High school programs

Programs

South Plant (Renton)

Water Systems and You

• Wastewater treatment plant tour: 2 hours

In this program, students will learn about what’s in wastewater, where their wastewater goes and how the modern King County treatment system came to be. Through an interactive walking tour of the treatment plant, students will gain an understanding of the process and challenges involved in cleaning wastewater, including the role they can play in protecting water quality. Surprises include learning about the resources recovered from wastewater and the variety of well-paying careers in the field!

Sustainable Water and Food Systems

• Wastewater treatment plant tour, CitySoil Farm tour, and service project: 4 hours

Students will complete the “Water Systems and You” program outlined above, then spend the afternoon in our sustainable agriculture demonstration farm. CitySoil Farm uses recycled resources (biosolids and recycled water) from the wastewater treatment process to grow over 4,000 pounds of produce every year for community food banks! Students will take a tour of the farm and learn about water conservation, climate change, and sustainable agriculture. Then, we’ll directly apply their new knowledge with a short, hands-on farm service-learning project.

Brightwater (Woodinville)

Water Systems and You

• Wastewater treatment plant tour: 2 hours
  
• Wastewater treatment plant tour with careers extension: 2.5 hours

In this program, students will learn about what’s in wastewater, where their wastewater goes and how the modern King County treatment system came to be. Through an interactive walking tour of the treatment plant, students will gain an understanding of the process and challenges involved in cleaning wastewater, including the role they can play in protecting water quality. Surprises include learning about the resources recovered from wastewater and the variety of well-paying careers in the field!  

In-Classroom

Careers in Clean Water

• 50 minutes

Keeping waterways healthy within an urban environment is critical work, yet extremely challenging. From engineers to educators to electricians, it takes many types of jobs and skills to make it happen. This lesson will highlight the wide variety of careers available within wastewater treatment, including ones that are less obvious. The goal is to open more career possibilities and help students understand there’s a place for them in government and environmental work.

Georgetown Wet Weather Treatment Station (Georgetown)

• Urban Stormwater Solutions: 2.5 hours

The Georgetown Treatment Station operates during big rain events to treat combined stormwater and wastewater that used to overflow untreated into the Duwamish River. This field trip includes an overview of stormwater and the Duwamish River, a walking tour of the facility, an interactive exploration of the green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) onsite, and information about related careers.