Adopt-A-Pond
The St. Tammany Parish Adopt-a-Pond and Park Programs are dynamic education opportunities that incorporate outreach measures and wetland plant community development to improve neighborhoods throughout the parish. The goal of the program is to develop student awareness of the critical roles wetlands and constructed stormwater ponds play in achieving good water quality, while providing excess water storage during high rainfall events.
The program began in 2013 to increase lost tree canopy in the parish due to the impacts of the 2005 and 2008 hurricanes. Schools in the parish were engaged to participate in field trips to plant trees and learn about their local wetlands. By 2019, the program expanded to incorporate STEM lessons to support classroom curriculum standards. Today the program includes junior high school agriculture science classes and natural wetland habitats in local parks. Currently, the Adopt-a-Pond and Park Programs include 12 St. Tammany Parish schools, with students ranging from seventh to twelfth grades.
Man-made stormwater ponds and natural wetlands in local parks provide students with hands-on learning opportunities, such as collecting water quality data to capture pollutant reductions. Simultaneously, students learn about habitat restoration, local drainage, marine debris, natural resource stewardship and scientific methods, among other things.