Celebrating Environmental Science

The Prince William County Service Authority recognized the winners of the Prince William County-Manassas Regional Science Fair at its April 2017 Board of Directors Meeting.

Each year, a group of Service Authority employees judge experiments related to water quality and the environment, and then award the winning entries with certificates and cash prizes from corporate sponsors. This year, the Service Authority gave out $1,050 in cash prizes to the winning participants.

Gainesville Middle School student Thomas Burrell took first place in the Middle School Division. His project was entitled “What is the Effect on Nano Silver on Daphnia Magna?”

“I’ve always been intrigued by science and I’ve always wanted to do something for the environment,” said Burrell. “I feel like my project can actually benefit someone, even the Service Authority. That make sme happy.”

The team of Rebecca Hawkins, Alexander Hughes and Jessica Liu from the Governor’s School @Innovation Park were victorious in the Senior High Division with their project “The Effect of Salinity on the Toxicity of Atrazine to the Hyper-Hypo Osmoregulator Palaemonetes Pugio.”

Matthew Drum of Porter Traditional finished second in the Middle School Division while Abigeal Cronan (Graham Park) and Sarah Steverson (Reagan) won General Manager Awards for their respective efforts. Last year’s Senior Division winner Elizabeth Shablom of Battlefield High School also earned a General Manager’s Award for her project.

“The Prince William-Manassas Regional Science Fair is a fantastic opportunity to showcase the talent and ingenuity of our next generation of scientists and engineers,” said General Manager Dean Dickey. “The Service Authority is proud to reward these innovative young men and women, and we are thoroughly impressed with their exceptional science projects.”