By Jamie Petrocca ’16

The West Essex Science Department received a $5,000 grant from international chemical manufacturer BASF in early November for the school’s STEM Club. “We are looking to make the school a better, more environmentally friendly place,” said junior Amanda Garofalo, a member of the STEM club.

Ms. Wall, the club’s adviser, said the money will be used to set up what is called an aquaponics system, which involves raising fish and using waste from the fish as nutrients to grow plants, as well as recycling the water between each system.

“We also hope possibly grow some vertical gardens within the school, so we are combining engineering with environmental science,” Ms. Wall said.“It is a really cool idea! We also want to possibly use Koi for fish and then build a koi pond on campus.”

Ms. Wall and Sam Minion, a junior and member of the club, wrote a proposal letter to BASF in hopes to receive this grant. “In the letter we spoke about our goals of bringing greenier technology to our school,” Ms. Wall said.

In the future, club members say, they hope to grow baby fish such as trout and then possibly release them into a local lake. “We plan on working with Lake Hopatcong to make the aquaponics possible, and the maintenance staff to carry out our plans for the greenhouse and vertical gardens throughout the school. As STEM club president, we together are going to help conduct and organize plans to bring these ideas to life on how to make the school a better place,” said Sam Minion.

In 2012 BASF granted $100,000 in total to schools throughout New Jersey  to help enhance science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) related learning for students in grades K – 12.

“Our goal is to engage students in creative new ways that will stimulate their interest in STEM related fields and encourage them to view science as a long-term field of study and possible career path,” said Robin Rotenberg, vice president and chief communications officer for North America at BASF Corporation, in a press release.