YouthCity!  H20 Adventures 

A collaboration between Salt Lake City Public Utilities and the City’s premier after school program.

 Vanessa Welsh, Salt Lake City Watershed Specialist

May 30, 2007

                                                YouthCity - H20 Adventures Artwork

In 2003 Mayor Rocky Anderson created a city wide after-school program for Salt Lake City’s 5th through 8th grade aged kids, called YouthCity.  This program was designed to provide fun, safe and constructive activities at five locations throughout the city.  One of these locations is Ottinger Hall, which is a newly renovated firehouse adjacent to Memory Grove Park. 

Because of Ottinger Hall’s proximity to Memory Grove and City Creek Canyon, the directors of YouthCity-Ottinger Hall wanted to create a water-themed outdoor session for the kids where they could learn about water and watersheds.  Through the Utah Society for Environmental Education, the directors learned about the water science curriculum developed by the Public Utilities Watershed Division for middle school aged children. 

H2O Adventures participants look at artwork posted at the Public Utilities Office Building.
One thing lead to another and using the Public Utilities’ watershed program “Keep It Pure” activity guides, watershed specialist Vanessa Welsh and Dallas Russell of YouthCity created a 6-week program consisting of 12 lesson plans called “H20 Adventures.”

Every day of H20 Adventures the 5th-8th grade water scientists reported dutifully to the Memory Grove portion of City Creek to measure the temperature, turbidity, pH, and overall appearance of the water.  This information was then recorded on data sheets for review by a Public Utilities water specialist. 

From water basics to water bugs, every aspect of the kid’s urban watershed was explored.  Wearing snowshoes and exploring the top of City Creek Canyon, the kids learned the importance of watershed protection for drinking water.  On the stormwater session, Jim Tabish of Public Utilities brought the Vactor Truck (a large stormwater/sewer maintenance truck) to Ottinger Hall and the dazzled kids got to explore the truck and talk about the consequences of polluting urban stormwater.  The student scientists donned waders in City Creek and collected their own water bugs, then evaluated them to determine if the water in City Creek was clean (data results indicated the water was in good shape).  Later in the session, Ken Hibbert lead the kids through a tour of the City Creek Water Treatment plant and reassured them that their water bugs wouldn’t come dancing out of their faucets at home. 

The first and last day of the program the kids created artwork focused on their thoughts about water.  The artwork created at the beginning of the program, as well as the kid’s comments were compared the artwork created at the end and it was clear that not only had the kids obtained a better understanding about water in the Salt Lake Valley, but a sense of stewardship toward it as well.

As a part of Public Utilities’ Water Week celebration, the kid’s artwork was displayed at the Public Utilities Office Building and the artists themselves were invited to attend a “gallery opening” to view their art, have snacks and rub elbows with real life water professionals.  The kids were thrilled to hear that Mayor Rocky Anderson, the guy who created YouthCity for them, had seen their art (and liked it), when he recently visited the building. 

YouthCity-Ottinger Hall has decided to use the H20 Adventures lesson format and offer the 6 week session again next year.  This summer YouthCity and Public Utilities will have four half day sessions with H20 Adventure type themes. 

This has been a great opportunity for the participants to learn about watersheds and water quality, and Public Utilities is looking forward to a continued partnership with YouthCity.