Project:

The Interactions Between Heavy Metal Concentration and Fungal Biodiversity in Black Rock Forest and Central Park

Students:

Sidney Helder-Lindt, Saira Kapoor

School:

The Dalton School, Manhattan

Mentors:

Andy Chen

Abstract:

Heavy metal contamination in topsoils all around the world is a growing concern that must be addressed in the near future. Through different means, both human and natural, heavy metals have found their way into our soil and are causing harm to any living organism they meet, whether plant, fungi, or animal. However, a gap in knowledge remains in the exact relation between heavy metal contamination and fungal biodiversity within the context of the different ecosystems of Central Park and Black Rock Forest. This study aims to achieve three goals in order to understand this relation. We aim to determine the fungal biodiversity in both Central Park and Black Rock Forest, to quantify the concentration of various heavy metals and compare the values obtained from each location, and to determine whether a connection between fungal biodiversity and heavy metal concentration exists, whether through mycoremediation or fungal biodiversity being reduced by high heavy metal concentrations.

Poster:

Team samples:

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