How to Solve the Need for Green Areas and

Recreational Centers in the Town of Santa Cruz

Name: Makaida Williams

Subject: Green Engineering Unit one

Assessor: Mr Stewart

Centre: St Elizabeth Technical High School

Centre number: 100600

Candidate Number: 1006

 Table of Contents
Introduction..................................................................................................................................................................... 3

Methodology................................................................................................................................................................... 4

Presentation of Data........................................................................................................................................................5

Analysis and Discussion................................................................................................................................................10

Findings........................................................................................................................................................................ 12

Conclusion.................................................................................................................................................................... 13

Recommendation...........................................................................................................................................................14

References..................................................................................................................................................................... 15

Appendix....................................................................................................................................................................... 16

2|Page
 Introduction

The Town of Santa Cruz is in the parish of St. Elizabeth. This city has all sorts of businesses to

accommodate the need of its citizens and others living in nearby towns and communities. Having lived in

Longwood District, a community not far from Santa Cruz the researcher has observed that there were no

green areas or any recreational facilities apart from the community center which was built and has never

been used. Noticing this, the researcher has decided to investigate ways to resolve this problem and then

assess if the chosen solution is best for a positive impact on the surrounding environment.

Objectives

 Find ways in which to reduce the amount of water coming into the town.

 Ways to utilize the water coming into the town.

 Find places that are suitable for building green areas and recreational centers in the town

 Maximise the efficient use of water coming into town

3|Page
 Methodology

The instruments used to collect the data were an interview and a questionnaire. The questionnaire is

a set of printed or written questions with a choice of answers, devised for a survey

or statistical study while an interview is a formal meeting in which one or more personal questions,

consult, or evaluate another person. The questionnaire had ten questions. The researcher went to the town

residents and gave out the questionnaire at the establishment. The interview and questionnaire were chosen

because it was easier for both the researcher and the town folks. The researcher had difficulties collecting

the data because of their busy schedules so she had to send it by email and wait. The questionnaire was

given on February 10, 2023, to the workers of the business and was received back on February 15, 2022.

4|Page
 Presentation of Data

To what gender do you belong

20%

30%

50%

Male Female Prefer not to say

To what age group do you belong

40%

35%

30%

25%

20%

15%

10%

5%

0%
6 - 11 years old 12 - 18 years old 19 - 29 years old 30 and over

5|Page
 What method do you recommend for reducing the amount
of water coming into the town

Build a new drainage system

5%
Build a soak-away-system and
new drainage system
40%

Clean out the drainage system

25%

Create a soak-away-system
30%

W h a t w a y s d o y o u re c o mme n d th e w a te r c o u ld b e u s e d
60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
Used to water nearby farms Treat it and use it to do household Turn it into drinkable water
chores

6|Page
 What would you like to be built in the town as a way to en-
tertain residents of Santa Cruz
60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
Build A green area Build a recreational park Build both a green area I don’t know what to
and recreational park in choose
one

What is positive impacts of redirecting the water coming

into the town

with less water coming to the town the chance of water settling 30%
makes it less likely for mosquitoes to breed

posibility of the roads flooding minimizes 15%

Less water containing garbage will come into the town and block 35%
the drains

lessens corrosion of side walks and roadway 20%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40%

7|Page
 What is the best way to treat water
50%
45% 45%
40%
35%
30%
25% 25%
20% 20%
15%
10% 10%
5%
0%
Adding chemicals such as Distillation Filtration Boiling
sodium hypochlorite

What are the most efficient ways to make use of the water
60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
Water activities on house hold chores fountians/wells Send into water bodies for
summer days aquatic life

8|Page
   What are the negative impacts of the ex-
cessive water coming into the town

50%

25%

15%
10%

the possibility of the wa- The walkways being the possibility of death by A decrease in the
ter contaminating water flooded making it hard to drowning availability of taxis
sources reach my destination

9|Page
 Analysis and Discussion

Based on the research results most of the individuals who answered the questionnaire were females, which
was 50%, the males being 20%, and the last 30% choosing not to disclose their gender.

Figure 2: the bar graph is displaying the age group the respondents belong to

It is shown in Figure two that 35% of the respondents belong to the age group 12-18 years old, 30% of the
respondents belong to the age group 19-29 years old, 20% of the respondents are 30 years and older and lastly 15%
belong the age group 6-11 years old.

Figure 3: This is showing what the respondents would recommend for reducing the amount of water coming into the
town

According to the results of the question; 40% recommend building a soak-away system and a new drainage
system,30% answered to create a soak-away system,25% choose clean out the drainage system and 5% said to build
a new drainage system

Figure 4: the above diagram shows what the responders recommend the water could be used for

50% recommend using the water on nearby farms,35% choose to treat it and use it to do household chores
and 15% said turn it into drinkable water

Figure 5: This displays the answer to what would you like to be built in the town to entertain residents of Santa Cruz

10% choose to build a green area, 15% choose I don’t know what to choose, 25% choose to build a
recreational park and lastly, 50% choose to build both a green area and a recreational park in one.

Figure 6: the bar above depicts the question of what the positive impacts of are redirecting the water coming into
the town

According to the results of the data entered above shows that 35% choose that less water containing
garbage will come into the town and block the drains, and 30% replied with less water coming to the town the
chance of water settling makes it less likely for mosquitoes to breed, 20% choose lessens corrosion of sidewalks and
roadway and lastly 15% replied with the possibility of the roads flooding minimizes.

