Hundreds of children and adults were educated by Illinois State Water Survey staff about groundwater and wells at the 2018 Illinois State Fair in Springfield. Staff from the Groundwater Science Section shared space in the Private Lands Programs tent for 10 days in Conservation World. This was the first presence by ISWS at the State Fair in more than a decade.
Several interactive displays drew large crowds to watch and listen to demonstrations. Kids learned about the water cycle and especially enjoyed using an old-fashioned hand pump. Older children and adults were fascinated as different colored dyes traveled as “contaminants” through groundwater and septic sand tank models.
Staff members chatted with well owners of all kinds and sought to help them understand what they should and shouldn’t do. One ISWS employee said, “I met one woman who would chlorinate the well monthly and we discussed how that wasn't a best practice. I also met a woman who had crickets in her well once. Then, I met a family who had a well they didn't use that was starting to [subside] and they were asking about what to do with it. I tried to emphasize that they need to have it properly sealed up because they were liable if anyone fell in.”
Another ISWS employee shared, “I talked to so many people that said: ‘My grandma had a pump like that one!’ It was fun to hear all the stories of hand pumps that were used for drinking water and watering the garden/animals.”
Interacting with well owners in person and face to face is an important complement to the day-to-day work done by Groundwater Science Section staff. The State Fair team distributed more than 600 flyers about PrivateWellClass.org and the ISWS Public Service Lab’s capabilities, and collected nearly 100 email addresses. Section staff manned the booth in shifts to answer questions and provide more information about national-scale and Illinois-focused programs.
The Groundwater Science Section is excited for this outreach “reboot” and looks forward to having a presence at the Illinois State Fair again next year.
