Michigan Water School set for May 2018 in Kalamazoo

Beth Clawson<Clawsonb@msu.edu>, Michigan State University Extension - March 20, 2018

Making sound water management decisions depends on understanding Michigan’s water resources and the fundamentals of water science. Local elected and appointed officials can get decision and placemaking support from Water School training event.

MSU Extension. Permeable public parking at Oakland County Park with dual infiltration and bio-swale water management design. (Photo Beth: Clawson)

The state of Michigan has water strategy priority measures to support and provide an understanding of water principles, values and concepts, as well as water stewardship, data-driven decision-making and other strategic goals. The Michigan Water School: Essential Resources for Local Officials provides local decision-makers with the information they need to understand Michigan’s water resources, including the fundamentals of water science. The policy-neutral, fact-based program, organized by Michigan State University Extension and Michigan Sea Grant, will be held May 22-23, 2018 at Western Michigan University’s Innovation Event Center, 4717 Park Road, Kalamazoo, MI.

Supporting management decisions

The training is designed to assist elected and appointed officials and staff with critical, relevant fundamentals of water science to support sound water management decisions. The Water School curriculum features a combination of in-class presentations, hands-on learning activities, interactive demonstrations and field tours.

The two-day workshop includes sessions on:

Understanding water quantity
Protecting water quality
Balancing economic, finance and planning
Grasping water policy at the federal, tribal, state and local levels
Incorporating water into planning and placemaking plans

Field tour enhancement

Field tours will enhance classroom content through highlighting innovative infrastructure and low impact development practices in the Kalamazoo area. Program speakers represent staff educators and faculty from MSU and MSU Extension as well as Dr. Donald Carpenter, Director of the Great Lakes Stormwater Management Institute at Lawrence Technical Institute along with Dr. Patricia Crowley, Kalamazoo County Drain Commissioner. The MSU Extension Water School program provides four Citizen Planner continuing education credits.

The program registration fee is $175. Space is limited. Partial scholarships are available by contacting Mary Bohling at bohling@msu.edu. Register for the workshop at: http://msue.anr.msu.edu/events/michigan_water_school_kalamazoo_2018 . The registration fee includes tour, lunch and program materials. Participants will also receive a certificate at the completion of the two-day session. For more information about the program, contact Beth Clawson, MSU Extension educator.

This article was published by Michigan State University Extension. For more information, visit https://extension.msu.edu. To have a digest of information delivered straight to your email inbox, visit https://extension.msu.edu/newsletters. To contact an expert in your area, visit https://extension.msu.edu/experts, or call 888-MSUE4MI (888-678-3464).