In celebration of Maryland Groundwater Awareness Week (March 11-17), Maryland Department of the Environment Secretary Robert M. Summers will meet with Caroline County sixth-graders for a demonstration and discussion on the importance of groundwater in Maryland.  The students at Colonel Richardson Middle School are very familiar with groundwater.  Not only have they completed lessons on the subject, but nearly all of them live in houses on well water with septic systems. Dr. Summers’ lesson will drive home the importance of groundwater to the students and how their actions impact their community.

Who

Robert M. Summers, PhD, Secretary, Maryland Department of the Environment; Larry C. Porter, President, Caroline County Commissioners (invited); Wilbur Levengood, Jr., Vice President, Caroline County Commissioners (invited); Jefferson L. Ghrist, Caroline County Commissioner (invited); Dr. Khalid Mumin, Superintendent, Caroline County Public Schools; members of the Caroline County Board of Education (invited); Susan R. McCandless, Principal, Colonel Richardson Middle School; Robert Horner, Science Teacher, Colonel Richardson Middle School; sixth-grade students from Colonel Richardson Middle School

When

Friday, March 16, 2012 from 1 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. *Media sign-in and set up 12:45 p.m.*

Where

Colonel Richardson Middle School, 25390 Richardson Road, Federalsburg, MD 21632

Why

Every day, Americans use 79.6 billion gallons of fresh groundwater for public and private use, including for irrigation, livestock, manufacturing, mining and more.  Groundwater is vulnerable to pollution by anything we spill or dispose of on or under the ground.  Groundwater contaminated with bacteria, chemicals, pesticides, gasoline or oil can result in serious human health problems.  Keeping our groundwater clean helps to protect and restore our waterways, including the Chesapeake Bay.​​