and 5 hours ahead of EST.) Image from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), online at https://cdn.star.nesdis.noaa.gov/GOES16/ABI/SECTOR/eus/02/1000x1000.jpg, as of 9/14/18 at 4:45 p.m.


Storm surge prediction for Hurricane Florence as of the morning of 9/14/18, taken from the National Hurricane Center, online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/graphics_at1.shtml?cone#contents, on 9/14/18 at 9 a.m. EDT.  Following is information on the image at that site: “This graphic displays areas that are under a storm surge watch/warning.  A storm surge warning indicates there is a danger of life-threatening inundation from rising water moving inland from the shoreline somewhere within the specified area, generally within 36 hours.  A storm surge watch indicates that life-threatening inundation is possible somewhere within the specified area, generally within 48 hours.”


Average number of Atlantic tropical storms for 1996-2009. Graphic from the National Hurricane Center, “Tropical Cyclone Climatology,” online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/climo/, 9/17/18.


National Weather Service image on how air pressure changes with height above sea level. Accessed at https://www.weather.gov/jetstream/pressure, 9/17/18.

SOURCES

Used for Audio

CNN, Hurricane Florence coverage, online at https://www.cnn.com/us/live-news/hurricane-florence-dle/index.html, as of 9/18/18.

Encyclopedia Britannica, “Atmospheric Pressure,” online at https://www.britannica.com/science/atmospheric-pressure.

Max Mayfield, et al., “Atlantic hurricane season of 1992,” Monthly Weather Review, Vol. 122, pages 517-538, excerpted online at http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/Storm_pages/andrew1992/andrew_article.html.

National Hurricane Center, “Costliest U.S. Tropical Cyclones Tables Updated,” Jan. 26, 2018, online (as PDF) at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/news/UpdatedCostliest.pdf.

National Hurricane Center, “Hurricane Florence Public Advisory Archive, online at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2018/FLORENCE.shtml?.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)/Hurricane Research Division, “Frequently Asked Questions,” online at http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/tcfaq/tcfaqHED.html.

National Public Radio, “Hurricane Florence, ‘An Uninvited Brute,’ Brings Floods To N.C. As Wind Speeds Drop,” 9/14/18, 7:06 a.m. EDT.

National Weather Service, “Jet Stream/Air Pressure,” online at https://www.weather.gov/jetstream/pressure.

National Weather Service/Wilmington, N.C., Forecast Office, “Hurricane Florence Decision Support Briefing #15, September 14, 2018, 9 a.m., online (as PDF) at https://www.weather.gov/media/ilm/LatestBriefing.pdf (as of 9/14/18, 12 p.m.).

For More Information about Tropical Storms and Severe Weather Preparedness

American Red Cross, “Hurricane Safety,” online at http://www.redcross.org/prepare/disaster/hurricane.

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), “Hurricanes,” online at http://www.ready.gov/hurricanes.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA)/Climate Prediction Center, “Atlantic Hurricane Outlook and Summary Archive,” http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/outlooks/hurricane-archive.shtml.

National Hurricane Center, “Storm Surge Overview,” online at http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/surge/.

Virginia Department of Emergency Management, “Hurricanes,” online at http://www.vaemergency.gov/readyvirginia/stayinformed/hurricanes.

Virginia Department of Emergency Management, “Know Your Zone,” online at http://www.vaemergency.gov/hurricane-evacuation-zone-lookup/. This site allows citizens to know whether or not they are in a zone most at risk from an approaching tropical storm, when emergency managers may be calling for evacuations or other actions.

Virginia Department of Emergency Management storm surge items, online at http://www.vaemergency.gov/?s=storm+surge.

Virginia Department of Transportation, “VDOT and Emergency Response” (including hurricane evacuation information), online at http://www.virginiadot.org/about/emer_response.asp.

RELATED VIRGINIA WATER RADIO EPISODES

All Water Radio episodes are listed by category at the Index link above (http://www.virginiawaterradio.org/p/index.html).  See particularly the “Weather” subject category.

