NAME:____________________BLOCK:____DATE:________
Lab: Clean up Pioneer Pond
Introduction:
Imagine a stream running through your neighborhood. If you’re thirsty,
should you lower your head and take a drink? Of course not. It’s never
completely safe to drink water in nature. How did the water get dirty?
As soon as raindrops splash onto the ground, the water starts to clean
everything it touches, including the trees, the earth, and our rooftops. As it
cleans them, the water gets dirtier, just like a bucket of mop water fills with dirt
from the floor. As the water flows from land toward the sea, it keeps on cleaning
and picking up types of contamination.
Two kinds of contamination can make water unhealthy to drink: biological
material, such as bacteria or viruses, and chemicals, such as heavy metals or
pesticides. Water on the earth’s surface, as in rivers, lakes, or reservoirs, is
almost certain to carry bacteria, mostly from animal waste. Those bacteria must
be removed or treated before the water is safe to drink. Water in an aquifer
undergoes nature’s own filtration process as it soaks through the ground. The
fine particles of sand and soil strip away most of the bacteria and other
pollutants. That’s why people living in the country, far from community water
systems, can drill wells and drink the water with minimal or no treatment.
Groundwater, though is vulnerable to some kinds of chemical
contamination. People can spill chemicals or dump them illegally. Those
chemicals can then dissolve in the water. Enough contaminants can make the
water unsafe to drink. Pollutants and other contaminants get into our water
supply in many different ways. Sources of contamination can be Point Sources
which originate from a specific point or place, such as a discharge pipe from a
factory or sewage treatment plant. Non-point Sources originate over a
widespread area and is difficult to determine exactly where the pollution comes
from, such as runoff from roads, farms, or lawns.
The effect of pollutants depends on the concentration of the contaminant,
the volume of water in the receiving water body, and the flow rate of the water
(speed of travel). Thus, contaminants entering a river may travel much farther
and become more widespread than those entering a lake with a limited outflow.
However, the cleaner the water is at the source, the less expensive the treatment
will be.
Materials:
To make filter
 “pond” water container
 clear plastic bottle
 funnel
 gravel
 sand
 charcoal
 baking soda
 cotton balls
 paper towels
 coffee filters
 beaker
Pollutants in pond water
 Trees – leaves
 1st Homeowner – soda
 2nd Homeowner – chocolate
sprinkles
 3rd Homeowner – liquid plant
fertilizer
 Beach goers – Styrofoam
 1st Farmer – soil
 2nd Farmer – laundry detergent
 Shopping mall lot – pencil shavings
 Electric company – vinegar
 Chemical plant – yeast
 Sewage treatment plant – chocolate
syrup
 Gas station – vegetable oil
Procedure:
1. Listen carefully as Mrs. Cummings reads the story about Pioneer Pond and
how the pond gradually became polluted. The fish tank represents the pond.
2. The pollutants will be added to the pond as they are mentioned in the story.
3. When the story is complete and all of the pollution is added to Pioneer Pond,
look at the materials you were given to clean up the pond.
4. Using only the materials given and your knowledge of each of the pollutants
that were put into the pond, design a filter system to remove the pollution.
Draw a picture and describe your filter (i.e. What will each material you put in
your filter going to filter out of the water?) in the data section under trial 1.
5. Once your design is complete, build your filter in the plastic water bottle and
filter your portion of Pioneer Pond water.
6. After you have used your filter system, record what pollutants your filter
system filtered out and which ones it didn’t in the data section under trial 1.
7. Design another filter system to remove the remaining pollutants. Draw a
picture and describe your filter in the data section under trial 2.
8. After you have used your second filter system, record what pollutants your
new filter system filtered out, if there are any pollutants left, and the clarity of
your Pioneer pond water in the data section under trial 2.
9. Whoever developed the best system of filtering and ended up with crystal
clear water wins the Pioneer Pond Clean Up Award and a gift from Mrs.
Cummings.
Data:
Filter System Trial 1
Sketch your filter design.
Describe what each part of you filter is going to filter out of the pond water.
SKETCH
What pollutants did your filter system filter out?
What pollutants may still be in your pond water?
DESCRIBE
Data:
Filter System Trial 2
Sketch your filter design.
Describe what each part of you filter is going to filter out of the pond water.
SKETCH
What pollutants did your filter system filter out?
Are there any pollutants left in your pond water?
Is your water crystal clear?
DESCRIBE
Analysis:
1. Which do you feel is worse, point or nonpoint pollution? Why?
2. Who is responsible for cleaning up the pond? Why?
3. What are the three factors that determine the effect of pollutants?
4. How would the pollution effects be different if the pond was a river? Describe.
5. Which one of your filter systems worked the best overall? Why?
6. Were there any key materials for filtering out a particular pollutant? Describe.
7. How does nature purify water?
8. Part of helping our environment is to be aware of possible sources of pollution
around us. What could be done to keep Pioneer Pond from becoming
polluted in the first place? Fill in the table below by determining what type of
pollution was caused by each contributor and come up with possible ways to
prevent that type of pollution from happening.
Contributor
Trees
1st Home Owner
2nd Home Owner
3rd Home Owner
Contribution
Leaves
Household
cleaners down
the drain
Septic tank
leak and
overflow
Too much
fertilizer on
lawn
Beach Goers
Litter
1st Farmer
Poor erosion
control-soil
runoff
2nd Farmer
Too much
pesticides
Shopping Mall Lot
Car oil, litter,
and salt
Electric Company
Chemical Plant
Sewage
Treatment Plant
Gas Station
Burning of coal,
formed acid
rain
Discharged
heavy metals
and chemicals
Discharged raw
sewage
Cheap storage
tanks – gas
leaked into soil
Pollution Type
(Point or
Nonpoint)
Possible Prevention Methods