Crysten Curry, a student at Riverwatch Middle School, is the Forsyth County winner in the fourth annual water conservation and preservation essay contest, sponsored by the Clean Water Campaign and the Water Use It Wisely Campaign. Curry, a 7th grader, received a $25 cash prize and was presented with an award on Tuesday, December 6, by Forsyth County Commissioner, Linda Ledbetter.

The two organizations, Clean Water Campaign and Water Use It Wisely, teamed up to encourage children and parents to address the growing need to improve water quality and conservation efforts in Georgia. Students researched and shared their thoughts on why conserving water and preventing water pollution are important for the future of their rivers, lakes and streams. The main goal of this program is to encourage students to create inventive solutions to water conservation and water quality in metro North Georgia.

In Curry’s essay, she said, “You will be surprised by how much you can preserve water by educating the public about how to save water, keep it clean and not to waste it.” She adds, “You can make a huge difference today by teaching your parents and siblings and watching what you do with water at home.”

The contest was open to sixth, seventh and eighth graders in Bartow, Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, Coweta, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Fulton, Forsyth, Gwinnett, Hall, Henry, Paulding, Rockdale and Walton Counties. More than 1,000 middle school students from throughout the district participated. Each participating school submitted its winning essay for the county competition, and one overall winner was selected from among the county winners. County winners receive a Clean Water Campaign / Water Use It Wisely certificate presented by an elected official from that county.

To view the names of the winners and the winning essays, visit the Clean Water Campaign’s Web site (www.cleanwatercampaign.com) and click on the essay contest link.

About the Clean Water Campaign

The Clean Water Campaign is a cooperative, multi-agency public education initiative spearheaded by local governments in metro Atlanta, supported by the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District and managed by the Atlanta Regional Commission. Its mission is to build awareness of water quality problems and solutions in the Atlanta region.

Water- Use It Wisely (www.wateruseitwisely.com) is a program that educates consumers about specific and simple water conservation measures they can use everyday to help. It is a multi-state program that is being sponsored in the metro Atlanta area by the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District in partnership with the Georgia Pollution Prevention Assistance Division.