It's Water-Wise Wednesdays with Frannie the Fish! {Groundwater Games: Recycle Roundup}

As Groundwater Awareness Week gets closer, Frannie wants to share a fun game you can play that helps you learn about the importance of recycling!  Did you know that recycling helps protect groundwater?  Recycling creates new products from old items, this means less water is used making new products.

Here's what you'll need:

• At least 3 people
• 30 index cards
• Marker
• Three buckets
• Stopwatch
• Whistle
• Large open area

Set-Up Instructions:
1.  Divide your index cards into three piles of 10.  Take the first pile and on one side of each card write the name of an item that can be put in a compost pile.  Mark the second stack with items that can be recycled and mark the third stack with items that can only be put in a landfill, below are some examples:

Recycle -
Aluminum can, notebook paper, paper egg carton, paper grocery bag, telephone book, glass jar, plastic soda bottle, steel soup can, newspaper, plastic milk jug.

Compost -
Apple core, banana peel, coffee grounds, leaves, grass clippings, dead flowers, potato peels, water, worms, pumpkin seeds.

Landfill -
Disposable diaper, used dental floss, used bandage, rubber band, fast food wrappers, cling wrap, wet paper, old sock, paper clip, buttons.

2.  Now label one bucket "Compost," the second "Recycle," and the third "Landfill."

3.  Find a large open area and set the three buckets on one end in a row.  Randomly scatter all the cards, face down, in the area in front of the buckets.

Activity Instructions:
1.  Divide your friends into three teams.
2.  Give one team the title of Compost, the second Recycle, and the third Landfill.  The team should elect one member of their team to stand behind their corresponding bucket.  This person will act as the final judge and can be the only person to drop the cards into the labeled bucket.
3.  At the sound of the whistle, you will have five minutes to go through the cards.  Each person may pick up one card at a time and read the back.  If they think the item corresponds to their team, they hand the card to the judge behind the bucket.  The judge decides if the item is correct and puts it in the bucket.  If the item is incorrect, the judge hands it back to the person who gave the card to them and they return the card to the table or floor, face down.

4.  At the end of the time period, the team that has the most correct items in their bucket is declared the winner.

Share pictures of you and your friends playing Recycle Roundup here.

It's Water-Wise Wednesdays with Frannie the Fish! {Girl Scout Groundwater Patches}

National Groundwater Awareness Week is coming up next month, March 11-16th. One way Girl Scout troops can celebrate is by earning the Girl Scout Groundwater Patches! There are patches and guide books for every grade level so you can keep learning more about groundwater, the water we drink and the water that grows our food.

To earn your “Ask Me About Groundwater” patch, all you need to do is complete two activities from different steps within the booklet. These steps can include anything from upcycled crafts to meeting with water professionals or even conducting your own experiments. Seem too easy? Show everyone that you’re a groundwater expert by completing more activities listed in the book and earn the “Let’s Keep It Clean” patch!

Girl Scout Troop 20605 from the Spirit of Nebraska Council earned their Brownie level groundwater patches while exploring the “WOW!: Wonders of Water” Journey. You can read more about their story or start your own water journey by finding your patch booklet on the Groundwater Foundation's website!

Don't forget to share your progress with Frannie on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Good luck!

BLOG: What will YOU do during Groundwater Awareness Week?

by Jennifer Wemhoff, The Groundwater Foundation

Happy Groundwater Awareness Week! (#GWAW2018)!

Every March, we work with our friends at National Ground Water Association to help promote National Groundwater Awareness Week. It's a win-win for everyone - it's an opportunity to bring a national and local focus to groundwater and help people find ways to learn more about it and protect this vital resource.

So what can YOU do during #GWAW2018?

The possibilities are endless, but here are some great ideas to get you started:

• Follow The Groundwater Foundation (Facebook, Twitter) and National Groundwater Association (Facebook, Twitter) on social media; like, share, and retweet #GWAW2018 posts, or customize posts with local information.
• Plan a Test Your Well event for local private well owners. It's a win-win - you get to raise awareness about groundwater, and well owners get their water sample tested and learn more about it. 
• Set up a presentation for a community club/group to talk about local groundwater resources.
• Offer to present to a Girl Scout/Boy Scout troop, 4-H club, FFA chapter, science or environmental club, or other youth group to get them excited about groundwater. Hands-on activities are fun, brains-on ways to get kids involved.
• Conserve water inside and outside your home by taking short showers instead of baths, running full loads of dishes and laundry, checking for and repairing leaky faucets and fixtures, watering outdoors only when necessary, and using native plants in your landscaping that require less water.
  
