Arkansas Watersheds Workshops Set For Melbourne, Smackover
LITTLE ROCK, ARK.
Nearly two thirds of the state’s 75 counties are home to watershed with some form of impairment. Upcoming through March is a series of workshops to help those living in the watersheds become stewards.
“The one-day workshop will touch on the science behind watersheds and on how residents can go about starting a watershed group,” said Kristin Higgins, program associate for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture Public Policy Center. “The program will explain basic concepts, such as what is a watershed and what activities have the potential to harm water quality.”
By the end of the workshop, participants will be considered an Arkansas Watershed Steward – a person who knows more about local water concerns and how local actions can affect water quality
Upcoming workshops:
• Jan. 16 – EL DORADO – Union County Fairgrounds, Ouachita-Smackover watershed workshop. RSVP Contact:
Union Co. Extension Staff Chair Robin Bridges, 870-864-1916
• Feb. 27 – STAR CITY – C&L Building, Bayou Bartholomew watershed workshop. Contact:
Lincoln County Extension Staff Chair Chad Norton, 870-628-4247
• March 19 – JONESBORO – Craighead County Extension office, L’Anguille River, contact:
Craighead County Extension Staff Chair Branon Thiesse, 870-933-4565
Additional meetings in the Cache River, Lake Conway/Point Remove, Upper Saline and Poteau watershed will be scheduled for the spring.
Funded by the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission, the Arkansas Watershed Stewards program was developed to raise awareness about water quality and to help interested residents in forming local watershed organizations.
The Arkansas Watershed Steward program will focus on these eight watersheds: Poteau River, Lake Conway-Point Remove, Strawberry River, Cache River, L’Anguille River, Upper Saline, Lower Ouachita-Smackover, Bayou Bartholomew.
Anyone can attend – there is no requirement that workshop participants form a watershed group. Lunch will be provided during the five-hour workshop. Workshops start in December and go through April 2014.∆