By Clay Carver
Interactions–
George Mason University is known for being a very ecofriendly and sustainable college campus, but there are still underlying issues. One of these issues is the water quality of the waterways present in the Fairfax campus. An example of this issue is the creek located between the RAC and Mason Pond parking garage, which travels all around campus and feeds into the Mason Pond.
Resource Characteristics-
It is difficult to quantify a resource such as this freshwater stream, but there are many plant and animal communities that rely upon this stream for survival. This system is right in the middle of campus and is surrounded by buildings and a construction site to the northeast. This construction site poses a major ecological threat because of the possible waste runoff that could occur. The runoff from construction sites leads to large amounts of sediment being dumped in the water which is why the waterways are so brown on campus (Controlling runoff, n.d.). There is also a huge issue with people littering in this area and if you walk through this spot, you will see trash all around the creek.
Governance/user characteristics-
This issue has a strange interaction with the users because of the stormwater nature of the creek and pond. Mason pond is a manmade water structure that is fed completely by stormwater and this can lead to major pollution of the waterways on campus. GMU has been working with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality to get the waterways within the national EPA standards. The university also plans to meet three milestones and those are: 5% reduction of nitrogen, phosphorus, and suspended solids by 2018, another 35% by 2023, and the final 60% by 2023 (Water, n.d.). The office of Sustainability on campus is working on improving these waterways, but the issue of rapid campus growth is a major roadblock for the health of this creek. Right next to this creek is a construction site that will eventually be completed and GMU is planning on keeping this area as a green space. The issue is that most of campus used to be green space until the university decided it needed more building space, so how do we know this creek is not next?
Social/cultural/economic/political settings or related ecosystems-
Economic factors play a major role in this issue because at the end of the day, the University wants to expand and make more money through more students on campus. One of the easiest, but not best, ways to do this is to destroy most of the green space on campus and construct new buildings instead. On the other side, Mason is one of the greenest universities in the state and we have somewhat built a culture around that. Personally, the green spaces on campus are my favorite part, and I know many others feel the same because you will always see people in these areas during good weather. There is still an issue of the social norm of throwing away your trash in these green spaces and especially the waterways. This creek is almost always covered in litter and this is something that Mason students need to improve on before any change can be made.
What can we Do?
There are many actions that can be taken moving forward, but one of the simplest and most effective methods is for students to simply stop littering. This is obviously not an easy task because you cannot watch every student all the time and stop them, but there are ways to mitigate this problem. My recommendations for this creek would be more trashcans in the surrounding area which should entice more people to dispose of their trash correctly. Having more trashcans present would lower the amount of litter in the creek which would also positively affect the health of aquatic organisms (Why Littering, 2018). Another idea would be some signs with pictures and descriptions of local animal and plant species around this creek. From a psychological standpoint, when you actually show people the organisms they are harming, they are a lot more likely to avoid hurting them. As a university, we definitely need continued pushing for the sustainability goals we set out for our waterways (Water, n.d.).
If relevant
The University has not acted specifically on this creek, but they have been working towards the health of Mason Pond. Working towards the three milestones talked about earlier is the main method being taken by GMU.
Works Cited-
Controlling Runoff and Erosion at Urban Construction Sites. (n.d.). Extension.missouri.edu. https://extension.missouri.edu/publications/g1509
Water – Office of Sustainability. (n.d.). Green.gmu.edu. Retrieved April 12, 2022, from https://green.gmu.edu/campus-sustainability/water/
Why Littering Is Not the True Problem. (2018, July 30). Clean Water Action. https://cleanwateraction.org/2018/07/30/why-littering-not-true-problem