Nitrates in Kuapa Pond

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Nitrates in Kuapa Pond

• By Regan Balmoja
• Grade 6

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Background Information

• What are nitrates?
• Organic matter that breaks down into ammonia
• The ammonia is oxidized
• They can be found in or out of water
• It is needed by all living things
• What is Koko Marina?
• An ancient Hawaiian fishpond, known as a
• loko kuapa
• A marina located in present Hawaii Kai
• A piece of land, distributed to Bernice Pauahi
  Bishop
• during the Great Mahale

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• How did Kuapa Pond become Koko Marina?
• It was dredged by Henry J. Kaiser, of Kaiser
  Development in 1986
• The dredging of the pond was approved by the
  Board of Land and Natural Resources.
• What is Duck Island?
• A sanctuary for ducks, created by Henry J. Kaiser
• Ducks are fed there by the marina staff, every
  morning

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Research Question

• How does a large amount of ducks concentrated
  near Duck Island affect the nitrate level affect
  the nitrate level in that area? How does this
  amount compare to other areas in Koko Marina?

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Hypothesis

• If there is a large amount of ducks
  concentrated near Duck Island, then the nitrate
  level will be highest in that area, because the
  waste and bacteria from the ducks will cause the
  nitrate level to rise. Also, I have noticed a lot
  of plants growing near Duck Island, probably due
  to the fact that there is a high nitrate level.

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Materials

• 7 nitrate ampoules per site ( Ward Science Kit)
• 2 vials for ampoules
• Pair of plastic gloves (2 per person)
• Goggles ( 1per person)
• Test Tubes (3)
• Nitrate Indicator Chart (Test Tabs)

• Dump bucket with cover
• Data chart
• 6 Test Tabs (Lamotte Test Kit)
• Squirt bottle with distilled water
• Clipboard and pencil
• Nitrate Indicator Chart (Ampoules)

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Procedure Test Tabs

• Put on your eyewear and gloves
• Clean each vial out with distilled water
• Dump excess water into the dump bucket
• Fill each vial out with water from your test site
• Put one nitrate test tab in each vial
• Invert each vial to mix its contents ( 3-6
  times)

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• Wait 2-4 minutes for pink color to develop
• Compare this color to the nitrate indicator chart
  (pills)
• Dump excess water into dump bucket
• Clean each vial out with distilled water
• Repeat steps 4-10 until you have tested the site
  6-10 times, and have found an average
• Record your findings on to a data chart

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Procedure Ampoules

• Put on your eyewear and gloves
• Clean each vial out with distilled water
• Dump excess water into dump bucket
• Fill each vial with water from your test site
• Put an ampoule into the vial, and snap the tip
  off (leave the ampoule in the water)
• Wait about 2-5 minutes fr the pink color to
  develop

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• Compare this color to your nitrate indicator
  chart (ampoules)
• Clean each vial out with distilled water
• Dump the excess water into you dump bucket
• Repeat steps 4-9 until you have tested all 7
  ampoules

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Data Chart (Ampoules)
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Data Chart (Test Tabs)
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Analysis

• After looking at my data, I noticed many things
• The Agriculture site had the highest average
  nitrate level, which was 1.5
• The Hancock Landing site had the lowest average
  nitrate level, which was 0
• The Post Office and Pizza Hut test sites had very
  consistent test results. The Pizza Hut site had
  test results which all came out to 1 ppm, as well
  as the Post Office site

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• The difference between the test site with the
  highest average, and the site which I thought
  would have the highest average was .3 ppm

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Conclusion

• My hypothesis was wrong.
• Test Results may have not been acurate, due to
  operatipnal errors during the testing, or the
  test kits may have expired
• Though I thought that Duck Island would have the
  highest average nitrate level, the Agriculture
  site did.
• I think that the swiftness of the waterflow may
  have affected the nitrate levels, because the
  organic matter that causes the nitrate levels to
  rise would exit the area

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Next Steps

• Redo tests to confirm that they are acurate
• Do further testing, to see if water flow really
  does affect nitrate levels in the marina
• Try to find out why the agriculture site had a
  higher nitrate level than Duck Island

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ANY QUESTIONS?
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