BRADY TWP — The Jennings Environmental Education Center offers a variety of hands-on educational programs and activities for students of all ages, especially those in middle or high school.

One of the most popular programs is one about coal and abandoned mine drainage problems.

On the Jennings property is an abandoned mine, which discharges polluted drainage, but the park also has a passive treatment system, which does not use chemicals or machinery to treat the water.

“That provides a good opportunity to showcase not only an environmental problem but also a solution,” said Miranda Crotsley, program coordinator at Jennings.

The passive treatment system is a pond and set of wetlands that can naturally filter out the iron and other metals in the drainage. That drainage also tends to be much more acidic, but the passive treatment neutralizes the water’s acidity, she said.

The passive treatment system does not require much maintenance, is less expensive and more resource independent than active treatment systems, Crotsley said.

For Becky Lubold, an environmental educational specialist at Jennings, the history of coal mines and today’s solutions can be a great learning opportunity for students.

“Coal has a very important place in our history as a state and as a country,” Lubold said. “We didn’t understand the full impact of what we did. Our human activity has an impact, and we really need to look objectively at that.”

Lubold stressed that it’s not about judging those involved with the coal and oil industries — it’s about addressing that environmental problem and looking into ways to combat that.

Field trips and lessons about the passive treatment system are targeted to grades seven to 12.

Another major learning opportunity is the prairie ecosystem, Crotsley said. That program focuses on studying prairie management techniques by allowing students to do their own research.

“The students develop some questions that they want to investigate,” she said. “Then, they go out into the prairie and do the investigation. They’re actually helping us collect data and influence how we manage the prairie.”

Some of the most interesting questions investigate aspects of controlled burns, which is a management technique that minimizes the number of woody species in the prairie, Crotsley said.

In fact, the park has lengthened the time between burns based on research that students have done.

The data collected by students can then be used in the classroom to teach basic skills such as graphing and data analysis. Some schools have students write up finalized research reports as well, Crotsley said.

Another program offered through Jennings can require a bigger time commitment. The Watershed Education program is a statewide teacher workshop to teach educators about watersheds and encourage schools to adopt a watershed.

With this program, which is offered through the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, students can map a watershed and learn how to test water quality. Over time, the students can monitor changes in the watershed, Crotsley said.

Of course, there are varying levels of involvement with the watershed program, and different classes can put in as much time as they want.

For younger students, Jennings has some fun educational opportunities, including insect investigations and ecosystem projects.

For kindergarten to third grade, Jennings offers Investigating Insects, a field trip that lets students observe and identify insects and see how different insects interact with and adapt to their environment, Crotsley said.

Students in fourth to sixth grade can participate in Exploring Ecosystems, a program that teaches students about the difference between wetland, stream, forest and prairie ecosystems. The students can compare and contrast the information they collect on the different types of environments.

These programs are available year-round, but winter-specific field trips also are available. Jennings field trips must be scheduled one month in advance, but all spring programs should be scheduled by Jan. 30.

The cost is typically $3 per student with an additional $10 travel fee for off-site programs. Educators may ask about need-based funding assistance.

Jennings also has summer camp programming, for children 4 to 12 years old and students entering 10th through 12th grade.

For information or to schedule a program, contact the center at 724-794-6011.