Penn State Extension is the quiet workhorse behind a lot of the water knowledge in this state, from private well testing to watershed workshops to the fact sheets half of us have printed at some point. Right now it is asking a simple question: what do you actually need? A short statewide survey is open, and ten minutes of your time helps decide what water programs Extension builds next.
The Penn State Extension Water Resources Team is running a statewide survey to find out what water-related education and resources Pennsylvanians want. The answers will shape future programs, publications, workshops, and online tools. It takes about ten minutes, it is open to anyone, and as a thank-you you get 25 percent off a Penn State water-related online course plus a shot at a Penn State Creamery ice cream drawing. There is no downside here.
What they are asking about
The survey covers the full range of what Extension teaches, so there is a place in it for almost everyone in our network. The interest areas it asks about are:
- Private well water and drinking water quality
- Agriculture and water management
- Stream and watershed health
- Pond management
- Water testing
- Residential or agricultural stormwater management
If even one of those is on your radar, and for a watershed group most of them are, your input helps aim the programming. Extension only builds what it thinks people will use, so telling them what you need is how the useful stuff gets made.
How long the statewide survey takes. The results guide the water programs, publications, workshops, and online resources Penn State Extension offers next.
What you get for ten minutes
Beyond the satisfaction of steering a public resource, there are two small carrots. Everyone who takes the survey gets 25 percent off a Penn State water-related online course, and each response is entered into a drawing for Penn State Creamery ice cream, which anyone who has had it will tell you is not a trivial prize. Consider it payment for a few minutes of clicking.
The team behind the survey is the same group that delivers science-based education on water quality, private wells, septic systems, and watershed protection through county Extension offices across the state. In other words, these are the people who show up with the testing kits and the plain-English answers when a well goes bad or a stream turns cloudy. Helping them prioritize is worth doing.
Why it matters for the rest of us
Watershed groups spend a lot of energy trying to reach residents with good water information, and Extension is one of the few institutions already trusted to do exactly that in every county. When Extension sharpens its water programming, our whole network benefits, because those workshops and fact sheets become tools we can point our neighbors to. Ten minutes now to make next year’s programs more useful is a small price. Take the survey, and pass it along to the well owners, farmers, and volunteers in your corner of the basin.
Details from the Penn State Extension Water Resources Team’s “Your Voice Matters” survey announcement, shared through the Pennsylvania Resources Council. Survey topics and incentives are as described by Penn State Extension. Current as of September 30, 2026.
