PROJECT JAR:Jefferson Acid Rain Project
Dr.Michael J. and Dr.Virginia C. Demchik
Sixty-seven volunteers from our classes participated in project
JAR. Acid rain was collected during the month of October, 1996,
according to a specific protocol.The methodology utilized includes
collecting rain water in a glass jar lined with a ziploc bag and held
in place by a rubber band.
The jar must be at least three feet off the ground to avoid any
splash back. The jar must also be kept out of the rain shadow of the
home and of the trees in the area. This means that the jar must be
kept at least as far away as the object is high. The jar must also be
kept out of low lying areas and way from streams.The time for
collection is 6:30 to 7:00 AM each day and brought to school in an
effort to maintain the same temperature at which it was collected. On
weekends the acid rain collected is placed in a glass jar in the
refrigerator and brought to school the following Monday.
The data collected for the month of October is shown in the following
table.
| DATE/OCTOBER | pH | # SITES REPORTING |
|---|
| 03 | 5.0 | 09 |
| 08 | 4.4 | 33 |
| 09 | 4.7 | 51 |
| 11 | 4.5 | 42 |
| 18 | 4.4 | 21 |
| 19 | 4.9 | 41 |
| 20 | 4.4 | 30 |
| 22 | 4.4 | 29 |
| 26 | 4.5 | 39 |
| 29 | 4.5 | 01 |
| 10 | 4.5 | 28 average | |
The average amount of rain during this time period .41 inches per day with 10 days of rain at pH 4.5 with 28 sites reporting on the average. The normal rainfall has a pH of 5.6. The acid rain is a little over ten times stronger than normal rainfall. Collections of this nature provide a good deal of information about the watershed in the area and also provide some information about stream pH. Acid snow was collected in February. The project reported the protocol and procedure as it is collected.
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