Be an H20 Hero

Take a moment to imagine our world without water. We drink it, swim it, cook with it, clean with it, fish live in it, and we grow most of our food with it. It is also used to cool buildings and many of the machines we use, and to manufacture everything from paper to blue jeans. Using water is the only way we can survive as humans.

We just don't need to use so much. If you look back at our section on Climate, you will see that in Fort Lauderdale we are experiencing sea level rise. That means that salt water from the ocean is getting closer to the fresh water in our aquifers. You will also see that we are working on solutions around that problem. But one of the very best things we can do right now is to be respectful of the water that we have. That's what we mean by being an H2O hero.

An H2O hero has two responsibilities:

• Keeping the water clean by preventing pollution, and
• Conserving water by not using too much of it. 

You can do both.

Meet Stormy

Stormy is a little fish who lives in Fort Lauderdale. Ok, not really, but he does represent all the millions of fish and marine animals who do live here. Stormy asks that you help us make sure nothing but clean fresh rainwater gets into our ponds, lakes, rivers, canals, intracoastal waterway and ocean. You'll see his picture throughout our website and at events. When you do, please tell the adult in your life to pay attention. You can also send them to our webpages on Preventing Stormwater Pollution. Stormy has tips on everything from washing your car to walking the dog.

Dive in!

Try some of these great websites to learn more about the water cycle, where our water comes from, water conservation and keeping our water clean.

Visit the EPA’s Water Sense for Kids page for more information on why and how to conserve water.

Watch a Scholastic Study Jam on the Water Cycle.

Learn more about Storm Water Runoff and its effects on this helpful page from the South West Florida Water Management District.