The Envirothon is an outdoor environmental learning competition for junior high and high school students. Teams of students compete in five learning stations and take a 20 point exam on environmental topics that include: Aquatics, Forestry, Wildlife, Soils, and Current events. Information can be found at: MASWCD – Envirothon
The top three teams in each area/region go on to compete in the State Envirothon. The winning team at the State Envirothon advances to the National Envirothon and competes against teams from across the USA and Canada.
The Freshwater Festival is an annual event for sixth graders in Hubbard County. It is sponsored by funds from the Hubbard County Local Water Plan and local donations with administrative support from the Hubbard County Soil and Water Conservation District. It follows basically the same format each year.
At this event, each class rotates through five stations where individual presenters share their expertise. Presenters are volunteers from organizations such as Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, Department of Natural Resources, Minnesota Department of Health, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and others. In addition, there are paid professional educators including Tom Gibson – Environmental Education and the Headwater’s Science Center of Bemidji. Their programs are 45 minutes long and every student will attend those sessions.
Each class stays together throughout the day. Break times are scheduled for snacks and lunch. Presenters and volunteers are provided with a meal prepared by the Mantrap Valley Conservation Club Auxiliary, and students and teachers bring sack lunches. Volunteers from the Coalition of Lake Associations assist with various aspects of the festival from chaperoning classes to handing out snacks. Usually, there are around 45 volunteers.
The 2024 Freshwater Festival event will be held at Camp Wilderness Boy Scout Camp May, 15th, 2024.
The festival typically starts at 9:15 a.m. and ends at 1:45 p.m. Students will receive a tree seedling and learn how to plant their seedling from a DNR forester. Anyone interested in volunteering should contact our office by May 1st of each year.
Teachers, volunteers, and presenters receive schedules and information before the festival. They may visit the camp before the festival day to familiarize themselves with the various stations they will be attending. Volunteers also help wrap trees and bag materials the day before the festival.
The Freshwater Festival aims to educate sixth-grade students about the protection, preservation, and conservation of water resources in an atmosphere of fun and learning. Hubbard County has substantial ground and surface water resources. We want to educate children about different aspects of these waters and their relationship to other resources: wetlands, forestry, and wildlife. We also want to instill environmental awareness and a stewardship ethic in students and adults.
Hubbard County SWCD has a rural rainfall monitoring network throughout Hubbard County that was begun in 1978. Each month volunteers record rainfall and snowfall daily and then submit their reports to the SWCD office who sends the compiled data to the Office of State Climatology. Monitors are supplied with stamped, self-addressed envelopes and monitoring forms, so there is no cost to the volunteer. A rain gauge is also supplied. From time to time a volunteer may retire from the network, so new monitors are needed. If you are interested in being a rainfall monitor, please call the office for more information.
Citizen Science is collaborative data collection between the community and researchers. In our case we are collecting data about our lakes, rivers, plants, trees and watersheds to better understand their health and how to protect them.
Help us better understand the conditions of lake ice within Hubbard County. If you noticed or know when a lake froze over simply click on the lake in question and add the date it froze. There will also be data collected on ice out dates so check back in the spring!