Annual Environmental Field Days held for area students

MARINETTE COUNTY – The annual Environmental Field Days (EFD) for Marinette County fourth graders was held Sept. 16-18, with 473 total people attending — 437 students with 36 teachers and chaperones — at four different sites throughout the county.

It is organized by the Marinette County Land Information Department. Presenting agencies and volunteers included Marinette County Land Information and Extension offices, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, the aquatic invasive species FLOW program of the Lumberjack Resource Conservation and Development Council, City of Marinette Public Works, the Marinette High School Fishing Team and the Roots & Rivers Collaborative.

This event was first held in 1992 to introduce natural resources to schoolchildren and was originally organized through UW-Extension.

EFD is held in four locations throughout the county — Marinette’s City Park, Peshtigo’s Badger Park, Lake Noquebay Park near Crivitz and a site on county land in Dunbar. Area schools are assigned a specific location to attend, and on the day of the event small student groups rotate through the stations to learn about the topics.

This year’s topics included forestry and trees, wildfire control, water quality, invasive species (aquatic and terrestrial), insects, composting, fisheries, mammals, a talk with a conservation warden and fishing tips.
Teachers received quiz questions to review information presented at each station. Water and fruit snacks were provided for event participants.

Without the support of local agencies, staff and volunteers, this event would not be possible. The organizers thanked everyone who contributed time and effort to this event, especially the presenters, teachers and chaperones. They also thanked the City of Marinette Parks and Public Works Departments, the Peshtigo Parks and Recreation Department and the Marinette County Parks and Forestry Departments for use of event sites.