Dave Davis, Mallory Strickland and Kelly Conley at Erico Bridge site.

The November meeting of the Slippery Rock Watershed Coalition was a special one, featuring the presentations of 19 students from Westminster College.

The students, chemistry and biochemistry majors, had been researching abandoned mine drainage at the De Sale and Erico Bridge treatment sites as part of a unique service-learning project.

Guided by assistant professor Dr. Helen Boyland, the students took advantage of a partnership with the SRWC to delve into some hands-on science. By analyzing the chemistry of water samples taken at the treatment sites, students were able to take knowledge learned in the classroom setting and apply it to the environment in the real world.

"Students use their knowledge about the chemistry of acid mine drainage and chemical testing to study the water samples," said Dr. Helen Boylan, Westminster College assistant professor of chemistry. "They provide a service to the community by partnering with SRWC, a non-profit organization, by providing them with the analytical test results of their sites. This is a win-win situation. The students get a hands-on experience with real world samples and observe chemistry in action, and SRWC avoids the very expensive cost to hire a commercial lab for routine monitoring of their systems."

"This certainly could be an on-going project," Boylan said. "Passive treatment systems use natural processes to clean the water such as limestone rock beds. They are installed around areas that have acid mine drainage problems, and these sites need to be checked continuously to make sure they are doing their job."

Students saw this “chemistry in action” over a 3 week period, during which time they analyzed DeSale and Erico Bridge water samples both in the field and in the laboratory.

Located in Venango Township, Butler County, the passive treatment complex at Erico Bridge has been removing essentially 100 percent of the acidity, 97 percent of the iron and 81 percent of the manganese from a 500 gallon per minute abandoned mine drainage discharge.

Students who presented research findings included: Mitch Taylor, Joe Elliot, Cory Criss, Mallory Bugel, Andy Olphin, Ryan Schubenski, Durann VanGorder, Jenny Steele, Mike Gorka, Mallory Strickland, Amy Thomas, Callie Croushore, Devin Smith, Ian Yarger, Bret Myers, Kelly Conley, Ryan Schafer and Dave Davis.

“Thank you so much, students, for your interest in passive treatment technology and for all of your hard work and time dedicated to water analysis,” said Margaret Dunn, SRWC. “SWRC members were energized by the Westminster College student presentations and encouraged the participants in the Slippery Rock Watershed Coalition to improve the function of the passive systems treating abandoned mine drainage.”

There is great promise this could become an on-going project for Westminister students and the SRWC.

The advanced laboratory chemistry class in which the presenting students are enrolled is a part of Westminister College’s service-learing projects. Funded by the Drinko Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, its goal is to enrich undergraduate education using a multitude of varied methods.

Collaborations addressing community and regional needs, including strengthening pre-K-12 education, are a major component of its work. Undergraduate research with faculty and incorporating academically meaningful community service into the curricula are often employed to full the mission of the program.

Research and travel grants and internships are afforded participating students.

For more information, contact Dr. Boylan at 724-946-6293 or send email to: boylanhm@westminster.edu.

NewsClip: Students Present Results of Acid Mine Drainage Research

(Reprinted from The Catalyst newsletter, Slippery Rock Watershed Coalition)

3/9/2007