Several hundred fifth-graders from schools throughout Marion County attended the annual Conservation Day at the fairgrounds on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Cara Boozer with the University of Illinois Extension Service that coordinates the program has been held for more than 40 years.
“Conservation Days so the goal is to learn different practices why we need to have conservation for animals, plants and all the different types.”
U of I Horticulture Educator Chris Lueking says there were ten different stations covering a variety of topics.
“The Master Gardners are out here doing Pizza Garden. Talking about benefits of pollinators in your garden and how you can use herbs and plants to create a pizza garden. Illinois fisheries is out here, they have live fish out here on display to talk to them. We have Army Corps of Engineers talking about the benefits of milkweed and pollinators.”
Tri-County Electric, which pays the cost of bus transportation for all the schools to bring the students, talked about electric safety. Foreman Brannon Dasch.
“Watch out for downed power lines and don’t be hanging on the guide wires, and messing around poles and stuff like that.”
Apprentice Lineman Jackson Mays feels fifth graders don’t realize the dangers of electricity.
“I know at that age I didn’t know what was going on. It’s a hard age to understand so we wanted to come out and show a light on them and show them what is going on.”
Students also learned how beavers build dams and why birds migrate, as well as receiving information on Soil and Water Conservation and being able to tour a trailer full of information from Illinois Department of Natural Resources Police. The 4H and Ag in the Classroom also had displays.
