Arizona Water Resource Volume 11 Number 4

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May - June 2003 Arizona Water Resource 9 Project WET's Water Education Outreach is a Cooperative Venture Water education is a growing movement in Arizona, with more presentations now offered, more materials available, and more personnel and organizations coordinating their efforts to better promote water awareness in the state. Taking a pivotal role in this movement is the Water Resources Research Center's Project WET (Water Education for Teachers) at the University of Arizona. Arizona Project WET Coordinator Kerry Schwartz says, "The growth of water education in the state has been a step -by -step pro- cess, with things now coming together to strengthen and expand the program." In step with the movement, WET has been covering more ground, both in its service area and the range of its educational of- ferings, thanks to the support of various government agencies and operations. The City of Phoenix Conservation Office has been a WET partner and has worked with the project for the past ten years. A city survey found that water users wanted more water conservation education. In response, the city sponsored Project WET workshops, offering 16 -hour sessions to enable teachers to earn continuing edu- cation credits. Schwartz says, "In 2001 -02 we got a great response, with 30 to 40 people per workshop. We also did two water festivals in the Phoenix Valley, and we brought in the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Arizona Department of Water Resources, Central Arizona Proj- ect, Salt River Project and Arizona Department of Environmental Quality as cosponsors." The Phoenix Active Management Area took note of WET activities in the area and became a prime project sponsor. Schwartz says, "Phoenix AMA's involvement in the water festivals and its at- tendance at subsequent water education workshops encouraged its efforts to create a cohesive water resource education program. We now have a grant from the Phoenix AMA, not only for doing teach- er workshops, but for training facilitators who can then conduct the workshops." The agency sponsored two WET facilitator workshops in the Phoenix metropolitan area. (The purpose of facilitator workshops is to train interested persons who in turn will train classroom teach- ers and educators.) The goal is to have a cadre of facilitators to work with central Arizona teachers to promote water education in the classroom. Having facilitators from the area ensures that water education presentations will reflect local conditions and issues. The ADWR grant funded training for 40 facilitators in central Arizona. Along with sponsoring workshops ADWR also is providing funds for a water resource supply center in central Phoenix. The center will be a place where teachers, after they have received train- ing from Project WET facilitators, can obtain books, groundwater flow models, enviroscape models and supplies for water education activities. outside the Phoenix AMA by sponsoring WET facilita- tor workshops in northern and southern Arizona. The northern Ari- zona facilitator training was held in Flag- staff, March 14 -15, with participants Pr eject WET Coordinator Kerry Schwartz demonstrates the groundwater flow model to African visitors to the Water coming from Resources Research Center. Photo: Joe Gelt a broad geo- graphic area including Williams, Sedona and the Navajo Nation. The bureau also is sponsoring a fall facilitator workshops in southern Arizona, to include participants from an area ranging from Yuma to Sierra Vista. The Tucson AMA also will be a partner in this event, purchasing supplies and providing stipends to the facili- tators. WET water festivals are an annual fall event. This year a festi- val will be conducted in Safford on Sept. 26, with another festival scheduled for the West Phoenix Valley. The Safford festival will involve 600 fourth grade students; the Phoenix event is expecting to host 1,000 fourth grade participants. In a further example of partnering, BuRec is working with ADWR to develop water history trunks along with other kinds of water teaching tools. An effective water conservation teaching device, history trunks contain various artifacts relating to an "old fashioned" water use, such as ice tongs, a washboard and a canvas canteen. This new supply of history trunks will be available to class- rooms throughout the state. This may be the start of something new. Schwartz says, "Hope- fully there is going to be repository for supplies for workshops and teaching tools in the north, central and southern areas of the state." BuRec also is taking a role in reaching out to non -AMA areas by sponsoring HydroSmarts, a monthly water feature of the "Bear Essential News," a newspaper distributed free to school children. Through ADWR's initiative, HydroSmarts features Project WET's "Kids in Discovery Series" activities each month along with contact information for WET workshops and resources. Water education horizons are further broadening as other state agencies get involved. In meeting National Pollutant Discharge Elimination Standards — a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency program now administered by the Arizona Department of Envi- BuRec is taking the lead in supporting WET activities in areas Continued on page 77