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Environmental Education

One of the primary commitments of the Lawrence Conservation District is provide continuing environmental education to the residents of Lawrence County. Whether it be to school groups, civic groups, other government agencies, or just interested citizens, it is our goal as the leader on the front lines of environmental and conservation issues to provide accurate and the most comprehensive information. We do this by pooling our resources. With the help of professionals from the Department of Conservation of Natural Resources, Bureau of Forestry, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, the Pennsylvania Game Commission, the Department of Environmental Protection, Penn State Cooperative Extension and many other groups dedicated to the same goal, we seek to inform citizens. Our hope is to create a public pride for the natural resources around us, and in doing so promote good conservation practices.

Learning about septic systems using ground water model. Volant Water Festival 2007

All school education efforts culminate late in the spring with the annual Lawrence County Envirothon. What is an Envirothon? The Envirothon is a competition designed to test teams of high school students on five different environmental issues -- Forestry, Aquatics, Wildlife, Soils and a Current Issue that changes each year. Pennsylvania originated the Envirothon in 1979 and the competition has spread nationally.

In an effort to keep educators abreast of the programs going on and available in the county, we produce an Environmental Education Newsletter entitled Environment & Ecology Education. A general newsletter, Letters from Lawrence, is distributed twice a year to all District Cooperators and interested citizens.

If you would like information on any of the education programs discussed,
please contact the Lawrence Conservation District at (724) 652-4512.

The list or range of programs that we do varies dramatically. We put on Earth Day demonstrations for elementary schools and high schools, we conduct field days with Boy Scout and Girl Scout Troops, we speak to civic groups about watershed concerns, we assist in educating Planning Commissions and other municipal authorities of the current and long term conservation issues that they should be concerned with as they make decisions, we educate farmers on the latest management practices for their farming operations, and we assist other environmental professionals in keeping up with the latest conservation innovations and regulatory updates. The list goes on and on.

Probably one of our largest audiences is school-aged children. Throughout the year we conduct a number of programs focused on reaching the up and coming generation. We do this through a number of field trips, usually to the Mayberry Woodlot Demonstration Area, as well as the West Park Environmental Center. We provide Lawrence County teachers with a number of education resources. Through our "Birth of a Tree" program, each spring we provide all interested third grade teachers with materials for each of their students to plant, maintain, and nurture a young seedling. The students learn about plant growth and chart the progress of their seedlings over the course of the semester.

Taking the tree seedlings to a higher level, we conduct environmental education for the general public in a little different way. During the spring season, the Conservation District holds its annual tree seedling sale. While it is our attempt to provide choice nursery stock, our ultimate hope is to promote conservation and good stewardship of a precious natural resource - trees.

Environmental Education Centers
in Lawrence County

West Park Environmental Center