• Track your daily water use to identify where you can use less. Try the free 30by30 app and start tracking today.
• Always follow label instructions for household chemicals, and look for ways to decrease or eliminate fertilizer and pesticide usage.
• Dispose of chemicals properly by taking them to recycling centers or household hazardous waste collections.
• If you have a private well on your property, have the well inspected by a licensed water well contractor and the water tested once a year for coliform bacteria, nitrates, and any other contaminants of local concern.
• Find out about your community’s drinking water source and mobilize to protect it. The Groundwater Guardian program is a good place to get started. 
• Teach others about ways to protect and preserve groundwater!

To find out more about groundwater and how you can get involved in protecting it, please visit us at www.groundwater.org.

BLOG: #GWAW2018

by Terry Morse, CEO, National Groundwater Association

Next week, the National Ground Water Association (NGWA) will once again celebrate National Groundwater Awareness Week (#GWAW2018). An annual observance established to highlight the responsible development, management, and use of groundwater, the event is also a platform to encourage yearly water well testing and well maintenance to prevent waterborne illnesses.

From manmade contaminants such as PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) and naturally occurring ones like arsenic affecting its quality to potential depletion of the resource in India, South Africa, Australia, and the American West, groundwater was an important topic in 2017. NGWA expects much of this narrative to continue throughout 2018, emphasizing the need for increased awareness regarding one this critical natural resource.
Consider the following:

• Americans use 79.6 billion gallons of groundwater each day.
• Groundwater is 20 to 30 times larger than all U.S. lakes, streams, and rivers combined.
• 44 percent of the U.S. population depends on groundwater for its drinking water supply.
• More than 13.2 million households have their own well, representing 34 million people

Established in 1999, #GWAW2018 provides an opportunity for everyone to learn about the importance of the resource and how it impacts lives. During the event, NGWA encourages folks to ask, “what do you know about groundwater?” Prior to joining NGWA, the only thing I knew about water was when you turn on the tap, water fills your cup. But I now understand that’s not the case for millions of folks around the world, and even for many people in the American West who are dealing with drought conditions and overuse, a situation which recently led Cape Town, South Africa, to implement a 6.6 gallon daily water-use limit per person.      

Here in the States 132 million people rely on groundwater for drinking water, so, simply put, it makes life possible. Groundwater is used for irrigation, livestock, manufacturing, mining, thermoelectric power, and several additional purposes, making it one of the most widely used and valuable natural resources. During #GWAW2018 we’re asking folks to think about how they’re using groundwater, and to share their stories on the ways they’re reducing their groundwater footprint.  So, if you decide to take an 8-minute shower as opposed to a 10-minute shower every day during the week, share it!  You never know, there could be a prize for the most creative and impactful submission!

If you’re a private well owner, the 2018 #GWAW2018 theme of “Tend. Test. Treat.” was established to encourage a more holistic approach to sustain an adequate supply of quality groundwater. Testing your water might prompt well inspection and maintenance, and water treatment can mitigate naturally occurring contamination revealed by the test. So, test your water, tend to your well system, then treat the water if necessary.

NGWA encourages every person to be a “groundwater advocate” both during #GWAW2018 and beyond by protecting and conserving groundwater. Businesses, individuals, educators, students, federal agencies, cities, associations, and everyone in between can share their story through our website or on social media. Find downloadable information on #GWAW2018 at www.groundwaterawarenessweek.com, including:

• A social media toolkit
• Facts about groundwater
• Event FAQs
• Logos and graphics
• Videos

BLOG: Groundwater: Out of Sight, But Not Out of Mind

by Kevin McCray, CAE, Executive Director, National Groundwater Association

Some 44 percent of the U.S. population depends on groundwater, the water that fills cracks and other openings in beds of rock and sand, for its drinking water supply — be it from either a public source or private well. In rural areas, the number is about 96 percent. That fact alone justifies the need for National Groundwater Awareness Week, to be observed this week, March 5-11, 2017. 

