Water Explorers Students in Citizen Science Water Protection

This action focuses on citizen science activities with school children during Romania's Green Week, involving scientists from GeoEcoMar. The objective is to raise awareness about water pollution, macroplastics on beaches, and environmental protection through hands-on education.

The initiative will use the Backpack Lab™ Water Quality Testing Kits, engaging students in testing various water parameters such as acidity, alkalinity, carbon dioxide levels, dissolved oxygen, hardness, nitrates, phosphates, pH, and temperature. By conducting field tests, children will learn about the health of local water bodies and the impacts of pollution.

The toolkit includes methods like titration and colorimetry to measure water parameters with the following tools:

Acid and alkalinity through titration methods using methyl orange and phenolphthalein.
Dissolved oxygen using Winkler's method.
Nitrates and phosphates using colorimetric methods to assess the presence of pollutants.
pH and temperature using pHep®4, while conductivity (EC) and total dissolved solids (TDS) are measured using DistR5.

Through these activities, students will:

Understand basic water quality concepts and the environmental impact of pollutants.
Contribute data to real scientific research alongside experts.
Develop a sense of environmental stewardship by addressing local pollution challenges, particularly focusing on macroplastics collected from beach areas.

The expected impact includes:

Enhanced environmental awareness among young students.
Active involvement in pollution monitoring at a local scale, contributing to the broader goals of water preservation.
Encouraging collaboration between scientists and the public, fostering citizen-led scientific initiatives to protect water ecosystems.

This hands-on approach aims to inspire future generations to take responsibility for environmental preservation and understand how scientific tools can be used to measure and mitigate pollution.