Contact: Pamela McCurdy, 651-757-2559
St. Paul, Minn. ― The sixth annual Eco Experience at this year’s Minnesota State Fair features an array of fresh, new exhibits to engage fairgoers in learning about lakes, streams and watersheds.
At the Stream Lab, Eco Experience visitors will have a chance to build their own model stream in a sandbox. After turning on flowing water, they can experiment by changing the shape of their stream, making the water flow faster, or adding “plants” to the streambed. Like a real stream, the model stream will change shape in response to these changing environmental factors.
Also new this year will be an interactive rain garden photo booth. Fairgoers will be encouraged to browse a selection of native plants and choose a plant or flower that matches their style; for example, “tall”, “high-maintenance” or “always thirsty.” They can then have their picture taken with a mask representing the flower of their choice, and can tag their photo once it has been posted to Facebook.
Both the young and young at heart will enjoy trying their hand at measuring the clarity of water gathered from Lake Como. Visitors can also learn more about water in their local community by surfing the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency’s newly remodeled watershed webpages. Those who take an interest in learning about their lakes can sign up as volunteer water monitors, helping the MPCA protect a lake or stream in or near their community.
Fairgoers can visit the Eco Experience from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., from Thursday, Aug. 25, through Monday, Sept. 5. The Eco Experience is in the Progress Center at the Corner of Randall and Cosgrove. Look for the 123-foot-long wind turbine blade. For more information, visit www.ecoexperience.org.
