Tailings ponds, lakes that hold the toxic by-products of oil sands mining, cover an area of 176 square kilometers in Alberta and contain enough liquid to fill 390,000 Olympic-sized pools. Tailings ponds are extremely detrimental to the environment and pose challenges for improving extraction processes used by oil and mining industries. If left untreated, tailings ponds have the potential to pollute water sources, damage ecosystems, eliminate biodiversity and kill a variety of living organisms. An example of tailings ponds pollution includes harmful ions such as lead and mercury which affect the environment.The removal of heavy metals in tailings ponds as well as wastewater is appealing yet challenging. In addition to benefiting the environment, the extraction of these metals creates value out of what would otherwise be waste.

To address these issues, we propose a system using engineered bacteria and bacteriophage-- viruses that infect and reproduce within the host bacteria-- to capture and remove ions from solution using novel capsid composition and inducible precipitation. Utilizing biological systems and local infrastructure will both purify contaminated water and extract reusable metals renewably. To better understand the feasibility of our project, we plan on using a mixture of kinetic, agent-based and spatial modelling. Kinetic modelling will allow us to mathematically understand the trend of our system as well as how our system will react to specific parameters. Agent-based modelling will display the different components of our system. This allows for a more accurate visualization of the system as a whole with the different agent interactions. Finally, spatial modelling will help us demonstrate our unique system to the general public. Additionally, we plan to contact the head of the Water Treatment Plant in Lethbridge to see how our project could be integrated into their facility, as well as to understand how our project would function in their system. Our system of engineered bacteria and bacteriophage will provide a solution to the issue of metal contaminants present in water.

Before you start

Please read the following pages:

Styling your wiki

You may style this page as you like (fo' real) or you can simply leave the style as it is (nah). You can easily keep the styling and edit the content of these default wiki pages with your project information and completely fulfill the requirement to document your project.

While you may not win Best Wiki with this styling, your team is still eligible for all other awards. This default wiki meets the requirements, it improves navigability and ease of use for visitors, and you should not feel it is necessary to style beyond what has been provided.

Uploading pictures and files

You must upload any pictures and files to the iGEM 2018 server. Remember to keep all your pictures and files within your team's namespace or at least include your team's name in the file name.

When you upload, set the "Destination Filename" to T--YourOfficialTeamName--NameOfFile.jpg. (If you don't do this, someone else might upload a different file with the same "Destination Filename", and your file would be erased!)

UPLOAD FILES

Wiki template information

We have created these wiki template pages to help you get started and to help you think about how your team will be evaluated. You can find a list of all the pages tied to awards here at the Pages for awards link. You must edit these pages to be evaluated for medals and awards, but ultimately the design, layout, style and all other elements of your team wiki is up to you!

Editing your wiki

On this page you can document your project, introduce your team members, document your progress and share your iGEM experience with the rest of the world!

Use WikiTools - Edit in the black menu bar to edit this page

EDIT PAGE

Tips

This wiki will be your team’s first interaction with the rest of the world, so here are a few tips to help you get started:

State your accomplishments! Tell people what you have achieved from the start.
Be clear about what you are doing and how you plan to do this.
You have a global audience! Consider the different backgrounds that your users come from.
Make sure information is easy to find; nothing should be more than 3 clicks away.
Avoid using very small fonts and low contrast colors; information should be easy to read.
Start documenting your project as early as possible; don’t leave anything to the last minute before the Wiki Freeze. For a complete list of deadlines visit the iGEM 2018 calendar
Have lots of fun!

Inspiration

You can also view other team wikis for inspiration! Here are some examples:

Team:Lethbridge HS

Lethbridge HS iGEM 2018!