Pennsylvania Department of Aging
05/25/2022 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 05/25/2022 08:35
ADVISORY – GIBSON PARK – TOMORROW – DEP to Participate in Environmental Education Grant Funded Creek Connections Trip to Gibson Park
Erie, PA - Tomorrow, Thursday, May 26, 2022, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) will participate in Allegheny College's Creek Connections trip to Gibson Park in Conneaut Lake. The trip, which will involve 40 seventh grade students from Conneaut Lake Middle School, is partially funded by an Environmental Education grant Allegheny College received from the DEP.
Students will be participating in several stations, including the collection of macroinvertebrates - tremendous indicators of stream quality - which will allow students to rate the quality of the stream. Students will also see an electrofishing demonstration by DEP aquatic biologists. Electrofishing utilizes an electric field, emitted from a pulser, to temporarily stun fish. The fish can then be collected via dip net for identification. Data collected from electrofishing can be used to determine abundance, density, species composition, and health of fish populations.
The Environmental Education Grants Program was established by the Environmental Education Act of 1993, which mandates setting aside five percent of the pollution fines and penalties DEP collects annually for environmental education in Pennsylvania. Since its inception, the DEP has awarded $12.3 million in environmental education grant funding to support 2,134 projects.
Creek Connections is an effective partnership between Allegheny College and regional K-12 schools to turn waterways in Northwest Pennsylvania, the Pittsburgh area, and beyond into outdoor environmental laboratories. Emphasizing a hands-on, inquiry-based investigation of local waterways, this project annually involves over 40 different secondary schools and the classes of 50 teachers.
WHAT: Allegheny College's Creek Connections trip to Gibson Park
WHEN: Thursday, May 26, 2022 at 10:00 AM
WHERE: Gibson Park, 14520 Gibson Rd., Conneaut Lake, PA
MEDIA CONTACT: Tom Decker, [email protected], 814-332-6615
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