Bowling Green State University Firelands receives grant to research water quality
Bowling Green State University Firelands has received a grant from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency to involve high school students in researching the water quality of two creeks and then communicating those findings to the public.
Researchers at Bowling Green State University have identified water quality as one of the most vital resources to the economic wellbeing as well as the health of both the state and region. Following this identification, these researchers are running a new effort to study and highlight this importance to high school students.
Bowling Green State University Firelands was recently awarded a grant for $35,000 from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency to do just that. The university will work to enhance environmental science education in high schools in the area through monitoring of the watershed.
The funds from the grant will be used to support a project in which BGSU chemistry students as well as students from Huron High School and Perkins High School will monitor the water quality of two tributaries of Lake Erie, Pipe Creek and Sawmill Creek.
In an article posted on Bowling Green State University Firelands’ website, associate teaching professor of Chemistry at the Huron campus, Dr. Subhalakshmi Nagarajan, was quoted about the grant, saying, “This initiative will serve as part of the BGSU commitment to being a public university for the public good. This is an opportunity to apply the scientific knowledge and research expertise at BGSU Firelands in a way that directly benefits the local community. By monitoring the local streams that feed into Lake Erie, we develop a deeper understanding of the factors that affect the water quality.”
Over the course of the project, 100 Erie County high school students will take part in the watershed monitoring programs. Bowling Green State University Firelands students will also take part, serving as peer mentors for the high schoolers.
Dr. Julie Lenner-McDonald, who serves as assistant superintendent of academic affairs for Huron City Schools, talked about the program as well, saying, "The partnership is fantastic. It allows us to expose students to impactful work where they are contributing to their community. It also exposes students to a variety of careers associated with the sciences. This is important as students are identifying potential fields of study and career paths post-graduation.”
Dr. Nagarajan hopes the program will empower students to learn how to apply the principles of chemistry and improve their understanding not only of watersheds but also of their impacts on the environment. The students who take part in the program will learn how to collect, analyze, and communicate water quality data. The data that is uncovered during the program will be compiled into an online data-sharing platform to be used throughout the state.
Dr. Ram Veerapaneni, who serves as the interim dean of Bowling Green State University Firelands and department chair of Natural and Social Sciences, was quoted on the benefits this program will have across the board, saying, “This research project exemplifies the essence of science education, which is the ability to apply theoretical concepts taught in the classroom to solve problems in the real world. Dr. Nagarajan’s project will equip students with the tools and knowledge to monitor water quality and cultivate scientific curiosity while instilling a sense of responsibility towards our natural resources."
Dr. Nagarajan will be assisted through a network of monitoring programs developed by a collaboration between the Cleveland Water Alliance, Firelands Coastal Tributaries, and Bowling Green State University Firelands, which will work to share best practices with each other to standardize testing protocols, according to the Cleveland Water Alliance Project Manager, Max Herzog.
“Over the past few years, the Cleveland Water Alliance has deployed hundreds of sensors throughout thousands of miles of telecommunications coverage, establishing Lake Erie as the largest digitally connected freshwater body in the world, but there will always be gaps in that data. The fact that people care about our water resources deeply enough to volunteer their time to fill these gaps is a truly invaluable asset. Ultimately, communities have to be part of the solution if we are going to steward our natural resources and grow our water economy. With this OEEF-funded project, we are tremendously excited to work with BGSU Firelands and the Firelands Coastal Tributaries Watershed Program to expand this work into the classroom in Erie County,” said Herzog.
He went on to talk about how the Firelands Coastal Tributaries have long been one of the strongest supporters of the network, and also noted how Bowling Green State University will bring the necessary skills and community network to the collaboration: “Together, we will be able to develop a new paradigm for collecting actionable data while empowering youth with environmental STEM skills and stewardship experiences. I am hopeful that this paradigm will be able to scale its impact across the network in the future.”
Participating high school students will use a test that is validated by undergraduate chemistry students at Bowling Green who are working with Dr. Nagarajan, with results being published in a peer reviewed journal.
This project will expand on research done in the past by Dr. Nagarajan and her peers on Old Woman Creek back in 2019. At that time, Dr. Nagarajan was focusing her work on the wetlands and the role they play in controlling phosphorus and nitrogen content in the waterways thanks to a grant worth $20,000. She also used the grant as an opportunity to create more opportunities for teaching and research activities surrounding water quality.
Students participating in this new program will spend the year sampling water, as it is expected that the water quality will vary based on several factors including agricultural practices and the seasons. The students will then analyze their findings and give a grade for each watershed based on their collected data. They will then devise a way to communicate their findings to the public.
Dr. Nagarajan hopes that through the project more students will become interested in and pursue careers in chemistry and environmental science. She also hopes that the project will raise awareness and involvement in protecting local water resources. She also noted that the project will likely continue beyond the duration of the grant as she plans to expand the scope of the research to more students and schools as time progresses.
“I sincerely believe this is an important step towards preserving this invaluable resource for future generations. Inspiring scientific curiosity in K-12 students is something I’m passionate about, and I am excited to partner with our local schools to establish this monitoring effort,” she said.
More information about Bowling Green State University Firelands can be found at the school’s website.