But groundwater is important to us in many other ways, as well. Consider:   

• Groundwater provides much of the flow of many streams; often lakes and streams are "windows" to the water table. Groundwater adds 492 billion gallons per day to U.S. surface water bodies. In large part, the flow in a stream represents water that has flowed from the ground into the stream channel.
• Scientists estimate U.S. groundwater reserves to be at least 33,000 trillion gallons — equal to the amount discharged into the Gulf of Mexico by the Mississippi River in the past 200 years.
• The United States uses 79.6 billion gallons per day of fresh groundwater for public supply, private supply, irrigation, livestock, manufacturing, mining, thermoelectric power, and other purposes.
• Groundwater is tapped through wells placed in water-bearing soils and rocks beneath the surface of the Earth. There are nearly 15.9 million of these wells serving households, cities, business, and agriculture every day. Wells are constructed by the 8,100 contracting firms employing nearly 45,000 people dedicated to providing and protecting our nation's groundwater supplies.
• Irrigation accounts for the largest use of groundwater in the United States, about 67.2 percent of all the groundwater pumped each day. Some 53.5 billion gallons of groundwater are used daily for agricultural irrigation from more than 407,913 wells. Irrigation is a major reason for the abundance of fresh produce and grains that we all enjoy.
• One ton of groundwater used by industry generates an estimated $14,000 worth of output.

These facts help us connect with the important role we each play as stewards, or protectors, of groundwater. Man can adversely affect the resource. Fortunately, there are simple steps that will help protect groundwater and the wells systems that distribute it.

• Always use licensed or certified water well drillers and pump installers when a well is constructed or serviced, or when the pump is installed or serviced.
• Keep hazardous materials away from any well. Never dump such materials, motor oil, or anything else that could impact water quality onto the land surface, into a hole or pit, or into a surface water supply.

These tips and more are available from sources such as a state groundwater or water well association, NGWA, or from your county agricultural extension agent or state government agency with responsibility for groundwater. A convenient source for a broader understanding of our groundwater protector role can be found at www.wellowner.org, a Web service of NGWA.

National Groundwater Awareness Week is not a celebration such as the Fourth of July has become. Instead, we should use the week to reflect more deeply on groundwater's value and its contributions to our lives.

BLOG: Groundwater Guardians Raising Awareness on Social Media

by Sara Brock, The Groundwater Foundation

The Groundwater Foundation’s Groundwater Guardian (GG) Program has been around 23 years, making a difference in communities across North America as they conserve groundwater and protect it from pollutants. 

The world has changed a lot since the program's inception in 1994, but what hasn't changed is the creativity of GG teams to find new ways to reach out to their communities.

Now it’s 2017 and we’re pretty firmly planted in the age of the internet. As we're on the cusp of National Groundwater Awareness Week 2017 (March 5-11), check out these 5 GG teams who are going with the flow and using social media to raise awareness and spread their message.

1) Carmel, Indiana

Carmel City Utilities uploads funny informational videos to YouTube starring city employees, drama club students, and villainous sewer clogs. These videos are also occasionally aired on local channels. Check one of their videos out below or visit their YouTube Channel for more.

2) City of Battle Creek, Michigan

The GG team of Battle Creek has jumped on the trend of using social media to promote sales. This year? Rain barrels. You don’t need to be a city resident to buy one, but you do need drop by their Public Works Building to pick it up. Check out their Facebook page or get right to the sale by clicking here. 

3) Hamilton to New Baltimore Groundwater Consortium, Ohio

The Hamilton to New Baltimore Groundwater Consortium hopped on the Fun Run bandwagon to great success, using Facebook’s events feature to promote its Annual Race for Global Water 5K. The next one isn’t until August, but you can still check out the great photos from the race or read up on past and future events, by clicking here. 

