The Orangeburg County Conservation District and the Clemson Extension Service are announcing a Master Naturalist Training Course in Orangeburg:

March 28-June 6, 2009

A South Carolina Master Naturalist certification course will be held  beginning March 28 and concluding on June 6. This program aims to create a cadre of volunteer naturalists who might benefit the natural resources of the state.  The course will meet once per week for eleven weeks of study within the Edisto River Watershed. Classes will meet on Saturdays from 9:00 AM until 3:00 PM, except Friday, May 8 will meet from 5PM to 11PM to study creatures from early dusk into the night.  The field-based course will teach basic geological, biological and ecological concepts needed to understand such places as Albemarle Corporation, Orangeburg Plant “Hundred Acre Wood”; Orangeburg DPU Water Treatment and Wastewater Plants; Aiken Gopher Tortoise, Cathedral Bay and  Peachtree Rock Heritage Preserves; Aiken, Edisto Beach and  Givhans Ferry State Parks; Healing Springs, Blackville; Beidler Forest Audubon Center; the ACE Basin and the Orangeburg National Fish Hatchery.

The course includes topics to help you learn to ‘read the landscape’ and may cover beginning birding; plant identification; an introduction to wetland and upland soils; water quality; identification of animal tracks, fish and insects; geology; ecology; animal habitats; keystone and endangered species; native and non-native plants; conservation easements and green buildings. No particular background is needed in this course designed for novices and those who are seeking to gain a more in-depth view of the natural world.

Instructors will be content specialists with SC State Parks, SC Department of Natural Resources, and invited guest professionals. The program is coordinated by Diane Curlee, Education Coordinator, Orangeburg County Conservation District working in conjunction with Clemson University Extension through the South Carolina Master Naturalist program. 

For more information or to register for the course go to www.Clemson.edu/masternaturalist/ .