Environmental Chemistry/Fresh Water

Fresh water is a topic for Environmental Chemistry in the 2022 season (and likely 2023).

The Competition

In the event, a team of two is given fifty minutes to complete any combination of hands-on activities, questions, experiments, data analysis, all of which relate to environmental chemistry. Participants are also expected to have read and studied several pages of the Clean Water Act and Wastewater Operator Certification Manual, both of which describe proper water-handling procedures. Scoring is largely based on the chemistry portion of the event (60% of total score), but answering questions about interpreting data (20% of total score), and answering questions about the Clean Water Act and Wastewater Operator Certification Manual (20% of total score) also make up a large portion of the participants' score.

Parameters

Teams may bring pencils, a ruler (12-15 in.), one three-ring binder of any size containing information in any form and from any source (sheet protectors are allowed), and two stand-alone, non-graphing calculators. Pages may not be removed from the binder during the event. Teams should also bring the Recommended Lab Equipment for Division C Chemistry Events, posted on soinc.org.

Additionally, participants must use goggles, an apron or lab coat, and their skin must be covered from the neck down to the wrist and toes. Pants must be loose-fitting, and shoulder length or longer hair must be tied back.