La Salle sophomore Emily Papazian took the trip of a lifetime this past summer thanks to her outstanding Rhode Island Science Fair project “How Does Temperature Affect Total and Fecal Coliform Levels in Rhode Island Ponds” which won a First Grant in the statewide competition last school year – her freshman year.

“As a result of my project being a First Grant winner and the fact that it focused on a subject of interest, I was selected as the Rhode Island representative in The Stockholm Junior Water Prize competition in Alaska,” said Emily, who was accompanied by her science teacher, Sheena McGee-Flynn.  “I was very excited to be selected and have the opportunity to spend four days in Alaska.”

Emily, a very successful competitive long distance runner on the La Salle Girls Cross Country and Track teams, said that the beauty of Alaska was beyond belief.  “In addition to the competition, we had time to see some of the wonders of Alaska including glaciers, small villages and the incredible inlets and sounds.”

The international Stockholm Junior Water Prize is a competition that encourages young people's interest in water and environment issues. Beginning in 1997, the award is given annually for an outstanding water project by a young person or a small group of young people at a ceremony held during the World Water Week in Stockholm. The international Stockholm Junior Prize winner receives a $5,000 scholarship (U.S. currency) and a blue crystal sculpture in the shape of a water droplet.

The finalists at the international Stockholm Junior Water Prize are the winners of their national contests. The national and international competitions are open to pre-university young people ages 15-20 who have conducted water-related projects on topics on environmental, scientific, social, or technological importance. The national competitions have helped students around the world become active in water issues.

Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden is the Patron of the Stockholm Junior Water Prize.

Emily’s Abstract: How does temperature affect total and fecal coliform presence in Rhode Island ponds?

Water was sampled from three ponds in Rhode Island(Georgiaville Pond, Wenscott Reservoir, and Olney Pond) in the late summer, early fall, and late fall months, each with three testing points (inlet, outlet, and beach).  There were eight testing dates over this period of time.  The water collected was tested for both fecal and total coliforms using the multiple fermentation technique; the water temperature and pH were recorded over the testing period.  Throughout the experiment, water temperatures and recorded pH fell.  The total and fecal coliform counts were found to decrease in a non linear fashion as water temperatures fell.  The correlation between coliforms and pH was inconsistent.  On average, coliform counts found at beach locations were higher than those at the inlets, which in turn were higher than counts at the outlet locations.   Of all the beach areas tested, the lowest amount of coliform contamination was found at the beach of Georgiaville Pond.