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Ogdensburg, Franklin, and Hamburg Students Protect Water Quality at Heater’s Pond

3rd graders from Ogdensburg, Franklin, and Hamburg recently worked with the Wallkill River Watershed Management Group as part of an outdoor educational field day at Heater’s Pond. In the morning, the students rotated through a series of stations where they learned about water pollution, examined live aquatic insects, completed a fish painting craft, and played a game to learn about the water cycle.

Then, after lunch, the students also had a chance to participate in a litter clean-up around the park, run a litter/recycling sorting relay race, learn about the mosquito life cycle, plant native trees and shrubs, and learn about the effects of stormwater runoff on local rivers and streams.

In addition to the staff of the Wallkill River Watershed Management Group, North Jersey Trout Unlimited, Sussex County Clean Communities, the Sussex County Office of Mosquito Control, The Nature Conservancy, the AmeriCorps NJ Watershed Ambassador Program, and the Wallkill Valley High School Ecology Club played a crucial role in leading stations at the event. All 128 students in attendance had a great time participating in the outdoor activities, and many remarked that their favorite activity was planting trees in the park!