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Water Pollution Science Fair Project

Animal Pens and Well Water Contamination

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Animal Pens and Well Water Contamination | Science Fair Projects | STEM Projects
Can bacteria from animal pens seep into nearby well water? Farms often have livestock pens close to drinking water wells. Fecal bacteria like E. coli can travel through soil and contaminate groundwater. You collect water samples from five wells in the Batesburg-Leesville area. Some wells sit near animal pens. Others do not. You test each sample two ways: one set goes to a professional water treatment plant. A second set is tested using a lactose broth (a liquid that helps bacteria grow) and an incubator. Both methods gave similar results. Wells near animal pens tested positive for coliforms (a group of bacteria found in animal waste). One tested positive for E. coli specifically. Wells farther from animal pens showed no contamination.

Hypothesis

The hypothesis is that the wells located near the animal pens will be more likely to show fecal contamination than the wells that are not near animal pens.

Method & Materials

You will collect samples of water from five different sources and take them to the Batesburg-Leesville Water Treatment Plant for testing. You will also test five new samples from the same wells using a lactose broth and incubation.
You will need samples of water, a lactose broth, and an incubator.

Results

The results showed that the wells near animal pens did have bacterial contamination compared to the wells not near animal pens. Two of the wells tested positive for coliforms and one tested positive for fecal contamination.

Why do this project?

This science project is interesting because it helps us understand the potential risks of drinking water near animal pens.

Also Consider

Variations to consider include testing different types of water sources, such as rivers or streams, and testing for other types of contaminants, such as heavy metals.

Full project details

Additional information and source material for this project are available below.
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