Floods on the Minnesota River - Planning for St. Peter
Summary
In this lab, students make a flood hazard map for the city of St. Peter, MN. They use the 100-year flood as the design flood level for planning the zoning in St. Peter. Students proceed by determining what the 100-year flood level is for this part of the Minnesota River and then determining the areas of St. Peter that would be affected by such an event.
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Learning Goals
- Calculate the extent of a 100-year flood event for a given river and location.
- Determine the geographical area that would be affected by a 100-year flood event.
- Develop recommendations for city planners to use in controlling development in areas that would be affected by a 100-year flood event.
Context for Use
This laboratory activity is appropriate for use in an undergraduate earth science class addressing hydrology and its impacts on society.
Description and Teaching Materials
Lab Activity Sheet (Acrobat (PDF) 149kB Jan20 04)
Teaching Notes and Tips
Students will need both log-log and arithmetic graph paper as well as a topographic map of St. Peter, MN.
Assessment
Lab groups turn in graphs used to calculate the size of the flooding event, topographic maps of the affected area and their answers to discussion questions making recommendations to city planners and evaluating the process used to determine the area that would be affected.
References and Resources
Minnesota River Profile: This page provides a profile of the Minnesota River that is necessary for the lab.