This Friday, Ryan Mrofchak, a senior biology major, will be presenting his original research as part of his Honors Thesis. Ryan is investigating the presence of fecal bacteria in Lake Newport, a water resource in Youngstown's Mill Creek Park. Please come and support him!
Ryan gave a really insightful presentation on the level of fecal bacteria contamination in Lake Newport and these bacteria being E.coli and Enterococcus (a better indicators of fecal contamination).
ReplyDeleteIt was interesting to know that levels of these bacteria increase drastically almost anytime it rained. Some of the factor to these are pesticides, fertilizers, domestic animal and failing septic tanks. He also talked about how Enterococcus strains have genes that are resistant to Vancomycin; the last resort for treating this infection.
His results show that, there are high level of Enterococcus with the resistant gene and the toxic strains of E.coli in Lake Newport. There are notices around the shore of the lake advising the public not to fish or swim in the lake due high levels to fecal contamination. Interestingly, people still do these things right by the notices. What can the communities around the lake do to reduce the level of fecal contamination in the lake and what do you think can be done to stop people from fishing and swimming in the lake?
Ryan's presentation was really good and I think he's well on his way to be a great scientist. As someone who lives close to Lake Newport and visits it occasionally, I was intrigued by his work. What was most concerning to me from his presentation was the potential vancomycin resistances found in several bacteria and the number of bacteria he found, particularly after a rain event. I suppose after a rain event the number of bacteria found is expected to increase, but several dates indicated they were well above the standards for safety. Investment in surrounding sewage infrastructure could help prevent excessive contamination. Maybe encouraging surrounding homeowners to plant rain gardens that can collect excessive runoff water can help as well. In my opinion, nothing short of a ban enforced by the park police will stop people from fishing or kayaking/boating in the water. Lake Newport is a blessing to have in the area and we should be more keen about keeping it in good condition.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed Ryan's presentation on Friday and thought he did a great job! It is so important for everyone to learn of the impacts we have on our environment and how we can make small changes to improve things like lakes that we are fortunate enough to have so close to us. I think some things we can do to help improve the contamination would be to have regular check ups on our septic tanks to make sure they are operating properly and having them emptied when they need to be. Along with this, we can make other improvements for decreasing the use of pesticides and have rain gutters directed towards the grass so they are being filtered through the soil. It is also important if we live near drains that we limit the leaves and trash entering them as they usually go directly to lakes. As for how to prevent swimming and boating, I think monitoring the high traffic areas would help to decrease some of this from happening.
ReplyDeleteRyan did a great job with his presentation on Friday. I believe it is very important to our environment for the public to learn about the impacts they make and the little things that they can do to make a change. As Nathan said, investing in the sewage infrastructure to make upgrades and improvements would assist in preventing contamination. Decreasing pesticide usage and planting gardens to help collect rain water would also help. As for preventing people from fishing or swimming in contaminated lakes, a ban would need enacted and the area monitored regularly.
ReplyDeleteHello all! I was quite impressed with Ryan's presentation last week. I thought his project was interesting and it was clear how much hard work he has poured into it. As for Thywill's question, I think the first step should be educating the public and the people who possess properties near Lake Newport more. When I was a volunteer at St. Elizabeth's hospital, I would always walk past this billboard that displayed how much sugar is in soda and common sweet drinks, and it completely changed my beverage choice from that point on ( kind of looks like this http://en.houston.wiclist.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/705291-500x500.jpg). It wasn’t just the information that the billboard presented that made me change, it was actually seeing those amounts of sugar constantly that made an effect on me. If people truly can understand and see the negative human impact that has been made to Lake Newport (with signs in the area displaying images, more articles in local newspaper, online movements, and etc.), that would be a good starting point to make changes. After that, creating and enforcing water regulations might be an easier process.
ReplyDeleteI thought Ryan did such a great job and that his project is super important. It's interesting to see what problems we have locally because we most often are exposed to global environmental concerns. I agree with my peers, educating the nearby residents like Nathan mentioned or a similar presentation to Alex's experience with the sugar in pop could both be helpful avenues. The issue definitely needs to be addressed to some level and hopefully resolved. I support Hillari's suggestions that a ban would need to be placed to stop locals from swimming and fishing, even then some may feel they don't need to listen. Especially considering there is already signage warning people of the potential harm.
ReplyDeleteHi everyone. I loved Ryan's seminar talk and that it pertained to something local. I had no idea there was an issue for the lake in Mill Creek Park, or that it was caused by the surrounding city. I think it could be advantageous to research how other metro parks deal with similar issues. I agree with Alex in that the current signage may not be enough and something more visual and relatable for the public could be beneficial. Perhaps something discussing the seriousness of the current bacteria and what it can do to human health. Additionally, some signage informing the public of how this issue has been created and what can be done to solve it. Visuals could really help with this issue. Beyond the signage, updated sewage and water management could make a difference. Redirecting the water to a more appropriate location where it can be properly treated.
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