The North Carolina Estuarium is helping to spread the word about water — where it comes from, what’s in it and where it goes.

It’s all part of an N.C. Science Festival event, “Diving Into Water: Why and How We Keep it Clean.” Sponsored by the Biogen Foundation, Morehead Planetarium and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the Science Festival involves more than 100 events statewide geared toward educating students about science, technology, engineering and math.

This is the first year the Estuarium was selected as one of the activity sites, according to Russ Chesson, operations and program specialist. Last year, John Small Elementary School hosted a Science Night event for the festival.

The Estuarium has a two-fold event scheduled for April 7-8.

On April 7, Chesson said a large group of students from Grifton Middle School, which partners with the nonprofit Love A Sea Turtle, are signed up to participate in activities involving water quality, including monitoring the water of the Pamlico River and learning the art of fish imprinting.

April 8 will involve an open house for the public in which various educational booths are set up for visitors, according to Chesson.

“We talk about pollution and toxins that are in the water system and where they end up,” Chesson said. “We have Sylvan Heights that will be here talking about waterfowl, and they’ll actually be bringing some birds with them.”

Other booth sponsors include Sound Rivers, the Aurora Fossil Museum, Love A Sea Turtle and the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries, according to a press release.

Chesson said the activities are a fun way to showcase what the Estuarium has to offer, as well as a way to give back to the community.

He said he hopes visitors will realize the value of surrounding natural resources and learn how special they are to this area.

“They’re important for students to learn about for the most part because it’s the way we live,” Chesson explained. “This is a way to sort of connect them to that.”

The N.C. Estuarium will host its open house on April 8 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, call 252-948-0000.