Page 487 - Canadian BC Science 9

Science Skill 4
Societal Decision Making
Suppose you are part of a hockey team that practises at an arena in a town a few kilometres away. Every winter, there are days when you cannot get to the arena because the roads are too icy. The town council is in the middle of budget discussions, and one of the items under discussion is the salting of roads. The council is prepared to expand the salting program so that roads in your area will be salted in winter. You and your teammates are delighted. This will make your trip to the arena easier—and always possible.
Identifying the Issue
Soon after hearing the news about the road- salting, you go to your friend’s house. You find your friend sitting in front of the computer, composing a letter to the town council. In it, your friend is asking that the salting program not be expanded to your area. You are surprised,
but as you begin discussing the letter, you start to see your friend’s point of view.
“What do you mean, damage the environment?” you ask. “Isn’t it important to make our roads safer?”
Gathering Information
“It is,” answers your friend, “but is there some way we can make the roads safer without doing so much harm to the plants at roadsides and to the drinking water in springs and wells? I was going to research to find information about these questions I have written down.”
“Whew,” you say. “There is an awful lot to think about here. Let us see what we can find out from the Internet.”
After researching you say, “Well, we found a lot of information, but I am still not completely convinced that salting the roads could cause a problem with our water. What sorts of things do we need to find out in order to answer that question?”
“We could do an investigation,” your friend suggests. “Then I could use the results in my letter to the town council.”
Science Skill 4 • MHR 469