Resources

In the lead-up to the game, use the classroom activity cards to develop your knowledge and awareness of issues facing many Australian environments. Clicking on any of the links below will open the file in Adobe Acrobat Reader.
 * **Accidents**
 * Spills of many kinds can be villains.
 * A spill can occur a long distance from the site it affects. Pollutants are carried in the water and may reach the groundwater.
 * Some spills can be difficult or impossible to clean up. || [[image:accidents_button.png align="center"]] ||
 * **Flow, silt and sediment**
 * Dams and other artificial changes (irrigation) to the river change the flow.
 * The flow affects the amount of dissolved oxygen in the water.
 * Flooding can be beneficial to a river system.
 * Soils and silts cause changes to the depth and flow of the water, which in turn affects the temperature and the fishes’ ability to breathe. || [[image:Flow_button.png align="center"]] ||
 * **Land use**
 * Human activity affects land and water quality.
 * Pollutants directly emptied into the water system can be generated by factories, sewage, abattoirs and so on.
 * Chemicals and other run-off can enter the water system in indirect ways.
 * Cleared land and overgrazed land will allow sediment to wash into waterways.
 * Recreation, dams and transport affect water quality. || [[image:land_use_button.png align="center"]] ||
 * **Nutrients**
 * Nutrients from run-off, chemical fertilisers and sewage cause an increase in plant and algae growth in rivers.
 * Water temperature is raised, flow is lowered, oxygen is lowered.
 * On land high nutrient levels favour the invasion of pest species. || [[image:nutrients_button.png align="center"]] ||
 * **Run-off**
 * Run-off is the rain that is neither absorbed by the ground nor evaporated.
 * Run-off can carry with it all the loose materials in the catchment, washing soil, fertilisers and pesticides into the waterways. || [[image:runoff_button.png align="center"]] ||
 * **Salinity**
 * The level of salts and minerals in the water is affected by the rising water table.
 * Land clearing and irrigation (including domestic lawn watering) create high water tables and high salinity.
 * Salinity affects agriculture and the species that can survive. || [[image:salinity_button.png align="center"]] ||
 * **Stormwater**
 * Stormwater systems carry litter and other residential rubbish, which can wash down gutters and drains.
 * Sewerage systems can overload into the stormwater system. || [[image:stormwater_button.png align="center"]] ||
 * **Vegetation**
 * Trees and plants play a vital role in the health of our waterways.
 * Removing trees allows more water to reach the groundwater system.
 * Vegetation protects the fragile river banks from collapsing and forms a buffer between land and the waterway.
 * Plants in and around the water provide habitats for animals, as well as shading the river and slowing the flow. || [[image:vegetation_button.png align="center"]] ||
 * **Water temperature**
 * Cold water holds more oxygen.
 * Warm water results in the growth of plants and algae.
 * Turbid (muddy) water heats up more quickly than clear water.
 * Cutting trees along river banks raises water temperature. || [[image:water_temp_button.png align="center"]] ||