Hi kids! My name is Simon. I’m a salamander. I’m so glad you’ve come to visit me today! I’ve been busy lately trying to learn all I can about the environment - its land, air and water - and how I can help protect it.

Did you know that in 2001, people in the United States threw away almost 230 million tons of trash? That’s about 4.4 pounds from each person every day!

Did you know that the average person uses about 17 gallons of water each time she takes a shower? It’s true!

When you start looking at how the things we do every day are affecting the environment, it is amazing how much you will learn. Luckily, there are a lot of things we can do to help the environment too.

Would you like to come along as I learn about how we can protect the earth? You would? Great! Click on one of the topics to the left to join me in my search!

To learn more about Ohio’s salamanders and to see pictures of my cousins, click here. My friends at Ohio EPA are helping to protect the wetlands and streams where some of us live. In other parts of the world though, my cousins are losing their homes and disappearing altogether! To find out more, have your teacher click here for a report from NatureServe and the World Conservation Union.

If you’d like to ask me a question, send me an e-mail!