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Contents of this page:   Link to page explaining graphic symbols A River Runs Through It Are You Bugged by Bugs? Lending Tub Budd Inlet's Mud, Birds and History Enviroscape Watershed Model Presentation Get Your Feet Wet with Stream Team Healthy Water, Healthy People LOTT Wastewater Treatment Plant Tours McAllister Springs Field Trip Native Plant Salvage Project Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge Nisqually Reach Nature Center Nisqually River Education Project Nisqually Stream Stewards OLYWAter Schools Program PBS Frontline documentary: Poisoned Waters... South Sound GREEN Storm Drain Marking with Stream Team    Be sure to check out next page: T-Z

A River Runs Through It
Organization: Thurston County Water Resources Program

The biggest habitat problem for salmon is not poor water quality caused by pollution, it's water quantity: too much water in the winter and too little in the summer. The quantity of water in a stream is determined largely by land use. Students will see a forested watershed evolve into a developed landscape (complete with shopping mall and subdivisions). This classroom presentation uses a three dimensional watershed model to teach basic watershed concepts and to show how changes wrought by growth and increasing urbanization have affected stormwater, stream flow and salmon habitat. Presentations may be given to upper elementary through high school classes depending on the availability of staff. To schedule call 357-2491 (TDD line for the hearing impaired is 754-2933) or email maunc@co.thurston.wa.us.
 

Are You Bugged by Bugs? Lending Tub
Organization: Thurston County

Meet "Lucy the Ladybug" and her friends in a puppet show that explains the important role insects play in our environment. Learn about these beneficial insects and how they help keep our yards and gardens healthy and beautiful. Program includes:

• Make your own ladybug craft.

• Stories and a sing-a-long.

To help prepare your students for this presentation, the video "Bugs Don’t Bug Us" is available for loan. The video introduces the concept that many insects really are our friends. Maximum number of students: 30.

Lucy the Ladybug, her friends, script, and props for the puppet show can be checked out by calling an environmental educator in Thurston County Environmental Health at 754-4111. E-mail: johnsoj@co.thurston.wa.us. TDD line is 754-2933.

"I learned a lot myself. Wonderful puppets." - Kindergarten teacher.

Budd Inlet's Mud, Birds and History
Organization: City of Olympia

Explore the environmental history of Budd Inlet through an historic shoreline walk and visit to interpretive viewing areas. What is fill and what changes have occurred to the natural shoreline in the past 100 years? View remnant salt marsh and migratory shorebirds. Learn about Swantown Slough plus restoration and monitoring projects – and participate! Resources include videos, slide shows, and walking tour brochures. For more information, call City of Olympia Water Resources Program, 753-8454, or the TDD line, 753-8270.

EnviroScape Watershed Model Presentation
Organization: Thurston County Water Resources Program

We all live in a watershed. This table-top model provides a unique, interactive learning experience, enabling students to easily see the connection between our roofs, roads and yards and the quality of our local waterways. The combined affects of nonpoint pollution from many small sources can have a real impact on the quality of our shared water resources. Students learn how they can protect the environment by taking small local actions to prevent nonpoint pollution. Presentations may be given to upper elementary through high school classes depending on the availability of staff. To schedule call 754-4681 (TDD line for the hearing impaired is 754-2933) or email maunc@co.thurston.wa.us. (10/09)

Get Your Feet Wet with Stream Team
Organization: Cities of Lacey, Olympia, Tumwater and Thurston County

Youth can help protect and enhance local water resources through the Stream Team program. The program offers:

• Education for teachers through field classes, training sessions, and special projects. Instructional materials available for checkout;

• Opportunities for families to participate in action projects or create their own;

• Possible on-the-ground field projects such as stream-side tree planting and plant maintenance opportunities.

For a current calendar of Stream Team events go to www.streamteam.info or , call your local Stream Team coordinator. In Lacey, call 438-2687. In Olympia, call 753-8454, or the TDD line, 753-8270. In Tumwater, call 754-4148. In Thurston County, call 754-4681, or the TDD line, 754-2933. To receive quarterly Stream Team newsletter via email, please send request to finanam@co.thurston.wa.us. Stream Team will not share your email with anyone else. (11/11)

Healthy Water, Healthy People
Organization: Washington State Department of Ecology

Sponsored by Project WET and Hach Scientific Foundation, this innovative, water quality education program , offers hands-on activity guides, testing kits, training, and much more. Healthy Water,  Healthy People is for anyone interested in learning and teaching about contemporary water quality education topics. It offers an excellent foundation curriculum for water quality monitoring projects. Available for purchase or through locally focused teacher workshops. For information or to arrange workshops, contact your local Healthy Water, Healthy People facilitator or Brook Beeler, Washington State Department of Ecology (509) 329-3478.(11/11)

LOTT Wastewater Treatment Plant Tours
Organization: LOTT Wastewater Alliance (Lacey, Olympia, Tumwater and Thurston County)

Learn how LOTT helps preserve and protect public health, the environment, and water resources by providing wastewater management and reclaimed water production services for the north Thurston county urban area.

LOTT’s Budd Inlet Treatment Plant currently serves about 98,000 people in the Lacey-Olympia-Tumwater area. At the plant, wastewater undergoes primary and secondary treatment, nitrogen removal, and ultraviolet disinfection. Most of the treated water is released into Budd Inlet, but a portion undergoes tertiary treatment to become Class A Reclaimed Water, a new resource approved for irrigation and other non-drinking uses.

