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Creek Club Continues Earth Day Tradition

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Contributed by: David Eick on 4/21/2007

About a dozen members of the Cheyenne Creek Conservation Club from Canon Elementary were out this morning stenciling storm drains with the phrase "Dump No Waste...Drains to Stream". By the time they finished they stenciled this on over 30 drains in and around the Cheyenne Canon and Skyway neighborhoods. Supervised by parent volunteers and a teacher, club members used kits on loan from the city. This is at least the fifth time they have done this community service activity.
This annual Earth Day tradition is just one way the club members hope to raise awareness and further protect the habitat along Cheyenne Creek, on the southwest side of Colorado Springs. Students in the club, which is made of of volunteers from 5th and 6th grades at the school, also pick up trash along the creek and regularly monitor the creek for the Colorado Division of Wildlife. The club has been active at the school for over 10 years.
What kids in the club hope hope is that by raising awareness about storm drains and non-point-source pollution, they can continue to preserve the suburban stream habitat that is Cheyenne Creek.
Non-point source pollution is nearly everything that ends up int he street, gutters, or runs off yards and driveways. "People do not realize that lots of this stuff just washes down the street when it rains, and they think it is gone," said one club member. "However, it usually washes into one of these drains, and then ends up directly in the creek."This then effects the pH and other factors, which can change the local environment.
Over the past several years, the club has also conducted an annual fish census in the creek behind their school each fall. Last September, students from the "Canon Stream Team" met with Gary Dowler, Aquatic Biologist with the D.O.W., and found 22 brown trout in Cheyenne Creek in just a 165' stretch. As in years past, the fish were in various stages of life, which is one indicator of a healthy population.
To learn more about this club's history and activities, visit http://schools.cmsd12.org/canon_elem/classrooms/Cheyenne_Creek_Club/news

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David Eick

Colorado Springs , CO

David Eick has posted 11 stories and 0 comments since joining on 3/3/2007. David Eick 's average story rating is 5.

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