ENVIROSCAPE NEWS
Volume 5, Number 2
March/April 1997

"Keep those cards and letters coming. We love hearing from our users!" -- Natalie Eichhorst, Marketing Director

Celebrate American Wetlands Month and Drinking Water Week in May!

If you don't have time to plan activities for the first day of Spring (March 20) and Earth Day (April 22), you can still celebrate American Wetlands Month and Drinking Water Week in May. Many of the ideas listed in last month's newsletter can be adapted for these celebrations or you can create new events.

Send us photos and information about your activity or event. We may highlight your group in the next newsletter!

AMERICAN WETLANDS MONTH

If you need ideas for American Wetlands Month activities or information about wetlands, check out the Terrene Institute's Wetlands Celebration newsletter or web site: www.terrene.org.

One interesting wetlands fact from the web site: "Wetlands are more than water reserves. When water enters a wetland, the wetland acts as a purifier, cleaning the water before it exits. Wetlands do this by removing, retaining and transforming nutrients, processing wastes and trapping sediment."

The Terrene Institute also has materials for American Wetlands Month including brochures, fact sheets, buttons, stickers and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles coloring books.

A conference to celebrate American Wetlands Month, "Communities Working for Wetlands," will be May 7-9 in Alexandria, Virginia. The conference is a great place to meet others working with wetlands and to learn more about wetlands. Several field trips and a Capitol Hill reception are planned during the conference.

DRINKING WATER WEEK

Drinking Water Week will be celebrated internationally May 4-10. This year's theme, "Drinking Water Counts On You," focuses on mathematics.

The Blue Thumb Project's goal is to enhance publics understanding that water is an essential element of life and needs to be managed for the good of all. The Blue Thumb education campaign, coordinated by the American Water Works Association, develops a materials packet each year with ideas for community participation in conserving, protecting and getting involved in water-related activities during Drinking Water Week and throughout the year.

To order a kit (for a minimal charge), which includes camera-ready brochures and ads, poster and media guide, call 800/926-7337. Many of the materials will also be posted on AWWA's web site: www.awwa.org/bluethum.htm.

For more information contact AWWA, 6666 West Quincy Avenue, Denver, CO 80235.

Product News

Instructional videos for each model are now available for shipment. Each video shows set-up, a quick overview and clean up -- videos are available for: EnviroScape II, Hazardous Waste (includes Groundwater demonstration), Wetlands and Groundwater. Price for each video is $12.50 or the set of four for $40 (shipping included).

Thanks to all of you who ordered early -- your videos will ship mid-March.

Blue Plate Special Earth Day special still in effect through March 15! Your choice of a FREE enviroscape II base ($249 value) or a FREE Accessory Kit ($299 value) when you order the complete enviroscape program (enviroscape II with case, Hazardous Waste, Wetlands, Riparian, and Groundwater) - or on any order of $1,800 or more, not including shipping. Shipping charges apply to free items.

New Tips from the Field!

Diana Allen of University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension Service in Sarpy County uses two enviroscape models at the same time - one showing pollution and the other with BMPs in place.

Folks at the Soil and Water Conservation District in Topeka, Kansas, affix a PVC pipe to their enviroscape model to drain the lake into a 5-gallon bucket. They also built a light-weight stand with an overhead mirror out of PVC pipe as a stand-alone demonstration table.

Jane Halling of Atchison County (KS) Farm Bureau uses a "Moisture Magnet," similar to a chamois, instead of a sponge. It "worked better than a sponge" she writes. They can also be cut to a smaller size. For ordering information contact Ken Burnell, P.O. Box 9671, Sugar Creek, MO 64054.