The City of Marion, KY faced a water crisis during the summer of 2022. The lake the city uses as a water source developed a hole in the levee forcing the levee to be breached. While city leaders worked on funding and physical fixes to the problem, Crittenden County Extension and Crittenden County Public Library teamed up to provide the education needed for community members to conserve water.

Utilizing UK Extension publications a quick one page infographic was developed that gave a brief overview of ways to conserve water. The infographic was shared on social media sites, displayed in government offices, local businesses handed them out and even one community member handed them out door to door in her neighborhood. The Facebook post which included the flyer had almost 3500 people reached with over 38 shares. 

The water crisis received quite a bit of media attention from around the state and nation. ANR Agent Dee Heimgartner provided information and interviews to the local newspaper, KET news reporters and various regional newspapers. The press releases that were coming from the city always had the Crittenden County Extension office listed as a community education partner and recommended contact the office for conservation tips. 

The conservation efforts did help pay off on reducing the amount of water conserved in the community. The Crittenden Press, a local newspaper, reported on July 21, 2022  that between conservation efforts, leak detections, and various other efforts that the average daily demand went from a typical 450,000 gallons to just above 300,000 gallons.  

Heimgartner also had a garden rain barrel program that was already in place before the crisis but expanded drastically during the crisis. A total of 36 rain barrels were handing out to residents either free or reduced costs. The ANR agent was also involved in community discussions on the water crisis topic with various groups from Chamber of Commerce, Economic Development, Emergency Management and City of Marion administrators, attorneys, and elected officials.