United States
Environmental Protection
Agency ,." :
,
Office of Water
(45031=) ~ " - -.
, EPA-841-F-96-OP4B.
:V March'l-996 - : "
«E P/V hionpoint Pbinters
- - x 4 ; , , - - . . , -.--. v *'.
;_^, Understanding an^ managing nonpoint source pollution in your cqmmunity
Opportunities for
Pulblic Involvement in
Nonpoint Source GontrqJ
',. Over the last 25 years, Gommunitiesjiave played-^fTimportarit role,in _
addressing nonpoint source (NFS) ^dilution, the Nation's leading source of
water:qualit£ probiems,:When"coordinaied:With federal, £tate/and"locai ,
environhlental prpgrarns and initiatives, dbrnmunity-basedT^IPS control
...-.-efforts can be highly successful. To learh about and help cdntrolNPS p.
~tion, contact the cpmmunity-based organizations and envirortrnental agen-
.cies in your area. These gfbups offen have information about how citizens
can participate Jn the lollowing NFS conf rot activities. 1-" _ .
Volunteer Monitoring " ^ ^~l - ^ r r ^
Local groups organize volunteers of all skill levels to gather water
quality data. This irifbrmatidn can help governrnent agencies understand
^" .the magnitude of NFS -pollution. More than 500 active volunteer
monitoring groups currently operate throughout the United States.
-Monitoring groups may also have
information about other NPS __
pollution projects, such as beach
cleanups, stream walks, and
When coordinated wiihfederal,
state, and local environmental
programs^and initiatives, "'. '"
commun ity-based NE$xon trol
efforts can be highly successful.
^restoration activities. - -
Ecological Restoration
_-r -s- - Ecological restoration provides
"~..-^ -. . - - .. . :JT. ^_ ... . _' -' : opportunities for the public to help
'"';''__ ~- "-"~" - _;.;_ - out with a wride variety otprojects,
such as tree planting and bank stabilization in^oth urban and rural areas.
Restoration efforts focus orTdegraded waters or habitats thai-have, signifi-
cant economic or ecological value. '~ - ' -/ *
-- , . *-*. >' '- .- ---:" .-', '~ '..._ . "V ._ ,- -"
Educational Activities ; -
Teachersj:ari integrate NFS pollution curricula into their classroom
activitiesv^e-y^SrErivi'rprmental;]?rotec.tior^Agency (EI*A), federal and 7 -
sfale agencies, private groups, and nonprofit organizations offer teachers a
wide variety pf maferiaTs. Students can start on an NPS control project in the
primary grades~arid pursue their" work through intermediate and secondary
levels; ~ - ""-' '- ."" '.' '-- .-.-C""1 " -""-'' -"" --~xj^;--- '- - . -r ~~ .
Did you know
/ often col feet
Information 6n thQ
.health o^ water-
> :" , ways*ahd the
Extent of tiPS
pollution?
NFS pollution oeeurs when v
water runs over Jand or through
the ground, picks up pollutants,
and deposits them in surface"
waters or Introduces them into
ground water. ~
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RELATED PUBLICATIONS
» Additional fact sheets in the
Nonpoint Pointers series
(EPA-841-F-96-004)
o Clean Water in Your Water-
shed, Terrene Institute,
Washington, DC, 1993
Cleaner Water Through"
Conservation (EPA-841-B-
95-002)
Compendium of Educational
Materials on the Water
Environment, Alliance for
Environmental Ed., Inc.,
Marshall, VA, 1992
* EPA Journal, Vol. 17, No. 5,
NoWDec 1991, (EPA-22k-
1005)
» Environmental Resource
Guide, Nonpoint Source
Pollution Prevention, Air &
Waste Management Assoc.,
Pittsburgh, PA
»: Handle With[Care, Terrene
,;. Institute, Washington, DC,
--1991"
National Directory of Volun-
teer Environmental Monitor-
ing Programs (EPA-841-B-
94-001)
* The Quality of Our Nation's
w Water:: 1994 (EPA-841 -S-
954)04)
Xeriscape Landscaping
(EPA-840-B-93-001)
To order any of the above EPA
documents, call or fax the
National Center for Environmen-
tal Publications and Information.
Tel (513)489-8190
Fax (513)489-8695
FOR MORE INFORMATION
U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency
Nonpoint Source Control Branch
Washington DC 20460
Internet Address:
http://www.epa.gov/owow/nps/
index.html
Water Conservation
Using technologies that limit water use in the bathroom, kitchen, laundry
room," lawn, driveway and. garden can reduce the demand on existing water
supplies and limit the amount of water runoff. More than 40 states now
have some type of water conservation program to help citizens and busi-
nesses implement conservation practices. Government agencies, utilities,
and hardware stores have information about products that help households
conserve water.
Household Management
Learning to limit NFS pollution at the household level can reduce the
overall impact of NFS pollution on water quality. Households, for example,
can irrigate during cooler hours of the day, limit fertilizer applications to
lawns and gardens, and properly store chemicals to reduce runoff and keep
it clean. Chemicals and oil should not be poured into sewers. Pet wastes, a
significant source of nutrient contamination/should be disposed of properly.
Households can also replace impervious surfaces with more porous materi-
als. - .. . "-- - [ ,:;_.- ,,;" ' ,; ,-,""
Public Meetings and Hearings
Decisions made during public hearings on stormwater permitting and
town planning can determine a community's capability to manage NFS
pollution over the long term. Laws or regulations may require federal, state,
or local agencies to hold public hearings when permits are issued or when
town plans are formed. Notices about hearings often appear in the newspa-
per or in government office buildings.
Community Organizations
Many communities have formed groups to protect local natural re1
sources. These community-based groups provide citizens with information
about upcoming environmental events in their watershed, such as ecologi-
cal restoration, volunteer monitoring, and public meetings. Watershed-level
associations are particularly effective at addressing a wide range Of NFS
pollution problems.
Environmental Information on the Internet
Citizens can obtain a great deal of environmental data and educational
material through a computer linked to the World Wide Web. EPA's site
(http: / / www.epa.gov) on the Web provides up-to-dateinfoimation on
Agency activities and enables citizens to find out about air .and water
quality data in specific communities. , -
EPA supports NPSINFO, a forum for discussion of NFS issues, including
NFS education. Citizens with access to e-mail can subscribe to NPSINFO
free-of-charge by sending an e-mail message to:
listserver@unixmail.rtpnc.epa.gov
and include in the body of the message:
subscribe NPSINFO (your first name) (your last name)
Other federal, state, tribal, and local agencies, as well as businesses and
nonprofit groups, also provide environmental information on the World
Wide Web. ...
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