Boy Scouts from Troop 79 in Robbinsville recently spent the day at the New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium (NJSGC) in Sandy Hook to work on their environmental science merit badge.
The five scouts completed work before attending the class to learn about topics such as the history of environmental science in the United States and the numerous types of pollution on earth.
The scouts first spent time learning about the history of the area, including the former military base located on Sandy Hook. Jody Sackett, the merit badge counselor at the NJSGC, reviewed human effects on the local ecology and explained different careers in the field of environmental science.
The scouts participated in several outdoor experiments, including using fishing nets to help understand what is found on the bottom of Sandy Hook Bay. Some of the items they found were fish, algae, natural sponges and, unfortunately, trash. They also conducted a vegetation survey of the high salt marsh on the beach.
To finish the program, the scouts conducted experiments in the NJSGC’s laboratory to try different methods of cleaning up oil spills, understand how long commonly found trash in waterways takes to decompose, and the affects of pollution on living organisms.
To learn more about Troop 79, contact the troop at troop79bsa@yahoo.com.