Following are links to other episodes on tropical storms.
Episode 134, 10/29/12 – on Hurricane Sandy and storm surge.
Episode 163, 5/27/13 – annual season-preview episode.
Episode 215, 5/26/14 – annual season-preview episode.
Episode 266, 5/18/15 – annual season-preview episode.
Episode 317, 5/23/16 – annual season-preview episode.
Episode 330, 8/22/16 – mid-season outlook.
Episode 337, 10/10/16 – on Hurricane Matthew and storm surge.
Episode 345, 12/5/16 – season-review episode.
Episode 369, 5/22/17 – annual season-preview episode.
Episode 385, 9/11/17 – on Hurricane Irma and storm surge.
Episode 423, 6/2/18 – annual season-preview episode.

FOR VIRGINIA TEACHERS – RELATED STANDARDS OF LEARNING (SOLs) AND OTHER INFORMATION

The episode—the audio, additional information, or information sources—may help with Virginia 2013 Music SOLs at various grade levels that call for “examining the relationship of music to the other fine arts and other fields of knowledge.”

This episode may also help with the following Virginia 2010 Science SOLs.

Grades K-6 Scientific Investigation, Reasoning, and Logic Theme
2.1, 3.1, 4.1, 5.1, and 6.1 all include: Current applications to reinforce science concepts.

Grades K-6 Earth Patterns, Cycles, and Change Theme
1.7 – changes in temperature, light, and precipitation affect plants and animals, including humans.
2.7 – Weather and seasonal changes affecting plants and animals.

Grades K-6 Earth Resources Theme
4.9 – Va. natural resources, including watersheds, water resources, and organisms.
6.9 – public policy decisions related to the environment (including resource management and conservation, land use decision, hazard mitigation, cost/benefit assessments).

Grades K-6 Interrelationships in Earth/Space Systems Theme
2.6 – identification of common storms and other weather phenomena.
4.6 – weather conditions, phenomena, and measurements.

Grades K-6 Living Systems Theme
6.7 – natural processes and human interactions that affect watershed systems; Va. watersheds, water bodies, and wetlands; health and safety issues; and water monitoring.

Grades K-6 Matter Theme
6.6 – Properties of air (including pressure, temperature, and humidity) and structure/dynamics of earth’s atmosphere, including weather topics.

Life Science Course
LS.1 – understanding of scientific reasoning, logic, and the nature of science, including current applications to reinforce science concepts.
LS.10 – changes over time in ecosystems, communities, and populations, and factors affecting those changes, including climate changes and catastrophic disturbances.

Earth Science Course
ES.1 – current applications to reinforce science concepts.
ES.8 – influences by geologic processes and the activities of humans on freshwater resources, including identification of groundwater and major watershed systems in Virginia.
ES.10 – ocean processes, interactions, and policies affecting coastal zones, including Chesapeake Bay.
ES.11 – origin, evolution, and dynamics of the atmosphere, including human influences on climate.
ES.12 – weather and climate.

Biology Course
BIO.8 – dynamic equilibria and interactions within populations, communities, and ecosystems; including nutrient cycling, succession, effects of natural events and human activities, and analysis of the flora, fauna, and microorganisms of Virginia ecosystems.

The episode may also help with the following Virginia 2015 Social Studies SOLs.

Civics and Economics Course
CE.6 – government at the national level.
CE.7 – government at the state level.
CE.8 – government at the local level.
CE.10 – public policy at local, state, and national levels.

World Geography Course
WG.2 – how selected physical and ecological processes shape the Earth’s surface, including climate, weather, and how humans influence their environment and are influenced by it.

Government Course
GOVT.7 – national government organization and powers.
GOVT.8 – state and local government organization and powers.
GOVT.9 – public policy process at local, state, and national levels.

Virginia’s SOLs are available from the Virginia Department of Education, online at http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/.

Following are links to Water Radio episodes (various topics) designed especially for certain K-12 grade levels.
Episode 250 (1-26-15) – on boiling, for kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Episode 255 (3-2-15) – on density, for 5th and 6th grade.
Episode 282 (9-21-15) – on living vs. non-living, for kindergarten.
Episode 309 (3-28-16) – on temperature regulation in animals, for kindergarten through 12th grade.
Episode 332 (9-12-16) – on dissolved gases, especially dissolved oxygen in aquatic habitats, for 5th grade.
Episode 403 (1-15-18) – on freezing and ice, for kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Episode 404 (1-22-18) – on ice on ponds and lakes, for 4th through 8th grade. Episode 406 (2-5-18) – on ice on rivers, for middle school.
Episode 407 (2-12-19) – on snow chemistry and physics, for high school.

