LIVINGSTON &8212; The University of West Alabama hosted over 650 fourth-grade students from Sumter and Marengo counties on Tuesday for the Sumter/Marengo Water Festival, an annual event put-on by UWA&8217;s Alabama Onsite Wastewater Training Center.

During the Festival, students learned the importance of their own actions in the hydrologic cycle.

After the morning sessions of classroom discussion and demonstration, the students enjoyed comedian and &8220;rockin&8217; eco hero&8221; Steve Trash, who performed an age-appropriate magic show using garbage as his main subjects.

Of all the activities of the day, students seemed to enjoy the &8216;Edible Aquifer&8217; the most. In the activity, students used layers of ice, chocolate syrup, Sprite, ice cream, and sprinkles to demonstrate how an underground aquifer works to filter our drinking water.

Participating schools from Sumter County included: Kinterbish, Livingston City, North Sumter, York West End and Sumter Academy. Schools participating from Marengo County included Amelia Love Johnson, John Essex, Linden City, Marengo County, Sweet Water, U.S. Jones and Marengo Academy.

The Water Festival was sponsored by the UWA College of Education, the Sumter County Soil and Water Conservation District, the Tombigbee Resource Conservation and Development Council, the Sumter County Water Authority and the Alabama Soil and Water Conservation Committee.