Efforts by Groundwater Festival organizers to help students understand the value of water were commendable.
The Waterloo-Wellington event was hosted at Marden Park this year with 150 volunteers and dozens of partner organizations.
Water is one of those resources that is so fundamental it defies being politicized but can be taken for granted. Education is key.
Many moons ago, as the concept of conservation and protection of wetlands became more mainstream, we recall maps of recharge areas and the need for development to appreciate those markers. It is astounding to realize the water sources for municipalities can easily be affected by development activity miles away.
For students at the Marden event, hands-on demonstrations and practical displays helped them better understand the fluid nature of water. How sources recharge, how water is pumped, how used water ultimately returns to the aquifer and why judicious use of that resource is important.
This event and the conversations that ensue will go a long way towards conservation and best practices for the use of finite resources. Development – whether industrial, commercial, residential or on the farm – requires thought and good planning.
Thanks to those who sponsored and set up the event. We have little doubt students and attendees armed with solid information and practical experience will be strong advocates for water – a most precious resource.
Making room for others
It would be about 30 years ago that we were taught a lesson at the hands of the publisher at that time.
At that time there was still some limited cutting and pasting that went on. Each news story was printed off individually and pieced together like a puzzle on layout day.
We forget the exact story or topic, but we wondered aloud “Who cares?” Inimitable as he was, Dad always had a way of explaining things that made sense to us. To the question “Who cares”, he responded “someone does and it is important to them.” News means different things to different people.
While we learned a lesson that day that follows through to this point in time, the debate about what qualifies as news continues in newsrooms across the country. Often those decisions and directions centre around the geography of a trade area – in our case the whole of Wellington County.
Across that land mass, small business, agri-business, manufacturing, villages and towns are filled with stories to be told.
And guess what? Not everyone will care, but someone does. And we are happy to help all residents explore and get to know their community better.