Tuesday, September 4, 2018

Episode 436 (9-3-18): Labor Day, “Sandy Boys,” and the Big Sandy River


CLICK HERE to listen to episode audio (3:59)

Transcript of audio, notes on the audio, images, and additional information follow below.

All Web addresses mentioned were functional as of 8-31-18.


TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO

From the Cumberland Gap to the Atlantic Ocean, this is Virginia Water Radio for the week of September 3, 2018.  This week is a revised repeat of the episode from September 2, 2013.

MUSIC – ~9 sec

This week, in honor of Labor Day, we feature a traditional tune associated with the river at the geographic heart of Appalachian coal mining and other hard work.  Have a listen for about 35 seconds.

MUSIC - ~33 sec

You’ve been listening to part of “Sandy Boys,” performed by Sara Grey, Kieron Means, and Ben Paley on the 2009 album also titled “Sandy Boys,” from Fellside Records.  The album’s liner notes state that the title refers to farmers and loggers in the valley, or watershed, of the Big Sandy River.  That river begins with tributaries in Virginia, West Virginia, and Kentucky and ends at its confluence with the Ohio River in Catlettsburg, Kentucky.

For centuries, the Big Sandy valley has served as a main transportation corridor for this difficult-to-reach southern Appalachian region—for walkers and horses, boats, railroads, and finally automobiles.  It’s also been the center of two natural-resource based industries—first timbering, then coal-mining—that underlie the region’s complicated history.  That history has featured tradition and change, labor and capital, unions and management, and poverty and prosperity—all part of the lives and labor of Big Sandy boys, girls, women, and men.

Thanks to Sara Grey and Fellside Records for permission to use this week’s music.  We close with three sounds of people working—pressure-washing a building, limestone work by stone masons, and a freight train—followed by a few more seconds of “Sandy Boys.”   Happy Labor Day!

SOUNDS AND MUSIC - ~31 sec

SHIP’S BELL

Virginia Water Radio is produced by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center, part of Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment.   For more Virginia water sounds, music, or information, visit us online at virginiawaterradio.org, or call the Water Center at (540) 231-5624.  Thanks to Ben Cosgrove for his version of “Shenandoah” to open and close the show.  In Blacksburg, I’m Alan Raflo, thanking you for listening, and wishing you health, wisdom, and good water.

AUDIO NOTES AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This episode revises and replaces Episode 177, 9-2-13, which has been archived.

The 2009 album “Sandy Boys” is copyright by Fellside Records (online at http://www.fellside.com/), used with permission. More information about Sara Grey is available online at http://www.saragrey.net/.

The pressure-washing sound was recorded at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg in June 2018; the limestone work sound was recorded at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg in October 2013; and the train was recorded in Pulaski, Va., in August 2013.

Click here if you’d like to hear the full version (2 min./22 sec.) of the “Shenandoah” arrangement/performance by Ben Cosgrove that opens and closes this episode.  More information about Mr. Cosgrove is available online at http://www.bencosgrove.com.

IMAGES

Big Sandy River watershed, showing its three main forks, the Levisa, Russell, and Tug. Map by Kmusser via Wikimedia Commons, accessed at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Sandy_River_(Ohio_River_tributary)#/media/File:Bigsandyrivermap.png. Made available for public use according to Creative Commons License 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0).


Modern-day “Sandy boys” and “Sandy girls” play on a soccer field created on a reclaimed abandoned coal-mine (AML) site in Buchanan County, Virginia, 2004.  This area is on the watershed divide between the Levisa Fork and Russell Fork tributaries of the Big Sandy River. Photo courtesy Richard Davis, Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy, received September 2013.


Worker pressure-washing a building on the Virginia Tech campus in Blacksburg, June 2018.

EXTRA FACTS ABOUT LABOR DAY

The following is taken from the U.S. Department of Labor, “History of Labor Day,” online at https://www.dol.gov/general/laborday/history.

Labor Day: What it Means
“Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.

