Students videos, slide shows explore Carson River

The public is invited to go online to view and rate student multimedia projects that explore how Carson River riparian areas benefit the community and need to be protected by the public.

The video and slide-show projects are contestants in the Carson River Coalition Education Working Group's "Keep Streamsides Greener, Keep Water Cleaner" contest, which will award a prize of $500 in each of four categories.

The contest was open to students in the ninth through 12th grades of Carson and Douglas high schools and Carson Valley and Pau-Wa-Lu middle schools. The entries had to be one to three minutes long.

Although the award winners will be selected privately by a panel of judges, the public is welcome to watch and rate the entries at www.youtube.com/channel/CarsonRiver2009. Winners will be announced in January 2010.

The working group includes the Carson Water Subconservancy District, the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension and River Wranglers. Prizes will be awarded to the best individual video, team video, individual animated slide show and team animated slide show. Also, each winning entry's sponsoring teacher will earn $100.

Although each entrant or team had a sponsoring teacher to encourage participation and provide general guidance, students developed their own concepts and entries.

Dr. Susan Donaldson, a water quality expert with Cooperative Extension and a contest organizer, said the contest gives students an appreciation of how riparian areas provide important wildlife habitat and help keep the river clean by filtering runoff.

"Healthy, diverse riparian areas store water and help reduce floods, filter water and keep it cool and provide a place for recreation," said Donaldson, who takes field trips to the river with certain classes. "They add to our quality of life."

In addition to the cash prizes, winning entries will be showcased online at www.cwsd.org and www.unce.unr.edu/NEMO and at a film festival on Jan. 28, 2010. The winning presentations will also be featured on a local television show and will be recognized in a press release to local media.

"We'll also recognize entries that received the most views in YouTube, so students should be sure to tell their friends to view their entry," Donaldson said.

Entries will be judged on creativity, effective, quality of execution and compliance with contest rules and specifications.