Ag School Days 2014

Every year, Guernsey and Noble county SWCD and extension service work together to host an event for local 3rd graders.  Over 400 kids attend and learn about how agriculture and ag products effect their daily life, and the positive ways that the individual landowners can effect the environment.  One of the favorite things each year is holding baby lambs. 

Another part of the fun is learning to fish.  They usually catch some bluegills and the occasional bass, and see turtles and snakes.  

Here the kids are learning about soil characteristics.  Soil never gets its share of respect!  Imagine our lives without it - everything we eat depends upon it.  

And here is the bottom line of the event. The kids are talking about how the life they find in a stream can give them information on how healthy the water is.  Many organisms - called macroinvertebrates - cannot survive in water that is contaminated with nitrates and other chemicals that can runoff from farm fields.  

Here are the kids, looking for macroinvertebrates.  This stream has been tested and shows good water quality, proving that with proper management, livestock and good drinking water can co-exist.