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Colorado mine accident

8/15/2015

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I hope you’re enjoying the last weeks of summer vacation!

For inexpensive chemistry lab ideas to expand your repertoire, buy my lab book Chemistry on a Budget for $21 at amazon.com or $23 at lulu.com.

Chemistry on a Budget contains several labs that are great for the beginning of the school year!  Topics used include Significant Figures, Density (2 labs) and Physical Separation techniques -- they are very handy for the beginning of the school year.

There are two versions of each lab, one with a ten-question conclusion and one with directions for a full lab report.  This way the teacher has the option!  Each lab is two pages to allow for one two-sided handout. 

It will take a week or so to get to you, so Order Now!

http://www.amazon.com/Chemistry-Budget-Marjorie-R-Heesemann/dp/0578129159/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1389410170&sr=1-1&keywords=chemistry+on+a+budget

http://www.lulu.com/shop/marjorie-r-heesemann/chemistry-on-a-budget/paperback/product-21217600.html

I realize that during the school year it’s very difficult to keep up with research topics.  During the next few weeks, I will talk about some current research going on in the science community. 

I posted last month about the concerns about Abandoned Mines on 7/15/2015.  I did not anticipate the current accident in the Colorado mine.

There are several news reports about this accident – here’s one from National Public Radio (NPR) that is pretty comprehensive:

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/08/11/431527360/rivers-shut-down-over-epa-s-spill-of-3-million-gallons-of-toxic-water?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=npr&utm_term=nprnews&utm_content=20150811

On source reminds its readers that "[t]housands of mines with toxic water lie under the West...”
http://www.9news.com/story/news/local/2015/08/09/toxic-water-mines-animas-river/31379871/

It is quite shocking to see the river turned brown as the waste continues through the waterway.  Here is a local news story as the events unfolded:
http://www.9news.com/story/news/local/2015/08/09/state--emergency-durango-la-plata-county/31381113/

Here is a shorter article about the Colorado mine spill that might be useful for a class assignment:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-08-07/botched-epa-clean-up-spills-mining-waste-into-river-in-colorado

This is a very timely concern so you may want to use it during the introductory days of the course -- or resurrect it later when studying about The Periodic Table.

Students could read a chosen article about the incident, summarizing it or listing 10 facts, and/or have a discussion about the pros and cons of mine clean-up.

This Blog contains several entries that would be helpful to your chemistry classroom.  Remember, you can check out the Topic List to help you to find past Blog entries.

Enjoy the last weeks of your summer vacation.  Order my book now to get it before school starts!

 

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    Marjorie R. Heesemann is a chemistry teacher with 15 years of experience who is now working to develop resources for the Chemistry classroom.

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