Splash! Grants Awarded to Area Schools in District
This year, 94 Splash! grants were awarded across the District’s 16-county region to educate students on water resources. Splash! grant projects include student monitoring of local water quality, environmental field studies and school or community outreach campaigns designed to encourage water conservation.
The goal of the Splash! school grant program is to provide teachers with funding to enhance student knowledge of topics that meet the District’s core mission and teach students about their local watersheds, water conservation, quality and supply. Splash! school grants provide up to $3,000 per school on a reimbursement basis and are available to public school teachers.
In addition to Splash! grant funding, the District offers free teacher professional development workshops and curriculum materials. The publications are correlated to Florida’s Next Generation Sunshine State Science Standards and the Common Core State Standards and can be ordered on the District’s website at WaterMatters.org/publications/.
District Launches New Social Media Page
The District is now on Pinterest. The social media page, found at Pinterest.com/SWFWMD marks the District’s continued expansion into the growing world of social media.
Pinterest is an information-sharing website designed like a virtual bulletin board. Users can “pin” links to boards, manage themed collections of information and share with others. Pinterest is the third most popular social media site behind Facebook and Twitter. The District’s Pinterest page will launch with eight boards featuring recreation information, one of the most popular areas of the District’s website.
Through the Pinterest page, users can peruse their favorite District lands, gather information on species or save facts about popular recreational activities. Additional boards will continue to be added over time. Other planned boards include topics on water conservation, educational resources and District publications.
‘Skip a Week’ of Irrigation This Winter to Save Water
The District is reminding residents who irrigate their lawns to “Skip a Week” or more of watering during the cooler months.
According to research by the University of Florida, grass doesn’t need to be watered as often during the cooler months. One-half to three-quarters of an inch of water every 10–14 days is sufficient. In fact, if your lawn has received any significant rainfall, then you can turn off your irrigation system and operate it manually as needed.
Watering only every other week at most during the winter will help conserve drinking water supplies that the public needs for critical uses during the dry season. If everyone skipped one week of irrigation this season, it could save an estimated 1.9 billion gallons of water.
For additional information about water restrictions and water conservation, please contact your local utility or visit the District’s website at WaterMatters.org/restrictions/.