Elon University’s Center for Environmental Studies will examine issues critical to water supplies, protection and management during a seminar titled “A River Runs Through Us,” which will be held from 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m., Friday, Oct. 17 in McKinnon Hall, located in Moseley Center on the Elon campus. This is the third year Elon will host the conference.
The seminar will offer a variety of presentations about water supplies in the North Carolina Piedmont and sustainable management of water resources. Government experts, scholars and representatives from various organizations will explore ways to protect the Cape Fear River Basin, which is the main source of water for almost a third of North Carolina residents.
Seminar panelists include Sandra Postel, director of the Global Water Policy Institute and WorldWatch Institute Fellow; Curry Jones, total maximum daily load manager with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); and Christine Olsenius, executive director of the Southeast Watershed Forum.
The Cape Fear River Basin serves industrial and agricultural centers in North Carolina. The basin is home to 27 percent of the state’s population, including more than one million residents in the Upper Cape Fear Basin, which includes Greensboro, High Point, Asheboro, Burlington, Durham and Chapel Hill. Management of the Cape Fear River Basin has been examined in a plan developed by the N.C. Division of Water Quality.
Established in 2000, the Center for Environmental Studies promotes environmental education, responsibility, stewardship and leadership while providing opportunities for students and faculty to work with individuals and organizations outside the university. The center is involved in the creation of a database of organizations that monitor the water quality in the Cape Fear basin, streamlining efforts to maintain the watershed’s health.
The registration fee for the seminar is $15. Professional engineers, water treatment operators, wastewater treatment operators and educators can earn continuing education credit by attending the entire seminar.
Co-sponsors for “A River Runs Through Us” include the North Carolina section of the American Water Works Association, the North Carolina Water Environment Association, Duke Energy, Syngenta, the Piedmont Land Conservancy, the Haw River Lands and Trails Association and Alamance Community College.
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