Friday, Jul. 10, 2009

SIUC surveys residents on water resources

Residents of St. Clair and Madison counties will have a chance to say what they think about the management of their local water resources through a Southern Illinois University Carbondale survey.

"We hope our results will help public officials understand their communities better so they can improve community life and protect those water resources," said Mae Davenport, an assistant professor in SIUC's College of Agricultural Sciences.

"We're interested in their perceptions of both the problems they face -- flooding, soil erosion, wildlife habitat, water quality, land-use regulations -- and what they think their assets are, what's working," Davenport said.

About 4,000 households in Belleville, Freeburg, O'Fallon, Troy and nearby rural areas have been randomly selected to take the survey, which is part of the college's Watershed Health Integrated Research project funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Residents received a letter about the survey and how to access it on the Internet the week of June 29.

Graduate students delivered paper copies of the survey this week to those in St. Clair County who do not have Internet access or did not wish to complete the survey online. The students will collect those completed surveys within three days.

The survey, consisting of multiple choice and fill-in-the-blank questions, should take about 15 minutes.

Researchers plan to present their findings at a series of workshops for public officials and community residents. There are also plans to create an interactive Web site and traveling exhibits for community events, libraries and schools.

For more information about the project, contact Davenport at 453-7463 or WHIR@siu.edu.