Brightwater education event takes school outside for 160 local students

Trading textbooks and desks for shovels and environmental test kits, 160 students from the Lake Washington and Northshore School Districts got a hands-on lesson in environmental stewardship at the Brightwater regional wastewater treatment system “North 40” site today near Woodinville, Washington.

After a brief welcome by former Governor Gary Locke and King County Executive Ron Sims, students from Thoreau Elementary School, the Environmental Adventure School, and Skyview Junior High School explored forest ecology, identified and catalogued freshwater insects, and tested water and soil samples.

The Brightwater education pilot event was organized by Friends of the Hidden River, a community group of local teachers dedicated to environmental stewardship, energy independence and sustainability education.

“More than 3,000 students a year tour our treatment plants to learn about water quality,” said Executive Sims. “However, these facilities were never built to accommodate school tours and teacher programs. The Brightwater Environmental Education Center will allow us to integrate valuable learning opportunities into this vital clean-water project.”

“It’s so important for young people to connect to their environment and to learn about it in ways that encourage them to value and protect it,” said former Governor Locke. “Brightwater’s educational plans, guided by the work of the Friends of the Hidden River, will enable teachers to provide this type of enhanced learning experience.”

Friends of the Hidden River has played an integral role in shaping plans for the future Brightwater Environmental Education Center, securing more than $1 million in grant funding to date to complete interior finishes, equip laboratories and design the facility to LEED standards. The facility is scheduled to be open in 2011.

“For the past five years, we’ve worked to ensure that Brightwater would have a positive impact on our community,” said Marie Hartford of Friends of the Hidden River. “The Brightwater Environmental Education Center will provide meaningful, hands-on environmental learning opportunities for students at all grade levels. The event we’ve put together today provides a glimpse into how it will serve local students and teachers.”

King County plans to invest about $8 million to build the Brightwater Education/Community Center, which will also provide community meeting space for local non-profit groups. The facility is being built to replace a grange hall that had to be demolished to accommodate Brightwater treatment system facilities.

The Friends of the Hidden River plans to continue working with other teachers and environmental groups to pursue funding for ongoing education programs and projects

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The Friends of the Hidden River is a dynamic educational organization dedicated to developing and enhancing citizen understanding and community action in environmental education issues in the Puget Sound and surrounding regions. The group works to balance community interests with environmental sustainability by creating educational opportunities and service learning projects related to environmental and ecological stewardship, energy independence, water quality, conservation, and technology. They have raised nearly one million dollars to help create a LEEDs platinum environmental center at Brightwater.

The county’s Wastewater Treatment Division protects public health and water quality by serving 17 cities, 17 local sewer districts and more than 1.4 million residents in King, Snohomish and Pierce counties. Formerly called Metro, the regional clean-water agency now operated by King County has been preventing water pollution for more than 40 years.

Note to editors and reporters:

For more information on Friends of the Hidden River and this event, go to: http://www.friendsofhiddenriver.org or contact Newsmakers at Comcast Channel 45

Please visit the WTD Newsroom, a portal to information for the news media about the Wastewater Treatment Division, King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks.

This release is also posted on the Web site for the Department of Natural Resources and Parks at http://www.kingcounty.gov/environment/dnrp.aspx