Activity (Hands-On)Grades 7 - 10
Grow Your Own Algae!
Students discover how tiny microscopic plants can remove nutrients from polluted water. They also learn how to engineer a system to remove pollutants faster and faster by changing the environment for the algae.
Example algae tray.Copyright 2011 Robert Bair. STARS – University of South Florida
Environmental engineers play a critical role in protecting the environment and public health by developing wastewater treatment systems that use microbes to break down dangerous contaminants and pollutants. They must consider factors such as pH and temperature when they design systems to remove nutrients from wastewater.
After this activity, students should be able to:
- Explain how the amount of light that passes through a sample can be used to determine the growth of microbes.
- Demonstrate that algae consume nutrients dissolved in water.