Second look at Wildcat Watershed set October 20
October 13, 2006
KOKOMO, Ind.—A second public forum focused on the Wildcat Creek Kitty Run-Stahl Ditch Watershed is planned Friday, October 20, at Indiana University Kokomo. Following up an initial forum held September 27 on campus, the event will provide stakeholders with additional information on the risks associated with bacteria contamination and recreational uses of Wildcat Creek.
The 4-6 p.m. forum will be held in Virgil and Elizabeth Hunt Hall, Room 116. Admission and parking are free.
Sponsors are IU Kokomo’s Department of Natural, Information, and Mathematical Sciences, along with the Wildcat Creek Watershed Alliance (WCWA) and the Wildcat Guardians. The latter two local entities are involved in management and protection of the watershed.
“Based upon feedback and news coverage from the first water quality forum, the Wildcat Creek Watershed Alliance decided that a second forum would be beneficial,” said Christian Chauret, Ph.D. An IU Kokomo associate professor of microbiology, Chauret will present research findings regarding E. coli bacteria in the Wildcat Creek watershed, along with his student collaborator Laura Fincher of Converse.
A local recreation site and source of drinking water, Wildcat Creek Watershed drains approximately 29,000 acres of land in central Howard County. Since 2005, the WCWA has been developing a management plan that would identify water quality and natural resource problems in the watershed, and suggest solutions.
WCWA hired Burke Engineering to conduct the watershed study, with funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) grant. Burke representative Zach Bishton will also address the forum.
Chauret said the Wildcat Creek Watershed Alliance planned to post forum presentations on its Web site, www.wildcatalliance.org. “This forum is very timely because World Water Monitoring Day is on Oct. 18,” Chauret added.
World Water Monitoring Day is supported by an international coalition of governmental, non-profit, and business organizations, including the EPA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. According to its Web site, www.worldwatermonitoringday.org, the observance offers communities around the world a chance to positively influence the health of rivers, lakes, estuaries, and other water bodies.
For more information on the October 20 Wildcat Creek Watershed forum, contact Zach Bishton at zbishton@cbbel-in.com or (317) 266-8000.
