Final answer:
The difference between how much average water levels rose and how much the water level fell in the part of the river Ericka observed is 24.8 mm.
Step-by-step explanation:
Ericka observed the total variation in the water level over 6.2 years to be -13.64 mm. To find the difference between how much the average water levels rose and how much the water level fell, we need to calculate the total rise in water level over 6.2 years using the average annual trend of 1.8 mm/year.
Since the time period is 6.2 years, the total rise would be 6.2 years multiplied by 1.8 mm/year, which gives us 11.16 mm.
Therefore, the difference between how much average water levels rose and how much the water level fell in the part of the river Ericka observed is 11.16 mm - (-13.64 mm) = 24.8 mm.