Kentucky First Lady Jane Beshear is collaborating with the state Energy and Environment Cabinet and the Kentucky Environmental Education Council to host the 2015 Earth Day Celebration in the Brown-Forman Room and Cralle-Day Garden at the Kentucky History Center in downtown Frankfort.
The event will be held Thursday, April 9, 2015, from 10:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. A number of state and local agencies will have booths to educate state employees and the public about how to become better environmental stewards.
Here are a few exhibitor highlights:
- The Frankfort Sewer Department (FSD) will be bringing a full-scale rain barrel display and will be offering demonstrations on how easy rain barrels are to set up and install. In addition, FSD will have a small table that contains a water treatment model that appeals to ages from 2 to 102. “Water Treatment – The Good, The Bad and The Ugly,” is a demonstration that covers the concepts of water treatment for both drinking water and wastewater, as well as what happens when these infrastructures do not perform well, are constructed incorrectly or become inundated due to natural weather related phenomenon and/or population growth.
- The Kentucky Pollution Prevention Center (KPPC) booth will feature handout publications that highlight the environmental and pollution prevention technical services available to Kentucky businesses and industries. Handouts providing information for residential sustainability activities will also be available at the booth. KPPC staff will be on hand to answer questions and talk about the current sustainability initiatives and projects of the Center. Visitors can sign up at the booth to receive KPPC’s monthly electronic newsletter.
- The Kentucky Division of Forestry will showcase the theme of forestry and soil and give away tree seedlings.
- The Salato Education Center will send volunteers who will bring mammal furs, turtle shells, snake sheds, snake skulls and live snakes.
- Kentucky State University will be doing a hands-on watershed demonstration that shows participants what is a watershed and how watersheds can become polluted with point source and non-point source pollution.
- The Capital City Beekeepers will provide an observation hive that shows bees at work on the honeycomb in an enclosed environment. Observers will not come into contact with the bees.
Other state and local agencies on hand will be:
- Kentucky State Nature Preserves Commission
- The Governor’s Garden/Governor’s Office of Ag Policy
- Division of Water
- Division of Compliance Assistance
- Department of Parks
- Walk/Bike Frankfort
- Division of Waste Management
- State Office Building’s Green Team
- Frankfort Public Works Department
- Kentucky School Boards Association’s School Energy Managers Program
- Division for Air Quality
- Kentucky-National Energy Education Development Project
- Kentucky Environmental Education Council
- Woods and Waters Land Trust
- Franklin County Solid Waste Department
- Kentucky Association for Environmental Education
- Bluegrass Greensource
The first lady will kick off the event with remarks beginning at 10:30 a.m. The celebration also includes recognition of Kentucky’s newest university-level Green Ribbon School and the newest K-12 Green and Healthy Schools.
Naturally Connected 