How to Dispose of Volvox Algae

Volvox is a kind of green algae that lives in colonies in freshwater environments. You can barely see volvox with the naked eye. By observing volvox under a microscope, you may see its unique colony shape: a hollow ball. Dispose of volvox properly because an excess of algae robs water of oxygen, thus killing fish and other aquatic animals. However, if you destroy the algae with bleach before you release it into the environment, it cannot proliferate and cause damage.

Things You'll Need

• Plastic biohazard container with a lid
• Water squirt bottle
• Graduated cylinder
• Bleach

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Instructions

• 1

  Carefully clean your microscope slides.

  Clean the microscope slides and lab equipment with the water squirt bottle. Make sure that the water runoff goes into the biohazard container. Carefully dry and put away all the washed lab equipment.

• 2

  Measure bleach with a graduated cylinder.

  Add one part bleach to the container for every nine parts water. For example, use 10 ml bleach for every 90 ml of water. Measure the bleach with a graduated cylinder.

• 3

  Tightly seal the container to prevent spillage.

  Cap the container and let it sit overnight.

• 4

  Continue to run the water until the smell of bleach fades.

  Rinse the bleach solution down the sink. Thoroughly rinse the container.