Paper presented at the 52nd CFCS Annual Meeting, Guadeloupe, July 10-16, 2016
WATER AMBASSADOR PROGRAM Christina Marie Chanes1, Dr. David C Morris2 and Dr. Avram Gerald Primack3 1
University of the. Virgin Islands, Cooperative Extension Service, 2University of the Virgin Islands GeoCas, 3 University of the Virgin Islands, Etelman Observatory Keywords: Water conservation, water resources, Water Supply Problem, Education, Hydrology, 1 Abstract The United States Virgin Islands is a small territory in the Caribbean Sea just to the east of Puerto Rico that consists of four main islands, Saint Thomas, Saint Croix, Saint John Water Island, and a few smaller, mostly unpopulated islands. The majority of the people in the territory live on Saint Croix and Saint Thomas. Saint John and Water Island contain smaller populations A significant proportion of the population of all of these islands draws their water from cisterns that collect rooftop water. The others are dependent upon groundwater sources. . In addition to its permanent residents, Saint Thomas has one of the busiest tourism industries in the Caribbean (Allen 1992) with more than 2 million visitors annually in recent years (USVI BER 2012). Children were given six lessons in hydrology, took part in a pre and post test and also wrote an essay about the water cycle. They also tested water from their schools, home and around the community. They charted the outcome of the testing results and presented them to professors from UVI. These activities increased their awareness of the need for clean water in our community. Introduction This project set up a Water Ambassadors Program which trained Cooperative Extension Service personnel at the University of the Virgin Islands to deliver lessons to youth in grades six on hydrologic processes and watershed protection, extend the existing network of climate recording stations on Saint Thomas and create an interface for collecting map data on hydrologic condition from the public. The project advanced the literacy about hydrology and was aimed at youth in public education, specifically, about water resources and their management on Saint Thomas. There has been and continues to be a need for data collection on the status of streams and watersheds and increased understanding of climate patterns on the island. The goal was to prevent or reduce nonpoint source pollution (NPS) of underground and surface water as well as bring to attention the importance of water quality and the need for the testing of water in schools, homes and the community overall while also encouraging and promoting development of the understanding of watersheds so that youth can reduce their impact and conserve water and other natural resources. This proposal began a model educational program to teach students the stewardship of good water and landscape conservation practices, create a system for collecting crowd source data (data collected by the public through a web mapping interface) on the status of hydrologic systems in the Territory using these students to report on their own watersheds, and increase the spread of weather station system currently operated by the University of the Virgin Islands on Saint Thomas by bringing a station to each participating school. Methods Researchers Dr Morris and Dr Primack at UVI also increased the overall territory weather station network which allow for greater resolution in constructing climate models for Saint Thomas. The collaboration between the VI WRRI grants allowed for more than six stations to be added to a network of more than 16 weather stations across the territory (Figure 1). This project greatly contributed to the overall reach and success of that network and what UVI researchers are hoping to accomplish as far as the data collection from those systems. Research Weather Stations Added to Network School Addelita Cancryn Junior High School E. Oliver Benjamin Elementary School
Grade
Ivanna Eudora KeanHigh School VI Montessori School Int’l Academy All Saints School Lockhart Elementary School
9-12th K-12 (private) K-12 (private) K-6 (4-6) (ESL)
7-8th K-5th (4-5)
(Figure 1) More than 6 stations were added to the network in St Thomas
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