Caretakers

Some of the most heart-wrenching images from the Gulf oil spill disaster are of the native birds and animals dripping with oil.

Wildlife rescue teams have been working 24/7 to save the creatures, but the cleaning process is very time consuming. Those bleak pictures of birds like the pelicans struggling for life has raised a new awareness on just how ecologically fragile our planet is and how we are to protect that delicate balance.

Earlier this month, a group of middle school students in western Pennsylvania helped get a message across to their peers and adults as well. The Haine Middle School in Butler County won a state-sponsored Earth Day challenge and as a reward, the school was turned into a "Park for a Day."

The Earth Day 40 celebration was a cooperative effort of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and the departments of Agriculture, Education, Environmental Protection, and Transportation, as well as the Fish and Boat and Game commissions. Each project in the schools challenge was related to one of five themes: Super sustainable foods; Big on biodiversity; Transportation that treads lightly; Reduce that carbon footprint; and Wild about water.

Haine Middle School won for its "Rainkeepers" project, whereby residents were provided with rain barrels to conserve water.

Students first researched ways to conserve water in their community and raised funds to purchase rain barrels. Partnering with an environmental official from the area, they held an instructional class and 30 rain barrels were given to residents who attended.

The containment barrel system attaches to a gutter to catch rain water running off the roof. This water can then be used for watering a garden or washing a car, thus preserving the fresh water supplies and systems.

As their reward, students took part in a number of "Park for a Day activities at their school which were designed to continue feeding their interest in protecting and restoring the environment - activities relating to botany and native plants, geocaching, leave-no-trace hiking and camping, bats in trouble, forest fire prevention, fishing skills, water conservation, nature walks, recycling, and animal identification.

"It's an important lesson to learn that although problems sometimes seem large, our individual actions can make a difference when it comes to conservation and protecting our environment," said DCNR secretary John Quigley.

In addition to becoming "park for a day," the school also received a $1,000 gift certificate to WARDS Scientific provided by Waste Management; 10 fishing rods with tackle provided by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission; a framed wildlife print provided by the Pennsylvania Game Commission; Illuminating Education program materials, including a classroom supply of compact fluorescent light bulbs provided by the Department of Environmental Protection; and a plaque and a native tree for planting at the school provided by DCNR.

But beyond the material gifts were the valuable lessons gleaned from this experience by the youngsters, the future caretakers of our planet.

By Jim Zbick

jzbick@tnonline.com