3. Water in Our Cities

3. WATER IN OUR CITIES

LOCAL BODY OF WATER

URBAN WATER CYCLE: from nature to the faucet

OTHER SCHOOLS news story:

Students will research water security in their city:

Learn about the importance of a local body of water to a city’s ecosystems, economy, history, or culture.
Research the city’s water system and analyze a strategy to protect water security. Deepen their understanding of water security and consider what it means for water security to be equitable.
Produce a news story to share the strategies to protect water security in their cities now and in the future.

3. WATER IN OUR CITIES

LOCAL BODY OF WATER

Our closest body of water in Cerdanyola is Riu Sec (should be translated as "Dry River" in English).
This river is born near Matadepera crossing different towns and cities, ending in Ripoll river.

Here you can see the Riu Sec river, in Cerdanyola.

We planned an in-field trip to observe and explore the nearest body of water to our school: Riu Sec. It's an affluent river of Ripoll and Besòs. They form part of the hydrographic basin of Besòs river.

Observing the map and location, there were several points of interest in the area of Riu Sec: the river itself, some "masies" (traditional Catalan farms), a chapel of St. Pau de Riu Sec, and a Wastewater Treatment plant amongst others.

Riu sec in field trip- POI.pdf

The trip was short but we were able to explore the Riu Sec area, which is formed by 3 different municipalities: Badia del Vallès, Sabadell & Cerdanyola del Vallès.

Once in the river, we organized some workgroups and got some information through direct observation.

The area, now full of Shopping Malls like Ikea or MediaMarkt, tells a lot about the river and human history.

There is a church (XI century), called "Sant Pau de riu sec" which is protected as a cultural asset of local interest. However, the archaeological site shows the evolution from a Roman villa to a medieval parish of this Vallès area.

The fact that there are old buildings like "masies" gives us an idea of the importance of agriculture in the past as an engine of the local economy.