Image Credit: Edwin Remsberg
On October 14, The annual College of Agriculture and Natural Resources Open House was held at the Central Maryland Research and Education Center, in Clarksville, Maryland from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
At the event, participants had the opportunity to meet members of the community and learn about agricultural extension, research and academic programs. It was free to attend and had family friendly activities.
The CONSERVE project was also at the event this year. They had a table and a display about the project. They also had an interactive activity for kids of all ages.
“It is an example of water filtration through groundwater filtration,” said Mayhah Roma Suri, a faculty specialist apart of the project. “There were water bottles filled with sand, soil or clay, and kids could pour dirty water into these and see water filtration coming out at the bottom.”
CONSERVE’s research focuses on taking the idea of natural water filtration to the next level, according to Suri. They focus on making water safe enough with filtration so that it may be reused for irrigation.
“The goal is to help develop resources and an understanding of reusing water in food crop irrigation and use of recycled water when there are water shortage issues,” said Paul Goeringer, an ALEI legal specialist and member of the CONSERVE project. Goeringer was also at the open house.
The project is in its second year, and has five objectives with multiple teams working on each one. Currently, the goal is to continue researching water quality and quantity as well as farm technology, and bringing their findings back to stakeholders, according to Suri.
AREC instructor and Extension agent Dale Johnson also attended the event. Each year he brings a rolling chicken coop where he teaches people about raising chickens and the benefits of a moving coop. At the university, Johnson teaches classes about farm management, sustainable food production, and the commodity futures and options market.
