Potable water scarcity in Texas continues to be a mounting problem as demand, due to population growth and climate variability, increases (Stanley, & Doyle, 2011). Hence, there is a need to embrace water reuse to meet future needs. While our technological ability to produce potable water efficiently continues to become more economically advantageous, there remains a bias against water reuse among the public. One strategy that addresses both the physical and social concerns of water reuse is constructed wetlands. Constructed wetlands are effective at treating a variety of historical and emerging wastewater contaminants (Brooks et al., 2011) and provide habitats for wildlife in rapidly urbanizing watersheds. Furthermore, these types of wetlands provide unique opportunities for education and community engagement in water and wildlife conservation.  This presentation will report on an ongoing series of workshops, facilitated by the research team and conducted at the JBS Wetlands Center (Dallas area) designed to train environmental and science educators in how to teach students and community members about urban environmental issues and the role of constructed wetlands in water quality, water reuse, and wildlife and habitat management. Results from data collected from pre/post-workshop surveys indicated that a significant gain was made by the educators in their self-efficacy in teaching environmental education indicating that the participation in workshop increased the educators' perceptions of their competence to teach their students about wetland processes and water conservation. Furthermore, the workshop increased the teachers desire to teach their students more than facts, but also critical thinking related to environmental issues. Using these results in combination with Stern et al.'s (1995) value-belief-norm theory of environmentalism, a discussion of management techniques that may encourage students and the general public to engage in pro-environmental behavior (e.g., support for building constructed wetlands and consumption of water from reuse projects).

Constructed wetlands as an educational tool to encourage water reuse

247th National Meeting (2014)

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