Greetings!  

Below is the monthly One World One Water Newsletter. Here you will find special features, event announcements, and OWOW Center updates. Do you have a special tidbit you think water lovers should know about? Share it here! Contact Nona for more information. 
Thank you and have a lovely day,
The OWOW Center
OWOW MSUDenver

May 2013

Water Studies Fall 2013 Courses

ENV 190A, Water Essentials
CRN 54107
TR 3:30-4:45pm 
ENV 190A, Water Essentials
CRN 54886
TR 8-9:15am 
MGT 290A, Into to Water Law & 
Admin: Colorado and the West 
CRN 53719
TR 9:30-10:45am 
ENV 2100, Basic Water Sampling & Analysis
CRN 54968
TR 8-9:15am 
ENV 3400, Water Resources
CRN 54412
TR 9:30-10:45am 
Water Studies Minor Approved!

In case you missed the BIG news, the Board of Trustees recently approved the Water Studies Minor at MSU Denver. It is believed to be the very first entirely interdisciplinary water minor established at a university in the U.S. Thank you to the administration, faculty members and students who helped bring the OWOW Water Studies Minor to fruition. The new Water Studies Minor will engage students in water education as well as create water stewards. 


Become a CoCoRaHS Volunteer!
By: Chris Spears
 

The Community Collaborative Rain, Hail & Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) is a non-profit, community-based organization headquartered at the Colorado Climate Center in Fort Collins. Nearly 20,000 volunteers from around the United States and Canada help monitor the North American climate by measuring rain, hail and snow.

 

A meteorology degree is not required to participate in CoCoRaHS - just an interest in weather and a desire to learn more about the climate and its impact on water.

Volunteers are asked to obtain an official CoCoRaHS rain gauge ($30), place it in their backyard and make daily precipitation measurements (or as often as possible). The information is then posted to the CoCoRaHS website and mapped in real-time.

CoCoRaHS is looking for at least 1,000 new volunteers around Colorado this year. Several hundred are wanted in the Denver metro area. The ultimate goal is to build a network with at least one gauge per square mile in populated areas and at least every 36 square miles in rural locations.

 

Training is available online or in person. To volunteer, contact Chris Spears at Chris.Spears@colostate.edu or visit www.cocorahs.org to learn more.



Earth Day 2013
It was a snowy Earth Day on campus this year. April 22, 2013. 
You Don't Want To Miss These...
  • Roaring Fork Conservancy is holding their 9th Annual Community River Float on June 8th! Float from Carbondale to Glenwood Springs with ambassadors from Roaring Fork Conservancy and experience the river first-hand while learning about local current water issues. Learn more at roaringfork.org.
  • It's not too late to save yourself a spot on all the upcoming tours with the Colorado Foundation for Water Education. Upcoming 2013 tours include: May 30-31 Lower Colorado Basin Tour, June 20-21 Upper Colorado Basin Tour, and July 10-12 Platte River Tour. Visit cfwe.org for more information.  
  • Colorado Ocean Coalition will host their monthly Blue Drinks event on May 28, 2013 at the Pearl Street Athleta in Boulder! Check out coloradoocean.org

The Electronic Recycling Jobs Act
By: Kate Lemon

We know that electricity and water don't mix. Beginning July 1, electronics won't mix with Colorado soil, either. This summer, the Electronic Recycling Jobs Act goes into effect. Most consumer electronics will be banned from Colorado landfills, including computers, video game consoles, TVs, and more. Why, you ask?

 

Senate Bill 12-133 was mainly formulated to create jobs. According to the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, per ton of waste, recycling sustains 10 jobs for every one landfill job. Electronics are also made from valuable resources, such as gold and copper, which require considerable energy to process and manufacture. Recycling recovers these valuable materials and as a result, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, saves energy, and saves resources by extracting fewer raw materials.

 

Concurrently, electronic devices can contain hazardous materials, including lead and mercury. These materials are not a concern when the electronics are in use, but if disposed of in a landfill, the materials could migrate and contaminate soil or groundwater. (1)

 

To prepare for this ban, Colorado residents are encouraged to explore alternative disposal options, many of which are free or profitable to you, including donation to thrift stores, community collection events, or manufacturer's buy-back programs.

 

Regardless of the disposal outlet, know that you are responsible for protecting any personal information stored on electronic devices. The best approach to protect your privacy is to physically destroy a hard drive with deep scratches or by hammering nails through it.

Please visit www.colorado.gov/cdphe/ewaste for more information.

 

(1) Note that landfills are well-lined to protect against this type of contamination, though the possibility of leakage still exists. There has been no evidence of this occurrence in Colorado landfills.

OWOW at History Colorado
One World One Water Center for Urban Water Education and Stewardship

Tom Cech, Director
tcech@msudenver.edu

Nona Shipman, Outreach and Recruitment Manager
303-352-7400
nshipman@msudenver.edu


STAY CONNECTED

Like us on Facebook   Follow us on Twitter