At the Montana Section of the American Water Resources Association (AWRA) meeting recently in Kalispell, Bob West, a chemistry student at Montana Tech, was awarded first prize for his poster presentation, Organic carbon and sediment biogeochemistry: Georgetown Lake, MT. Each year at the AWRA meeting, students are encouraged to present their research to the water research community. Often, engaging discussions are prompted by these presentations, giving students an opportunity to hone their professional scientific communication skills.
West, a junior from Butte, was presented with the award, which included a certificate and a check for $100. The winning poster explored the composition of shallow sediments from the bottom of Georgetown Lake with the goal of better understanding the connections between biogeochemical processes in the sediments and the water column of the lake. This work is part of an ongoing collaboration that is investigating the geochemistry and microbial ecosystem structure at Georgetown. Lead investigator Steve Parker (Chemistry & Geochemistry) recently received funding to help support this project from the Montana Institute on Ecosystems.