Tours are available for groups of 1-25, Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Special arrangements must be made for groups of more than 25. Tours are designed for 5^th grade and above and last about 1½ hours. Tour length and content can be modified to best meet the needs of the group.

To schedule, call 360-528-5726 or e-mail jannamowatt@lottcleanwater.org. An informational postcard can be mailed upon request. Location: 500 Adams St. NE, Olympia, 98501.

Groups wishing to include a visit to the WET Science Center’s exhibit gallery should contact Susie Vanderburg at 360-528-5742 or email susievanderburg@lottcleanwater.org. (11/11)

McAllister Springs Field Trip (1 hour to 1.5 hours)
Organization: City of Olympia

Visit McAllister Springs, the City of Olympia's primary source of drinking water and see an aquifer up close!  Watch water bubble up from the ground and learn how it gets to our homes. Use a “see-through” model to learn about ground water, how pollution can occur, and why it's important to conserve ground water.  Schedule a tour April 1 through October 31. The City of Olympia will pay for bus transportation on a first come, first served basis and as long as funding is available for:

• All Olympia School District Schools, and

• Specific schools in the North Thurston School District (Timberline High School, River Ridge High School, Komachin Middle School, Nisqually Middle School, Evergreen Forest Elementary, Meadows Elementary, Seven Oaks Elementary, Lydia Hawk Elementary, Mt. View Elementary, Lakes Elementary, Woodland Elementary, Horizons Elementary). 

After a tour is scheduled, teachers need to contact their transportation services staff directly to schedule buses. Invoices are then sent to:

 City of Olympia
Linda Ayala
P.O. Box 1967
Olympia, WA 98501

There is a 45-day billing window.  Invoices received after 45 days may not be reimbursed.

There are two tours to choose from:

• Standard Tour – 1 hour – available April 1 through October 31.  Includes a tour of the pump house facility and the groundwater model.

• Standard plus Creek Viewing – 1½ hours – available April 1 through October 31.  All of the above plus a short walk to view the headwaters of McAllister Creek.

Tours are available Monday through Thursday, between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. No tours will be scheduled on Fridays. Minimum number of students: 10. Maximum number: 30. Special arrangements must be made for groups smaller than ten or larger than 30.

Please make reservations at least two weeks in advance.  All tours will be scheduled on a first-come, first-served basis depending on staff availability.  City staff reserves the right to cancel or reschedule tours based on extreme weather conditions, including: temperatures about 90 degrees, extreme cold, or heavy rain.

 To schedule, call Daisy Curley, Water Quality Specialist at, 360-753-8167 or e-mail dcurley@ci.olympia.wa.us. The TDD number is 360-753-8270.

Native Plant Salvage Project
Organization: WSU Cooperative Extension

This year-round program offers opportunities for hands-on learning through field workshops in ecology and plant identification, recovery of native plants from wooded sites destined for clearing, and planting native vegetation in learning landscapes. Limited classroom presentations are also offered.

Two publications are also available: "Grow Your Own Native Landscape: A Guide to Identifying, Propagating, and Landscaping with Western Washington Native Plants," and "Winter in the Woods: A Winter Guide to Deciduous Native Plants in Western Washington."

A 17-minute video, "Plant it Right: Restoring our Streams," is also available along with an accompanying brochure. (See next page.) Contact Erica Guttman, 754-3588 ext. 110. E-mail: ericag@coopext.cahe.wsu.edu.

Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge
Organization: US Fish and Wildlife Service

Are your students studying wetlands, watersheds, birds and wildlife, or habitats? Then the Refuge is a great place to enhance your curriculum! The Refuge is located on the biologically rich Nisqually River Delta. Approximately seven miles of trails lead to fresh and saltwater marsh, grassland, and riparian woodland.

Educational resources include orientations to the Refuge by a volunteer or staff person and an education center that is open by appointment only. The Education Center provides hands-on activities on a number of environmental topics, mounted bird displays, a gray whale skull, a lively pond aquarium, and more. A comprehensive curriculum, "Where the River Meets the Sound," is available free for teachers who attend a field trip orientation workshop, for purchase at the Refuge bookstore, or for checkout. Advanced reservations are required for educational groups that are either requesting educational services or applying for a fee waiver.

For a reservation, call the Environmental Education Coordinator at 753-9467. More information is available online at www.fws,gov/nisqually

Nisqually Reach Nature Center
Organization: Nisqually Reach Nature Center

The Nature Center contains study mounts of local birds, 5 tidally active salt water aquariums with over 50 spices of local marine fauna, and equipment for use. The equipment includes binoculars, spotting scopes, Quadrates, Seine net, compound microscopes, and dissecting microscopes. Outdoor classes can study estuarine ecology through beach quadrate studies, beach seining, plankton tows and more. Hours are noon to 4 p.m. Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday. Classes may visit any time with advance arrangement. New interpretive signs are on the pier. The boat launch and pier are open from daylight until
10 p.m. daily. Questions? Call 459-0387, email nrnc@nisquallyestuary.org or visit www.nisquallyestuary.org. (5/08)

Nisqually River Education Project (NREP)
Organization: Community Partners