How do nutrients and pollutants travel from rivers to the sea?

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Suitable for 14-18-year olds (secondary and high schools, and college), this article and accompanying activity sheet can be used in the classroom, geography/STEM clubs and at home.

This resource links to KS4 geography: locational knowledge; place: processes and relationships; physical geography: processes and change; people and environment: processes and interactions. It is also internationally relevant.

It can also be used as a careers resource and links to Gatsby Benchmarks:
Gatsby Benchmark 2: Learning from career and labour market information
Gatsby Benchmark 4: Linking curriculum learning to careers

The article explains how sediment (suspended particulate matter - SPM) travels from rivers into seas. It described the consequences of this and why 3D imaging SPM enables researchers to understand how nutrients and pollutants travel in this way. The resources includes interviews with Professor of Environmental Geography Kate Spencer and Postdoctoral Research Assistant Jonathan Wheatland.

The activity sheet includes discussion points the students can answer in groups or individually. There are also suggested activities and other relevant links to resources from the British Geological Survey.

This resource was first published on Futurum Careers, a free online resource and magazine aimed at encouraging 14-19-year-olds worldwide to pursue careers in science, tech, engineering, maths, medicine (STEM) and social sciences, humanities and the arts for people and the economy (SHAPE).

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