News Releases - 2003

Earth Stewardship Day 2003 Will Be Held on May Day

Springfield, Ill. -- An estimated 1,200 Sangamon County fourth grade pupils are expected to attend the 12th Earth Stewardship Day on Thursday, May 1, at the Illinois State Fairgrounds.

This year’s event is being jointly sponsored by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, the Illinois Departments of Agriculture, Commerce and Economic Opportunity, and Natural Resources, as well as the Association of Illinois Soil and Water Conservation Districts and the city of Springfield.

The program will run from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., during which time the students will move around the State Fairgrounds to visit a selection from among 43 interactive presentations and special attractions. Presentations are held both indoors and outdoors, so pupils and teachers are advised to dress appropriately.

Presenters represent a wide range of agencies and organizations, all with a focus on the importance of protecting, restoring, recycling and reusing natural resources.

There is no charge for participation but attendance will be limited to the first 1,200 pupils pre-registered by their schools.

The Illinois EPA will staff nine stations. They include "Environmental Jeopardy," in which student volunteers try to beat the clock and each other with the right answers to environmental questions. Those first with the right answer win points while the contestants who were wrong, or less speedy, get "trashed."

Other IEPA stations include "Macroinvertebrate Mayhem," "Putt-ing for Clean Water," two stations for the "Recycle Dash," "The Long Haul," a Streams Table, the Air Wheel, and the "Toxic Relay."

Special presentations will be offered by Brian "Fox" Ellis, of Fox Tales International, Peoria,, and the Kaleidoscope Kids of Monticello, Ill., which will present a recycling-oriented performance, "The Earth Protectors." Ellis' presentation, "Adventures in Nature," is being funded by IEPA.

Presentations will be located in the Exposition Building, Ethnic Village, the Lincoln Stage and Watershed Park.

Underscoring the event's "stewardship" focus, pupils and teachers are asked to take a "waste free" lunch and drink.

Additional information can be obtained from Dasha Heinemann, 217-558-2922 or e-mail: dasha.heinemann@illinois.gov.