Event flyer, click to enlarge.
Montgomery County will host its first World Water Day Celebration on Saturday, March 22, at Wheaton Regional Park. The county’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and multiple partners organized the event. It runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 2000 Shorefield Road in Wheaton.
Activities and Attractions
The festival will feature guided nature walks, a piñata exhibit, and Youth Trout Fishing Day. Young anglers can fish for rainbow trout a week before the regular fishing season starts. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will provide fishing equipment and hands-on instruction through its Mobile First Catch Fishing Center.
Wheaton Regional Park’s Pine Lake will be fully stocked with rainbow trout before the event. Young anglers can also fish at Martin Luther King Jr. Recreational Park in Silver Spring and Northwest Branch Stream Valley Park in Ashton. Those locations will also receive stocked rainbow trout from DNR.
“Maryland’s cold-water hatcheries produce nearly 300,000 trout annually to meet fishing demand,” said John Mullican in a statement, DNR’s Freshwater Fisheries and Hatcheries director. “We are happy to give young anglers a head start on the season and hope they develop a lifelong appreciation for the outdoors.”
Montgomery Parks Natural Resources Specialist Rachel Gauza emphasized the importance of introducing children to fishing and water ecology early.
“If we get kids interested in fishing now, they will be more mindful about protecting natural resources in the future,” she said.
Importance of Freshwater
“Although water covers 71% of the Earth, only 3% is fresh and drinkable,” County Executive Marc Elrich said. “It is easy to take safe drinking water for granted, but 2.2 billion people lack access to it. Come learn how you can help protect our waterways.”
This year marks the 32nd anniversary of World Water Day, an annual United Nations observance highlighting freshwater’s importance. The theme, “Save Our Glaciers,” focuses on the impact of climate change on glaciers and water sources. Melting glaciers contribute to floods, droughts, landslides, and rising sea levels.
The event is a collaboration between Impact Silver Spring, Montgomery Parks, DNR, the County’s Department of Health and Human Services Latino Health Initiative, the Wheaton Urban District, Defensores De La Cuenca, and Montgomery Housing Partnership.
