CHARLESTON, W.Va. (October 11, 2019) – The
West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection’s (WVDEP) Watershed
Improvement Branch and Project Water Education for Teachers (Project WET) is offering
a free rain barrel installation for West Virginia schools.
The goal of the program is to teach students
about stormwater pollution and how collecting rainwater helps to reduce the
amount of pesticides, bacteria, and litter in our waterways.
As rainwater is both free and contains trace minerals beneficial to plants,
rain barrels are useful tools that help support gardens at schools.
The program offers hands-on installation of
the rain barrel (including the rain barrel and parts kit) with student
participation and will be paired with a one-hour Project WET water education
session.
Schools with a current or planned flower
and/or vegetable garden will be given priority. Installations are tentatively
scheduled for the spring of 2020.
The WVDEP has a limited number of rain barrels
available, so schools interested must complete the application on the agency’s Rain Barrel Program webpage and submit it by Friday, Nov. 1. Applications
can be emailed to Klancey Burford at Klancey.M.Burford@wv.gov or mailed to:
Attn:
Klancey Burford
WVDEP
Division of Water and Waste Management, Watershed Improvement Branch
601
57th Street SE
Charleston,
WV 25304
For more WVDEP news and
information, go to www.dep.wv.gov. Also, connect with the agency on
all social media platforms. Follow @DEPWV on Twitter, Like us on Facebook
at https://www.facebook.com/depwv/, and find us on YouTube by
searching “Environment Matters.”
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