Labor Day Legislation
“The first governmental recognition came through municipal ordinances passed in 1885 and 1886. From these, a movement developed to secure state legislation. The first state bill was introduced into the New York legislature, but the first to become law was passed by Oregon on February 21, 1887. During 1887 four more states — Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York — created the Labor Day holiday by legislative enactment. By the end of the decade Connecticut, Nebraska, and Pennsylvania had followed suit. By 1894, 23 more states had adopted the holiday, and on June 28, 1884, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and the territories.

Founder of Labor Day
“More than a century after the first Labor Day observance, there is still some doubt as to who first proposed the holiday for workers. Some records show that Peter J. McGuire, general secretary of the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and a co-founder of the American Federation of Labor, was first in suggesting a day to honor those "who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold."
“But Peter McGuire's place in Labor Day history has not gone unchallenged. Many believe that Matthew Maguire, a machinist, not Peter McGuire, founded the holiday. Recent research seems to support the contention that Matthew Maguire, later the secretary of Local 344 of the International Association of Machinists in Paterson, N.J., proposed the holiday in 1882 while serving as secretary of the Central Labor Union in New York. What is clear is that the Central Labor Union adopted a Labor Day proposal and appointed a committee to plan a demonstration and picnic.

The First Labor Day
“The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. The Central Labor Union held its second Labor Day holiday just a year later, on September 5, 1883.
“In 1884 the first Monday in September was selected as the holiday, as originally proposed, and the Central Labor Union urged similar organizations in other cities to follow the example of New York and celebrate a "workingmen's holiday" on that date. The idea spread with the growth of labor organizations, and in 1885 Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial centers of the country.

A Nationwide Holiday
“The form that the observance and celebration of Labor Day should take was outlined in the first proposal of the holiday — a street parade to exhibit to the public "the strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations" of the community, followed by a festival for the recreation and amusement of the workers and their families. This became the pattern for the celebrations of Labor Day. Speeches by prominent men and women were introduced later, as more emphasis was placed upon the economic and civic significance of the holiday. Still later, by a resolution of the American Federation of Labor convention of 1909, the Sunday preceding Labor Day was adopted as Labor Sunday and dedicated to the spiritual and educational aspects of the labor movement.
“The character of the Labor Day celebration has undergone a change in recent years, especially in large industrial centers where mass displays and huge parades have proved a problem. This change, however, is more a shift in emphasis and medium of expression. Labor Day addresses by leading union officials, industrialists, educators, clerics and government officials are given wide coverage in newspapers, radio, and television.
“The vital force of labor added materially to the highest standard of living and the greatest production the world has ever known and has brought us closer to the realization of our traditional ideals of economic and political democracy. It is appropriate, therefore, that the nation pays tribute on Labor Day to the creator of so much of the nation's strength, freedom, and leadership—the American worker.”

SOURCES

Used for Audio

Bluegrass Messengers, “Sandy Boys-Version 1,” online at http://www.bluegrassmessengers.com/sandy-boys.aspx.

Sara Grey, album notes for “Sandy Boys” online at http://www.saragrey.net/Recordings/SandyBoys/SandyBoysNotes.htm. This site includes the “Sandy Boys” album cover photograph of a commercial boat on the Big Sandy River in 1904.

John Hartford, “Big Sandy River,” in the West Virginia Encyclopedia, online at http://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/484.

Jane Keefer, “Folk Music Index,” online http://www.ibiblio.org/keefer/index.htm. This site lists several songs or tunes referring to the Big Sandy River, including “Boatin’ Up Sandy,” “Crossing the Big Sandy,” “Three Forks of Sandy,” “Gambler’s Song of the Big Sandy River,” “Sandy River,” and “Sandy River Belle.”

Andrew Kuntz, “The Traditional Tune Archive” (formerly “The Fiddler’s Companion”), online at https://tunearch.org/wiki/TTA. See https://tunearch.org/wiki/Annotation:Quail_is_a_Pretty_Bird for notes on “Sandy Boys.”

George D. Torok, A Guide to Historic Coal Towns of the Big Sandy River Valley, University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville, 2004.

West Virginia Explorer, “Big Sandy River,” online at https://wvexplorer.com/attractions/rivers-streams/big-sandy-river/.

For More Information on Labor Day

History.com, “Labor Day 2018,” online at https://www.history.com/topics/holidays/labor-day.

