Vernal Pool Monitoring Workshop & Training
Saturday, February 23 • 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.
New Albany High School, 7600 Fodor Rd.,
New Albany, OH 43054
Why are vernal pools worth protecting? Vernal pools appear once winter has loosened its grip. They fill up annually from rain and rising groundwater. The sounds and sights of vernal pools create a lush world that comes into existence only a few months of the year. Many organisms create the fragile web of life, for a rain day too late or a few grams of weight can mean the difference between life and death. The goals of this project are to educate citizens, land owners, officials, and other environmentalists about the great benefit of collecting data from vernal pools. Other goals include developing vernal monitoring teams to document and collect data from vernal pools throughout Ohio. Raising awareness and documenting these wetlands contribute to the future protection of these habitats. Participants in the workshop can look forward to a field trip to a vernal pool, accompanied by several experts. The group will also learn how to spot salamanders and identify different frog calls.
Who should attend this workshop? Citizen-based watershed groups; government-based watershed groups; consultants and other professionals involved with watershed efforts; municipal, county and state government representatives; other non-profit groups; high school science teachers; park naturalists and the public.
This workshop is presented by the Ohio Environmental Council (OEC) in collaboration with the City of Columbus Park and Recreation, Friends of Wetlands, New Albany High School and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Funding is provided by The Dr. Thelma I. Schoonover Fund of The Columbus Foundation.
Workshop presenters include: David R. Celebrezze, who works at the OEC on both wetlands and streams and diesel emission cleanup. Elayna Grody, the Natural Resources Manager for the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department. She has worked in the Natural Resources field for more than 18 years, conducted the Urban Wetland study in 2006 with the Ohio EPA and was a section supervisor for the Connecticut Amphibian Monitoring Projects. John Katko, founder and president of Friends of Wetlands, which is heavily involved in wetlands preservation and education. John holds a Master’s Degree in Biology and has taught sixth grade at Sheffield Lake Schools for 30 years. He serves as member of the OEC Board of Directors. Mick Micacchion is a wetland ecologist with the Ohio EPA, where he performs grant work developing wetland assessment tools and provides technical expertise on a wide range of wetland issues. He has monitored the amphibian, plant, and invertebrate communities of natural and constructed wetlands across the state. Bill Resch who is the K-12 environmental programs coordinator of the New Albany Schools. He is a graduate of The Ohio State University (OSU) and serves on the advisory board of the OSU Wetland Research Park. His focus is the preservation and restoration of wetlands within the local Big Walnut Creek Watershed. Bill Somerlot who has been teaching high school environmental science, marine biology, and Alaskan field studies for the last 23 years. He has also served as a research assistant with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management on spotted owl and bald eagle habitat investigations. Bill holds a BS in Biology from the College of Wooster and a Masters degree from OSU.
For more information, contact David R. Celebrezze, OEC Director of Air & Water Special Projects, at 614-487-7506 or david@theoec.org. Visit www.theOEC.org to register or download the conference brochure.