                          

4) Northeastern Regional Groundwater Protection Planning Committee, Illinois

This GG team has innovatively used social media as a professional networking tool, sharing resources in their area and reposting pages with useful tips for water conservation. Head over to their Facebook page to see resources from the Water Quality Association, the Illinois Association of Groundwater Professionals, and even yours truly, The Groundwater Foundation. 

5) Mission Springs Water District, California

The Mission Springs Water District is a Groundwater Guardian Affiliate, meaning they provide services and support to local GG teams. Mission Springs helps their customers and community stay engaged by sending out newsletters including press releases and information on upcoming meetings and events. Sign up here to receive regular emails or, if you prefer, direct mailings about this amazing community.  

Share what you're doing to celebrate National Groundwater Awareness Week with us on The Groundwater Foundation's Twitter and Facebook page.

Take Action during National Groundwater Awareness Week and Beyond

By: Jessica Wheeler, The Groundwater Foundation

This week is National Groundwater Awareness Week.  You can get involved by learning about groundwater and its irreplaceable role in our lives, then take action to protect and conserve our most precious resource.  Here are a variety of ways you can make a difference this week and all year long:

At Home

• The average American uses 100 gallons of water every day.  Use the fun, free 30by30 app for Apple and Android to learn how to reduce your water usage by 30 gallons a day for 30 days.
• Check out our Top 10 List of ways to conserve and protect groundwater.

Green Spaces

The Green Site program recognizes green spaces that use environmentally-friendly landscape practices related to pesticide and fertilizer use, water use, pollution prevention, water quality, and environmental stewardship.  This program is a great way to generate positive PR for a variety of locations, including golf courses, botanical gardens, ball fields, wellhead protection areas, educational campuses, and more.  What sites in your community should be Green Sites?

In Your Community  

The Groundwater Guardian program brings together communities and businesses across the country in a unified effort to protect and conserve groundwater.  Groundwater Guardian marries the efforts of a strong local team with a clear framework for action to benefit the people and water of a community.  Find a Groundwater Guardian team near you to get involved with or consider starting a team of your own. 


Other Ideas

• Learn more about groundwater.
• Educate youth with The Groundwater Foundation's fun, hands-on activities.
• Help ensure all this good work continues by supporting The Groundwater Foundation!

How are you getting involved during Groundwater Awareness Week?  What will you do the rest of the year?

Groundwater Awareness is Important to You!

by Cliff Treyens, Director of General Public Outreach, National Groundwater Association

National Groundwater Awareness Week is March 6-12, 2016. Now well into its second decade, Groundwater Awareness Week spotlights one of the world’s most important resources — groundwater.

Who should be “aware” of groundwater? Quite simply, everyone.

 

Groundwater is essential to the health and well-being of humanity and the environment. Whether you’re on a public water system or a private well, whether you are a health care official, policymaker, regulator, an environmentalist or a groundwater professional, you can get involved in protecting this vital resource.

Groundwater Awareness Week is a great opportunity to raise awareness in your community about the importance of groundwater to all of us. Even if we don't have a water well ourselves, groundwater is an integral part of life on Earth.

Forty-four percent of the American population depends on groundwater for its drinking water supply — reason enough to act to protect groundwater. Another reason is that contaminated groundwater can harm the environment, including the ecosystems that depend on groundwater.

All people by their living habits can protect or harm groundwater — our nation and the world's most abundant freshwater supply. The first step toward protecting groundwater is to become aware of how it can be contaminated. The second step is to do your part to keep from contaminating groundwater. 

We challenge you to take this pledge:

 

I pledge to take one or more of the following actions to protect groundwater from contamination.

1. Properly store hazardous household substances* in secure containers
2. Mix hazardous household substances over concrete or asphalt where they can be cleaned up or absorbed
3. Dispose of hazardous household wastes at an appropriate waste disposal facility or drop-off
4. Do not put hazardous household wastes down the drain or in the toilet
5. Do not put any wastes down a dry or abandoned well
6. If I own a septic system, I will service it according to local health department recommendations
7. If I own a water well, I will get a yearly maintenance check to ensure sanitary seals are intact
8. Decommission abandoned wells on your property using a qualified water well contractor
9. Fix or replace any leaking aboveground or underground tanks storing hazardous substances.

For more information about National Groundwater Awareness Week, please visit NGWA's website.