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For their environmental science capstone project, seniors Michelle Correa ‘21 and Morganne Vogel ‘21 set out to analyze the chemical composition of tree rings from trees on campus to gauge the impact of emission pollution on them over time, namely before and after the Clean Air Act of 1996.
They faced a unique academic obstacle: The samples from campus chestnut-oak trees they obtained for their project were too dense, with tree rings too narrow, to allow for timely analysis in their professor’s lab.
In addition, due to a change in the timing of the fall 2020 semester due to the coronavirus pandemic, the student-scientists had about four weeks’ less time than usual to perform and analyze their capstone project work. They were also limited in the number of people allowed in the same lab at the same time, making lab scheduling tougher.
Under pressure, Vogel and Correa were able to obtain donated samples of white pine from a facility in Mahwah, New Jersey, and pivoted their project accordingly. For nine weeks, they spent 10 to 20 hours per week working in the lab, often researching into late-night hours.
“It felt like the ultimate challenge, drawing out everything I’ve learned from past classes,” Correa says. “As an undergrad in the environmental science department, I’ve read through several different scientific journals that spoke about methods and techniques. To actually apply them was a brand-new experience, and quite riveting, I might add.”
Using three different techniques to cross-reference their findings, Correa and Vogel compared the chemical analyses of the tree rings from two different decades: 1972- to 1982 and 2010 to 2020.
Their study confirmed a difference in concentrations between macro and micronutrients in the white pine at different points in history. Soil bio-nutrients, weather events, and soil acidity caused by pollution may have impacted their results, Correa and Vogel explained during a presentation to their classmates, but they did not have enough time to investigate all of those variables. “We hope to revisit this topic in the future,” Vogel says. “Exploring this research further will answer so many unanswered questions and open new horizons for scientist in this area to explore.”
Nicole Davi, professor of environmental science, who taught their senior practicum course, says she was impressed by their skills and dedication to their research, especially under the difficult circumstances posed by the pandemic. “They were pioneers here, doing an analysis no one has done at William Paterson before,” she says.
Their capstone project now behind them, the student-scientists look back at it proudly.
“I am so grateful to be a part of the environmental science program at William Paterson University,” Vogel says. She notes how “wonderful” an experience it was to work in a science laboratory and learn how to use sophisticated equipment such as the Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectrometer, as an undergraduate.
“This experience helped me gain confidence in the lab and as a student,” Correa adds. Following commencement, she now plans to seek employment in the field of scientific lab research and analysis.
