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Project WET makes a splash in CNMI
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Posted on Sep 27 2000
Northern Mariana’s WET was the first place in America to hold this weekend’s water festivals: Make a Splash with WET–it was National Water Education Day across America, with the NMI joining all 50 states in holding the event simultaneously–almost–because of the dateline, that made us the first place to celebrate the event! In addition, you are already aware that the Governor declared it Project WET, National WET Education Day.
The Northern Mariana Islands were the only non state to join the US as WET is not yet sponsored in the US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, etc. However, American Samoa and the Marshall Islands have just joined WET, under the US Department of Interior’s Pacific Region WET (Water) Maintenance and Education Program, modeled after the CUC project.
This weekend’s Water Festival was sponsored by: Commonwealth Utilities Corporation WET–Water Education for Teachers University of Guam: Water Environmental Research Institute (WERI), via a grant from the US Geological Survey for Water Education Projects, and the Northern Marianas College and Tan Holdings Corp., in addition to other donations or discounted items from the business sector and the Legislature.
There were two different events or programs featured at the festival:
• The CUC WET received a grant from the USGS/WERI to create a “community rainwater catchment model project,” and that was done at Tanapag Elementary Saipan, where WET is well received, utilized, where the teacher won the President’s Environmental Award.
• The group made and installed gutters for just about every building, installed seven huge water tanks to store rainwater.
• A grant subsidized by NMC also allowed the group to purchase three drinking fountains.
• The Water Festival itself featured 1,400 students (bused in from all public and various private schools) who went through 18 booths that ranged from learning about island water (hydrology) rock formations, water formations, how to drill water wells, set up rainwater projects, to booths where the kids tested water samples for bacteria, learned about wastewater treatments, and even participated in the “H2Olympics”.
