Swimming Pool&Spa Association of Victoria

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Swimming Pool Industry and Gould Group Launch ‘Backyards for Learning’


	28 July 2006

The Swimming Pool and Spa Association in Victoria (SPASA) has combined with Australia’s major environmental education organisation the Gould Group to launch a unique sustainability campaign called ‘Backyards for Learning’.

In a joint statement the Vice President of SPASA Mr Lindsay Hartshorne and the Chief Executive of the Gould Group Ann-Maree Colborne said, the ‘Backyards for Learning’ program is aimed at providing pool owners and their families with a range of information which included:

water saving tips and best practice in pool management.

knowledge on maximising water in the garden.

methods of attracting birds, butterflies and frogs to the garden.

minimising waste.

use of solar energy.

Left to right: Lindsay Hartshorne, Vice President, SPASA; Brendan Watkins, General Manager, SPASA with Mr Green, the frog, and Ann-Maree Colborne CEO Gould Group
at the SPASA Pool & Spa Expo

Mr Hartshorne said, "the Backyards for Learning program expanded the water saving program introduced by SPASA two years ago to ensure pool owners were aware of water conservation techniques".

"Whilst swimming pools are only responsible for .002 of all potable water we are keen to ensure pool owners conserve water through best practice."

Around one hundred thousand Victorians use swimming pools daily in summer.

"By partnering with the Gould Group we are now extending the program to involve the entire family through education and interesting activities which people can implement to gain enjoyment and knowledge of the environment in their own garden".

“The swimming pool is a nucleus of family activity in the summer with the vast majority of pool owners blending the pool into a special environment which now can become an extended learning area of the home."

Ann-Maree Colborne said, "The program has been devised to combine community awareness and activity sheets which would provide parents with an opportunity to share environmental experiences with their children".

"Water conservation is one of the most important parts of the program that is especially pertinent to the swimming pool industry and the Backyards for Learning program provides a focus not just on the pool but the wider environment".

"Importantly we are not only telling people how to save water, but we are also involving them in creative ways of understanding the importance of their actions to contribute to the water saving effort," Ms Colborne said.

The ‘Backyards for Learning’ campaign will be promoted through SPASA to all pool owners via pool shops and by the Gould Group to schools throughout Victoria.

The web based program will allow schools and pool owners to download special activity sheets from Gould Group and SPASA websites. Backyards for Learning Fact Sheets