Amy Gangloff Conducts Water Research at William Woods University

2013 May 20

When you think of tap water, often only one word comes to mind: "disgusting."

Many people on the William Woods University campus, as well as in the Fulton community, share the belief that Fulton water is not healthy and has a bad taste.

Dr. Joe Kyger, assistant professor of chemistry, along with his general chemistry class, went out into the community in hopes of discovering the truth. Amy Gangloff of Wellsville, Mo., was one of the researchers.

The idea originated when Kyger realized the student body, as well as the faculty and staff, had a notion that Fulton water was not safe to drink. He once shared that belief.

Kyger was looking for a challenging and significant experience for his general chemistry students that met all the requirements for a valid project-based learning activity.

"The activity must be student-driven, it must mirror traditional learning goals for the course, and critically, the students must buy into the project. The instructor becomes the facilitator; the class gets the job done."

As part of a project-based learning activity, students went out into the community to find out where this notion came from. Project-based learning draws on the traditional coursework but introduces a hands-on experience.

Class members surveyed students and community members about why they don't drink Fulton water. The majority of those surveyed said they did not like the taste, with health concerns being their next reason.

Armed with this information, the students ventured to the library to do research on the history of mining in Fulton. One of the possibilities they considered was mine runoff causing heavy metal contamination in the water.

They also researched the Internet for water quality data, regulations for tap and bottled water and Fulton's water quality compared to that of Jefferson City and St. Louis.

"We have a right as informed citizens to analyze our water quality," Kyger said.

What the students found through their research came as a surprise. The quality of Fulton water was as good as Jefferson City or St. Louis water. They concluded that Fulton water was not only healthy, but better to drink than bottled water.

The next part of their project centered on the argument of whether to drink tap or bottled water. The students overwhelmingly sided with tap water for several reasons.

First, it is better for the environment. There are 1,500 plastic water bottles consumed in one second in the United States, which averages out to 50 billion bottles per year. Of these, 80 percent end up in the landfill despite recycling programs. They cannot decompose for thousands of years.

The second point the students made was that bottled water isn't always as safe as tap water. In a four-year study conducted by the Natural Resources Defense Council, the NRDC found that roughly 22 percent of the water tested in water bottles contained contaminant levels that exceeded state health limits.

Unlike tap water, bottled water is not required to be regularly tested. This means that contaminants could enter the water without the public's knowledge. Plastic toxins, for example, have been linked to reproductive issues and cancer.

Even if a contaminant was found, bottled water legally does not have to be recalled, and the public doesn't have to be informed.

Finally, it is cheaper to drink tap water versus bottled water. Bottled water costs 1,000 times more than tap water. Drinking two liters of tap water a day only costs 50 cents per year.

To wrap up their project, the students hosted an event on campus to inform the WWU community of their findings. A poll taken at the end showed that a majority of the audience was genuinely surprised and convinced to start drinking tap water.

This was the first time Kyger had used project-based learning and he was pleased with the result. He also found the experience as a whole to be extremely rewarding.

"It was one of the best experiences I've had at William Woods."