Toxic Sip: Hydroponic Cultivation in Contamination
CWSF · 2026 Agriculture, Fisheries & Food Bronze Medal
Overview
The idea for this project originated from understanding the risks of drinking contaminated tap water in communities under long-term boil water advisories. It also arose from observing high grocery prices and food insecurity rates in Northern Canada due to harsh climates. Farming is not often viable in these regions due to increasingly frequent wildfires in the summer and unpredictably harsh winters. Wondering if contaminated water affected plant growth and growing food sustainably using hydroponics would be successful, I decided to grow radish plants using hydroponics. I used water from four different sources: two lakes nearby, the town’s water supply, and reverse osmosis (RO) water and conducted experiments for three months. My first conclusion was that contaminated water did not affect overall plant growth. The second conclusion proved that hydroponics is a promising solution for growing fresh produce in regions with severe seasonal challenges and limited access to affordable produce.
Awards (2)
- Bronze Medal
- Selected for CWSF 2026
Competition history
- CWSF 2026
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