Figure 7: the bar graph represents the percentage of what the respondents think is the best way to utilize water
coming into the town

According to the results, 5% said to sustain households with the treated water, 15% choose to supply
businesses with treated water,35% replied to use it for community projects ( parks, gardens, community -0centers)
and 45% choose agricultural use.

Figure 8: the line graph above demonstrates what is the best way to treat the water

10% believed that adding chemicals such as sodium hypochlorite is the best way to treat the water coming
into the town,20% choose distillation,25% replied with boiling it and 45% choose filtration.

Figure 9: the bar graph shows what are the most efficient ways to make use of the water

10% believed that sending it to water bodies for the aquatic life, 15% replied with using the water for
fountains and wells,25% choose to use it for water activities on summer days and lastly 50% choose to use the water
to cook, clean and for food preparations.

10 | P a g e
Figure 10: The line chart above is for the question of what the negative impacts of the excessive water are coming
into the town

10% replied that there is a decrease in the availability of taxis, 15% responded with the possibility of death
by drowning, 25% choose the possibility of the water contaminating water sources and lastly, 50% replied with the
walkways being flooded making it hard to reach my destination

11 | P a g e
 Findings

From Figure 1, a circle graph, most of the respondents were females. In Figure 2, most individuals answered the

questionnaire between the ages of 12-18. In Figure 3 it is suggested that a soak-away system and a new drainage

system. In Figure 4 it is suggested that the best way to utilize the water is to send it to nearby farms. Figure 7 The

choice chosen by most of the respondees is to use the water for agricultural purposes. In Figure 8 it is found that

filtration is the best way to treat water. For Figure 9 choose it the water is most effective for household chores In

Figure 10 the walkways being flooded is a huge negative impact.

12 | P a g e
 Conclusion

In conclusion, the best way to reduce the amount of water coming into the town is by building a soak-away

system and building a new drainage system. The efficient way of using the water is for agricultural purposes. the most

suitable place to build a recreational centre and green area is an old park that is located in Longwood. The best way to

maximize the use of water is for household chores.

13 | P a g e
 Recommendation

The researcher has some recommendations that may be put in place to help with the community’s issues. To

begin with is to have a new soak-away system and a new drainage system even though new ones were built a few

years ago it still didn’t help with the flooding. Another positive impact of building a new drainage system is a soak-

away system provides possible job opportunities for the locals.

Secondly plant more vegetation While trees, shrubs, and even different varieties of grass can be decorative

and scenic, they serve an even greater purpose when it comes to flood prevention. Extra vegetation can absorb excess

water into the soil and can prevent land erosion by slowing down heavy water flow.

Thirdly educate townspeople on the importance of keeping not littering, it is a known fact that flooding is

caused by blocked drains that are full of garbage so it’s best to try and educate the individuals. Also having harsher

punishments and fines for a litter can be a solution too.

14 | P a g e
 References

Watersheds, flooding, and pollution. (n.d.). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
https://www.noaa.gov/education/resource-collections/freshwater/watersheds-flooding-and-pollution

A godsend for flood-prone St Elizabeth communities. (2022, August 21). Jamaica Observer.
https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/a-godsend-for-flood-prone-st-elizabeth-communities/

Santa Cruz drainage woes continue. (2013, April 27). Jamaica Gleaner.
https://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20130427/news/news8.html

15 | P a g e
 Appendix

Questionnaire :
This survey is carried out to determine the factors contributing to juvenile delinquency. This study is

being conducted as an S.B.A. assignment for the Social Studies course I am pursuing. This is simple just

circle or ticks the answer that seems right to you.

1. To which gender do you belong

[ ] Female

[ ] Male

[ ] Prefer not to say

2. To what age group do you belong?

[ ] 6-11

[ ] 12-18

[ ] 19- 29

[ ] 30 and over

3. What method do you recommend for reducing the amount of water coming into the town

[ ] Build a new drainage system

[ ] Clean out the Drainage system

[ ] create a soak-away system.

[ ] Build soak way system and a new drainage system

4. What ways do you recommend the water could be used

[ ] used to water nearby farms

16 | P a g e
 [ ] treat it can use it to do household chores

[ ] Turn it into drinkable water

5. What would you like to be built in the town as a way to entertain residents of Santa Cruz

[ ] Build a green area

[ ] I don’t know what to choose

[ ] Build a recreational park and lastly

[ ] Build both a green area and a recreational park in one.

6. the positive impact of redirecting the water coming into the town

[ ] Less water containing garbage will come into the town and block the drains

[ ] Less water coming to the town the chance of water settling makes it less likely for mosquitoes to

breed

[ ] Lessens corrosion of sidewalks and roadway

[ ] The possibility of the roads flooding minimizes.

7. How do you think is best to utilize water coming into town?

[ ] Community projects (park, garden, community centre)

[ ] Sustain households with treated water

[ ] Agricultural use

[ ] Supply businesses with treated water

8. What is the best way to treat water?

[ ] Adding chemicals such as sodium hypochlorite

[ ] Distillation

[ ] Filtration

[ ] Clay vessel filtration

[ ] Solar purification

Boiling

9. What are the most efficient ways to make use of water?

17 | P a g e
 [ ] Water war on summer days

[ ] Household chores

[ ] Fountain/Wishing well

[ ] Send into water bodies for the fish

10. What are the negative impacts of the excessive water coming into the town

[ ] the possibility of the water contaminating water sources

[ ] The walkways are flooded making it hard to reach my destination

[ ] the possibility of death by drowning

[ ] Taxi leaving

18 | P a g e