Students present their innovative conservation projects

| 23 Jul 2019 | 06:19

The Pike County Conservation District Board of Directors awards $500 Environmental Education grants to local teachers, classrooms, or youth organizations to fund projects that complement its mission, which is to protect and preserve Pike's natural resources.
The 2018 grant recipients recently shared their accomplishments with the district board during its monthly meetings.
In June, Delaware Valley Elementary School students gave an engaging presentation about a project that involved assembling a hydroponics system and sprouting maple seedlings, which they then planted outdoors at the school. Along the way they made observations and collected data. They even overcame a challenge when an initial batch of acorns did not sprout, a result that led them away from oak trees and onto more successful results with maple.
In May, eighth grade math students from Wallenpaupack Area presented the results of their recent bat house project. Teacher Ron Ezzo said the students used problem solving, science and math skills to determine a way to help control the mosquito population. The students chose to construct bat houses, since a bat can eat up to 8,000 mosquitoes in one night.
Innovative projects
Projects can include but are not limited to:
The use of audio, visual or other media to address a local environmental issue or concern
Habitat rehabilitation
Native plant gardens
Land use planning demonstration models