PORTUGAL COVE-ST. PHILLIP’S, N.L. — Many people go out in the morning to get their caffeine at a local coffee shop.
Members of the Conservation Corps Newfoundland and Labrador Green Team, however, have brewed up a new way to seek out caffeine this summer.
The team has been testing for excess nitrates and phosphates — and now caffeine — in waterways around Portugal Cove-St. Philip’s for the past few years.
It’s the fourth summer in a row for Green Team efforts in the town. Members conduct chemical analyses of the waterways and do river surveys in the Beachy Cove Brook system, around Miller’s Pond.
Each year’s information builds on previous years’ data.
“This year we are also testing for the presence of caffeine,” team leader Samara Bugden stated in a news release.
“Since caffeine shouldn’t exist in these systems naturally, if we discover the presence of caffeine, it can be an indicator of the cause of issues in the waterways.”
The caffeine testing is being done through a collaboration with the Marine Institute.
Team member Kyle Roberts grew up in Portugal Cove-St. Philip’s and is returning for his second year with the Green Team.
“It’s a fun job,” Roberts said. “I love getting to work outside.”
Spending two years running with the Green Team has familiarized Roberts with the local waterways. Team members can be found trekking through woods and wading chest-deep into ponds as they conduct their tests.