Dow Supports LaBranche Wetland Watchers Program

St. Charles, LA - December 07, 2005

In recent weeks, Dow employees volunteered their time to assist the LaBranche Wetland Watchers conduct three field trips for local students. Students on the field trips participated in a digital scavenger hunt and learned about the interaction of environmental components at a fish identification station, a water quality testing station, a “critter collection” station, a reptile station and a nature trail. Dow volunteers, including Deb Beck, Darin Duhe, Stanley Roy Dufrene, Elliott Madere, Joseph Madere, Leslie Quiros, Rachelle Peavler, Jon Pucheu and Jay Stiles, were on hand to ensure the safety of the students and to assist the Wetland Watchers in their educational activities, along with professionals from the Save The Lake Foundation, the University of New Orleans, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and other groups.

During the digital scavenger hunt, field trip participants documented examples of environmental science topics, including the transfer of energy through an ecosystem, natural and human impacts on local habitats, direct impact of the hurricane, and how the impact on the wetlands has affected our economy. DWF agents brought a variety of native fish specimens to the fish identification station for the students to observe, then the students completed a chart that includes physical descriptions, adaptations, common names and colloquial names for each species. Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation researchers guided students through chemical water testing for salinity, turbidity, temperature and dissolved oxygen content.

At the “critter collection” station, University of New Orleans Coastal Research Lab Researchers guide students through biological water testing using cast nets and dip nets to collect and identify macro critters to be viewed through two-way aquatic magnifiers. Students had hands-on opportunities with frogs, turtles, alligators, and snakes indigenous to wetland habitats at the reptile station. They discussed the animal’s life cycles, adaptations and place in the food web. Nationally recognized naturalist, Milton Cambre, recipient of former President Bush’s Thousand Points of Light, guided students throughout an area of the lake shoreline devastated by Katrina. While discussing the physical and economic impacts of the storms on our coast and fisheries industry, students also saw how successful the breakwater protected the land donated to the project.

The LaBranche Wetland Watchers is a project at Harry Hurst Middle School that began in 1999 and is led by teacher Barry Guillot. The Wetland Watchers, which consists of Hurst 7th graders, complete several activities throughout the year that are focused on education, service and awareness. These activities include: collecting trash, planting trees, performing water quality tests and learning to serve as guides to hundreds of younger students on wetland trips and as leaders at the environmental stations.

"Dow has meant so much to our wetland program. The volunteers that come out to help on our wetland service trips are so enthusiastic and eager to assist in any way. With so many of our partners displaced by Hurricane Katrina, Dow really came through to make our make-up trips possible. Working together, we are making a difference in the education of our students and the future of our local wetland areas," said Guillot.

Dow has been a proud sponsor of this project since its inception in 1999, and employees continue to volunteer at the Wetlands Celebration each spring. This year, Dow donated $20,000 to build a nature trail and outdoor classroom complex at the site, which is on 18 acres of property donated by the Pontchartrain Levee District.

Dow is a diversified chemical company that harnesses the power of science and technology to improve living daily. The Company offers a broad range of innovative products and services to customers in more than 175 countries, helping them to provide everything from fresh water, food and pharmaceuticals to paints, packaging and personal care products. Built on a commitment to its principles of sustainability, Dow has annual sales of $46 billion and employs 42,000 people worldwide. References to "Dow" or the "Company" mean The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries unless otherwise expressly noted.  St. Charles Operations is owned by Union Carbide Corporation, which is a subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company.

	St. Charles Operations volunteers J.T. Taylor and Bryan Abadie discuss the interaction of the components of the environment with a group of local students.

For Editorial Information:

Jolen Stein
St. Charles Operations
(985) 783-4990