The hypothesis: Body care products such as shampoo and soap are contributing toxic levels of pollutants in ground water runoff and are a potential threat to fish. The findings: Students identified untreated street runoff as the largest source of Alkyl Phenyl Ethoxylate (APEs) entering the marine environment around the island. While the amounts were less than expected, that is not grounds for complacency, said the student’s mentor, Russel Barsh.

Orcas Middle School students worked with Barsh of Kwiáht, a biology laboratory, to determine if their hypothesis was indeed correct. What they thought they would find was a accumulation of endocrine-disrupting compound such as dioxins and PCBs which are found throughout the world in rivers, lakes and oceans. After discussing the potential threat of these toxins to fish, students participated in a screening-level study to determine whether Orcas is a source of new-generation EDCs in its marine environment. According to Barsh, the students in Laura Tidwell’s marine science class collected water samples from area lakes, ponds, storm sewers and the sewage treatment plant. Working with a Japanese company, a group of students acquired antibodies to the toxins and a scanning spectrophotometer and they were able to measure very small quantities of APEs in the local environment.

Students Sofia Fleming, Emma Thoron and Tashi Litch gave after-school hours to complete preparation and testing of the water samples. Barsh said that Kwiaht works with all the schools in the county through the district’s STEM program to help students with science enrichment projects that deal with the environment. And then, when students show a real motivation and interest, they are invited to take part in the after-school program.

Much of the needed equipment for these projects comes from local donors and the Orcas Island Community Foundation which aid for the scanning meter needed for this experiment. In all, more than $8,000 was donated, half being used for equipment and the other half for “consumables,” Barsh said.

When fish are exposed to these toxins, specifically the APEs, Barsh said they become sterile and cannot reproduce.

“Aquatic invertebrates such as fish and amphibians are the most exposed to APEs and are especially at risk,” he said.

As little as 50 parts per billion APE in water have been shown to affect the development and survival of aquatic animals.

“APE has been difficult and expensive to measure, so relatively little is known about how much APE is already in the environment, or how effectively APE is removed by treatment of sewage and road runoff,” he said.

But the recently developed antibodies by the Japanese company helped allow for the testing in a less expensive way. The testing showed that the highest levels of APE were found in the sewage entering the Eastsound treatment facility, 30 to 40 parts per billion, enough to cause adverse effects to fish. But treatment reduced that to five parts per billion before sewage left the facility.

Runoff from Eastsound streets tested 11 to 15 parts per billion, with sources being automotive fluids (oils, transmission and brake fluids) leaking from cars, washing of cars, windows and sidewalks. Lakes popular for camping and boating tested at 13 to 19 parts per billion. Nearly all the private ponds and streams tested had detectable APE, but were below the five parts per billion. Properly maintained septic systems detain most APEs, Barsh said. What this all means, he said, is that homeowners should consider creating rain gardens that collect the storm water runoff. Rain gardens have underneath infiltration with plants and other materials that will absorb the toxic particulates that otherwise would travel via streets and streams into the bay.

“The community needs to come to grips with treatment of street water runoff,” Barsh said. “Area rain gardens are one way of doing that.”

While the county is experimenting with holding ponds in which runoff can be treated, he said students are already planning rain gardens to treat half the runoff from the high school parking area. It will be operational by the end of the school year. Fleming, a seventh grader who took part in the testing of the pollutants, said the project allowed her many experiences she wouldn’t get in her regular science class.

“I learned how to set up a test on the micro plate reader and then set up the micro plate,” Fleming said. “From that we were able to find how many chemicals wet in our water. I learned a lot about the water sources around the island and about how APEs affect our island and other places.”

She said that by doing the experiment, she and other students will be more conscientious of times when they might be added pollutants to water sources. For info email kwiaht@gmail.com.

– By Leslie Kelly, special to the Journal