There’s something sinister lurking in Lake Erie: hydrophobic organic pollutants! Researchers from the Lohmann Lab at the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography need your help sampling the Great Lakes for pollution. The Great Lakes Passive Sampling research project has volunteers deploy polyethylene passive samplers in the water and air throughout the Lake Ontario and Lake Erie region. Then, levels of persistent hydrophobic organic pollutants can be measured and analyzed by scientists back in the lab. The polyethylene passive samplers are simple and made of plastic that can absorb hydrophobic contaminants: they’re an inexpensive alternative to traditional air and water sampling methods. The researchers depend on a network of volunteers to gather data from all over the Great Lakes to discover where pollution is worst.
Image credit: Lohmann Lab

http://web.uri.edu/lohmannlab/welcome/great-lakes-passive-sampling/