TRASH TALK

CONWAY 1.14 ENV

Question
Do different types of pollution
leave different effects on plants?

Abstract
The problem of my experiment was to test which type of pollution affects
the environment the most. I wanted to test this problem because pollution is a
growing problem in todays society. If we are going to stop polluting our
environment, then we should know what type of pollution affects the
environment the most. My hypothesis for this experiment is If I make multiple
biomes with plants stimulating our environment and put land and water
pollution in them, then the water pollution will affect the plants the most,
because the chemicals in the water affect the plants directly and internally.
To test this, I put plants in two containers, for water pollution and air pollution.
Every day I poured roughly 5 milliliters of motor oil on each of the plants of
the Water Pollution bin, and had extra Carbon Dioxide put in the Air Pollution
container using dry ice via a tube.

Hypothesis
If I make multiple biomes with plants
stimulating our environment and put
land and water pollution in them, then
the water pollution will affect the plants
the most, because the chemicals in the
water affect the plants directly and
internally.

Materials
3 large plastic storage containers
3 lids for the plastic storage containers
Soil
Tomato plants
350 mL of motor oil
Water
Dry Ice
Foam cooler
Plastic pipe
Caulk
Label machine.

Procedure
1.

Gather materials.

2.

Place 7 in. of soil in each of the 3 plastic containers.

3.

Place the 5 tomato plants in each of the containers.

4.

Label the containers Non-Polluted, Air Pollution and Water Pollution with label machine.

5.

Take one lid and drill a hole in it.

6.

Take the pipe and fit it in the container with the hole.

7.

Seal the pipe with caulk.

8.

Take cooler and drill a hole in it.

9.

Take the other end of the pipe and fit it in the hole.

10. Seal the pipe with caulk.

11. Wait for caulk to dry.
12. Once caulk is dried, place dry ice in cooler.
13. Place lid with pipe connected to the cooler on the Air Pollution container.
14. Pour 5 milliliters of polluted water on each plant in container that says Water Pollution and seal it with the
lid.
15. Pour half a cup of water on each plant in the Non-Polluted container, Air Pollution container and Water
Pollution container.
16. Repeat steps 14 and 15 every day for 14 days.
17. Record the height of each plant.

Variables
Independent variable: Type of
pollution.
Dependent variable: Height of
plants.
Control: Non-polluted plant height.

Results
Air Polluted
Plant Height
(in.)

Water Polluted Non-Polluted

Plant Height
Plant Height
(in.)
(in.)

9 inches

8 inches

12 inches

8.5 inches

6 inches

10 inches

8.5 inches

7 inches

11 inches

8 inches

8 inches

11.5 inches

9 inches

8 inches

11 inches

Conclusion
Based on my results, I can conclude that
the water pollution had a greater effect
than the air pollution. The non-polluted
plant height average was 11.1 inches. The
water polluted plants height averaged to
7.4 inches, while the air polluted plants
height averaged to 8.6 inches. The height is
used to determine how much the pollution
stunted the growth of the plant.

Sources
"Rules for All Projects."Student Science. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Aug. 2015.
<https://student.societyforscience.org/rules-all-projects>.
(n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2015, from http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/25/china-toxicair-pollution-nuclear-winter-scientists
Air. (n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2015, from http://www.nrdc.org/air/
Air Pollution Facts, Air Pollution Effects, Air Pollution Solutions, Air Pollution Causes - National
Geographic. (n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2015, from
http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/pollution-overview/
Bradford, A. (2015, March 10). Pollution Facts & Types of Pollution. Retrieved September 17, 2015, from
http://www.livescience.com/22728-pollution-facts.html
Causes, Effects and Solutions of Land Pollution - Conserve Energy Future. (2013, April 17). Retrieved
September 17, 2015, from http://www.conserve-energy-future.com/causes-effects-solutions-of-landpollution.php
Earthplatform.com. (n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2015, from
http://www.earthplatform.com/c/pollution/land