Water Leaders Across Colorado Stepping up Efforts to Educate Public About Resources

Two years after the Colorado Water Plan was unveiled, river basins, basin roundtables, nonprofits and river-related organizations are stepping up efforts to achieve one of the plan's main goals: water education.

Developed by the Colorado Water Conservation Board and presented to the governor in November 2015, the state water plan recommended creating a data-based water education plan, creating a new outreach, education and public engagement grant fund and improving the use of existing state education resources.

Windi Gap Reservoir, Colorado River, Source: Wikimedia Commons

While many water professionals are beginning to understand the importance of education, one Colorado River Basin Roundtable member has long understood the importance of an education and communications strategy. At-large roundtable representative Diane Johnson is also the communications and public affairs manager for the Eagle River Water & Sanitation District.

In this position, she works in a variety of ways to engage the community, including through weekly spots on local radio station KZYR to talk about things like the preventive maintenance of drain cleaning, safe drug disposal (not flushing them down the toilet) and other issues the district faces. The district also staffs a water station at the farmers market, which Johnson said is a fantastic opportunity to talk with people about how the district brings safe drinking water to the masses.

"We all have much more ability to get our message out to people directly via social media or to your inbox," Johnson said. "It's great to have the e-news thing, but you're not growing the engagement pie. So that's the whole thing. You get that by having your voice in different places."

The Colorado River Basin Roundtable, which meets in Glenwood Springs, has not formally "gone pro" in terms of hiring a specialist. Johnson said she sees the benefits of the Colorado roundtable having a position focused on education, but there are currently no plans to hire anyone. The roundtable is working on launching and updating a website as a means to get information to the public about its message, goals and projects.

"I certainly understand why you would want to have someone that (education) is their focus and will keep getting information out about all this work and conversations that are going on every month," Johnson said. "So much information is competing for our attention, and we know people care about things they are connected to, so whatever we can do to get more people to care, it just creates an informed citizenry in the state."

Read full article: Post Independent

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