U.S. Department of Labor, “History of Labor Day,” online at https://www.dol.gov/general/laborday/history.

RELATED VIRGINIA WATER RADIO EPISODES

All Water Radio episodes are listed by category at the Index link above (http://www.virginiawaterradio.org/p/index.html).  See particularly the “Rivers, Streams, and Other Surface Waters” subject category.

For another Virginia Water Radio episode on the Big Sandy River, please see Episode 419, 5-17-18, featuring the tune “Three Forks of Sandy.”

Following are links to some other episodes on Virginia geography.
A Walk across Virginia – Episode 110, 5/14/12.
Exploration of the Chesapeake Bay – Episode 140, 12/10/12.
Geography in general – Episode 265, 5/11/15.
Water and settlement of Roanoke – Episode 181, 9/30/13.
Water and the Civil War – Episode 101, 3/5/12; Episode 164, 6/3/13; Episode 201, 2/17/14; Episode 223, 7/21/14; Episode 318, 5/30/16; Episode 412, 3-19-18.
Water and the Revolutionary War – Episode 168 – 7/1/13; Episode 273 – 7/6/15; Episode 390-10-16-17.
Water origins of Virginia Declaration signers – Episode 220, 6/30/14.
Watersheds – Episode 156, 4/8/13; Episode 209, 4/14/14; Episode 251, 2/2/15.
Virginia's Western or Alleghany Highlands | EP379 – 7/31/17.

FOR VIRGINIA TEACHERS – RELATED STANDARDS OF LEARNING (SOLs) AND OTHER INFORMATION

The episode—the audio, additional information, or information sources—may help with Virginia 2013 Music SOLs at various grade levels that call for “examining the relationship of music to the other fine arts and other fields of knowledge.”

This episode may also help with the following Virginia 2010 Science SOLs.

Grades K-6 Earth Resources Theme
4.9 – Va. natural resources, including watersheds, water resources, and organisms.
6.9 – public policy decisions related to the environment (including resource management and conservation, land use decision, hazard mitigation, cost/benefit assessments).

Grades K-6 Living Systems Theme
6.7 – natural processes and human interactions that affect watershed systems; Va. watersheds, water bodies, and wetlands; health and safety issues; and water monitoring.

Life Science Course
LS.11 – relationships between ecosystem dynamics and human activity.

Earth Science Course
ES.8 – influences by geologic processes and the activities of humans on freshwater resources, including identification of groundwater and major watershed systems in Virginia.

The episode may also help with the following Virginia 2015 Social Studies SOLs.

Grades K-6 Economics Theme
2.8 – natural and capital resources described.
3.8 – understanding of cultures and of how natural, human, and capital resources are used for goods and services.

Virginia Studies Course
VS.1 – impact of geographic features on people, places, and events in Virginia history.
VS.10 – knowledge of government, geography, and economics in present-day Virginia.

United States History to 1865 Course
USI.2 – major land and water features of North America, including their importance in history.
USI.5 – factors that shaped colonial America and conditions in the colonies, including how people interacted with the environment to produce goods and service.

World Geography Course
WG.2 - how selected physical and ecological processes shape the Earth’s surface, including climate, weather, and how humans influence their environment and are influenced by it.
WG.3 - how regional landscapes reflect the physical environment and the cultural characteristics of their inhabitants.
WG.4 - types and significance of natural, human, and capital resources.

Virginia’s SOLs are available from the Virginia Department of Education, online at http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/.

Following are links to Water Radio episodes (various topics) designed especially for certain K-12 grade levels.
Episode 250 (1-26-15) – on boiling, for kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Episode 255 (3-2-15) – on density, for 5th and 6th grade.
Episode 282 (9-21-15) – on living vs. non-living, for kindergarten.
Episode 309 (3-28-16) – on temperature regulation in animals, for kindergarten through 12th grade.
Episode 332 (9-12-16) – on dissolved gases, especially dissolved oxygen in aquatic habitats, for 5th grade.
Episode 403 (1-15-18) – on freezing and ice, for kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Episode 404 (1-22-18) – on ice on ponds and lakes, for 4th through 8th grade.
Episode 406 (2-5-18) – on ice on rivers, for middle school.
Episode 407 (2-12-19) – on snow chemistry and physics, for high school.