WABASH RIVER EXPEDITION
A JOURNEY THROUGH THE WATERSHED
COUNTY 8TH GRADERS BECOME MODERN DAY “HUCK FINNS”
The Sullivan County Soil and Water Conservation District sponsored its second annual raft trip down the Wabash River for county 8th graders. Nearly 300 students and 50 community volunteers were involved in this two-year pilot program. It is the goal of the District to provide a real “hands on” educational program to Sullivan County junior high students. In an effort to educate, change habits and improve attitudes of the county’s youth regarding watershed management, the SWCD introduced the “Wabash River Expedition-A Journey Through the Watershed.”
Upon receiving the $11,000 IDEM 319 grant the District formed the “River Raft Steering Committee” composed of local volunteers; Michalene Reilly, Hoosier Energy; Beth Reed, John Gettinger, JoAnn Quast, Karen Alumbaugh, SWSC Educators; Jack Gettinger, community volunteer; Tom Lahay, Conservation Officer, Chris Siscoe, NESC Educator and Sandy Drake, SWCD. Steering committee members immediately began putting together a plan for the actual trip and educational materials to be used by the students before the trip. A T-shirt design contest was held with all schools participating. All the adult volunteers wore Ali McLaughlin’s t-shirt winning design during the raft trip.
The trip was divided over a three-day period, with approximately 100 students participating each day. After receiving safety instructions from DNR Conservation Officers; Tom Lahay and Jay Baker, approximately 10 eighth graders and 2 adults each boarded the 12 man inflatable rafts at Riverview, Fairbanks Township. Each group of rafters was given a chart and an identification key that enabled them to identify amphibians, beaver slides, mammals, reptiles, plants, butterflies, birds and numerous other items.
Three scheduled stops along the river, enabled Chris Siscoe’s North Central High School students to instruct the rafters on (1) Water Pollution – The Wabash River water was tested for ammonia, chlorine, chromate, copper, iron, nitrate, phosphorous, silica and sulfide. Most of these were chosen due to their presence in fertilizers, sand, and household waste. In general, it was found that phosphorous, iron, siica and sulfide were present in the water. Some of the other ions wre found if there was sediment in the water sample
(2)Dissolved Oxygen-This lab complexed the oxygen in the water into insoluble compounds, which could then be tested. Amounts of oxygen should vary depending on the source, speed of the water, and temperature. More oxygen is generally found in cold, fast moving water.
(3) Surface Tension-This station was done to demonstrate the property water molecules have of sticking together. This is caused by the fact that water is a slightly charged molecule (meaning it has a positive and negative end), which are attracted to each other, more so at the surface which is exposed to air.
(4) Soil Testing-Soils were tested for potassium, nitrate, phosphate and pH as an indicator of how rich or poor the soil is. The soil turned out to be fairly poor.
(5) Adhesion Station-This lab was again used to demonstrate the property of water, which causes it to stick together. This involved the water moving down the string without spilling.
Southwest School Corporation under the leadership of Nancy Hunt was able to take a spin-off of the raft trip and apply and receive a $300,000 High Tech Grant. The high tech grant enabled the SWSC to achieve many technology goals, which were earlier thought to be unobtainable.
Students disembarked at Hutsonville, IL after paddling the 7-mile trip. T-shirts were given each day to the rafters. Prizes were given to the rafters that identified the most items. The overall conclusion was that this was an experience of a lifetime for these lucky 8th graders. As one teacher remarked, “When they return for their 15th class reunion they will still be talking about this trip!”
STARR
Students, Technology and River Rafting
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