Nonpoint Pollution | Success Stories | General

General Success Stories

Note: Highlighted projects are not necessarily funded by the Coastal Nonpoint Program nor do they necessarily represent projects that have been approved by NOAA and EPA to remove remaining conditions on state programs.

PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS

New Jersey Partners with Aquarium on Nonpoint Source Education Program: The New Jersey Coastal Management Program has partnered with Adventure Aquarium and the New Jersey Academy for Aquatic Sciences (NJAAS) in Camden, NJ to create a fun, innovative, and educational program for aquarium visitors on coastal nonpoint source pollution. The three-part educational program is designed to teach visitors about polluted runoff and the steps they can take to reduce nonpoint source pollution.

As part of the educational program, the NJAAS purchased a Coastal EnviroScape model to demonstrate how nonpoint source pollution flows throughout the watershed and eventually into the estuary and ocean waters to aquarium visitors. New Jersey’s demonstration emphasizes polluted runoff from urban activities, marina and boating activities, and agriculture—three main sources of coastal nonpoint source pollution in the state as well as primary focuses of New Jersey’s Coastal Nonpoint Program.

In addition, the NJAAS also developed a theatre production for the Aquarium on nonpoint source pollution. In the production a “talking fish” leads an aquarium owner on an upward journey through the New Jersey watershed, discovering that pollution begins a lot closer to home than most people think. The audience gains an understanding of the causes of polluted runoff, its impacts, the strategies already in place to reduce it, and what more they can do everyday to limit their contributions to nonpoint source pollution.

Finally, NJAAS has also incorporated a nonpoint source pollution educational message into its “meet-the-creature” experience at the Aquarium. The “meet-the-creature” program offers Aquarium visitors a chance to get an “up-close-and-personal” view of the animals at the Aquarium. The program emphasizes how pollution affects the animal, its habitat, its young, and its feeding and breeding habits.

Michigan Makes Land Use Planning a Priority: In Michigan, the interplay between land use planning, growth management, and environmental protection is moving into the spotlight, and the Michigan Coastal Management Program (MCMP) is one of several agencies in the state working to move it firmly to center stage. In 2003, Governor Granholm jumpstarted the effort by convening a bipartisan Michigan Land Use Leadership Council to address trends, causes, and consequences of unmanaged growth and development. The Council developed 150 recommendations, many of which are now state policy, including statutes providing for land bank establishment and multi-jurisdictional planning and zoning, and an executive order that directs siting of new state facilities to urban areas with existing infrastructure.

In supporting Governor's land use initiative, the MCMP is also working to implement its Coastal Nonpoint Program (CNP) as many of the "smart growth" principles promoted through the Initiative relate directly to many of the CNP's urban, hydromodification, and wetland and riparian area management measures among others. For example, in 2003, the Program published the guidebook "Filling the Gaps: Environmental Protection Options for Local Governments" with the assistance of a NOAA Coastal Services Center Fellow and the Planning and Zoning Center, Inc. "Filling the Gaps," outlines Michigan natural resource protection statutes, points out the limitations of the state laws, and explains how locally-crafted master plans and zoning ordinances can increase protection of wetlands, riparian areas, high risk erosion areas and other sensitive environmental areas and reduce polluted runoff and why taking the above steps is important. The Guidebook also provides model ordinances and case studies of local governments that have adopted more protective ordinances. The guidebook is being used widely and the Coastal Program, in partnership with the Michigan Association of Planning, will deliver workshops on "Filling the Gaps" in 2006.

Over the years, the MCMP has also used 310, 306 and 309 funds to help numerous coastal communities update or develop land use plans and zoning ordinances to incorporate many of these smart growth principles. They have also been able to work with groups like the Michigan Municipal League and Michigan Townships Association to leverage funds for a large collaborative effort promoting planning across municipal borders to protect open space and sensitive ecosystems and encourage urban development and discourage sprawl.

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Delaware's Coast-A-Syst Program Taking Off: To help homeowners throughout the state become better stewards of the coastal environment, especially coastal water quality, Delaware developed a Coast-A-Syst Program in 2002. The Program, modeled off of South Carolina's successful Coast-A-Syst Program and other national programs such as Farm-A-Syst and Home-A-Syst, is an extension program for rural, urban and suburban residents to show what they can do around their home and yard to protect coastal water quality. At the heart of the Coast-A-Syst Program is a booklet and series of self-assessments to help homeowners identify potential pollution sources and health risks on their property. Each of the seven chapters focuses on a different pollution source ranging from general information about watersheds and storm water runoff, to specific information about septic system siting and maintenance, landscaping, management of hazardous household products, and caring for boats and docks. The booklet addresses many elements of the Coastal Nonpoint Program measures including site design, existing development, on-site disposal systems and wetlands and riparian areas to name a few. Since its inception, the Delaware Coast-A-Syst Program has reached over 400 households.

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New Hampshire Builds Local Capacity to Reduce NPS: Regulatory Review, Land Use Planning, and Education: Many New Hampshire planning initiatives and regulatory measures are developed and implemented at the local level. Although municipal officials are often aware of nonpoint source pollution (NPS) issues in their communities, few have the capacity to implement measures to reduce NPS at the planning and regulatory stages without direct technical assistance and educational support. To address this issue, New Hampshire's Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Program (CNPCP) is working with two regional planning commissions (covering 45 municipalities) to develop and support a technical assistance program to address NPS at the local level through municipal land use planning, regulatory review and development, and education. The programs are specifically tailored to address NPS issues unique to each region. Regional planning staff work one-on-one with town Conservation Commission and Planning Boards to review existing land use regulations relative to NPS, discuss sources of NPS at the local level, and provide recommended changes to local land use regulations. Regulations discussed and proposed include stormwater management, shoreland protection, wetland setbacks, conservation subdivisions, and site plan design. To date, eight recommended regulations covering erosion and sediment control, road design standards, wetland and shoreland buffers, aquifer protection, impervious surfaces, and stormwater management were accepted and approved by voters at Town Meetings this past spring.

In addition to the planning and regulatory efforts initiated through the CNPCP project, the regional planning commissions provide NPS education and outreach to help towns address specific NPS issues. Education projects include partnering with municipal employees and contractors to review landscaping and mowing practices along watercourses, working with teachers and students to stencil storm drains, submitting information on NPS to town newsletters, and working with land protection organizations to promote conservation easements in the watershed.

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Pennsylvania Develops College-Level Nonpoint Source Pollution Curriculum: With support from Pennsylvania's Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Program, the Patrick Center for Environmental Research at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia developed a new curriculum on nonpoint source pollution assessment techniques for graduate and senior-level undergraduate students. The course covers a number of techniques for the physical, chemical, and biological assessment of a watershed. In addition, lectures and laboratories also demonstrate the usefulness of pollution modeling, GIS, GPS, and remote sensing for NPS assessment and predictions. The Patrick Center developed the hands-on course to impart practical skills of for addressing NPS pollution in coastal areas in response to faculty and student requests and the fact that many college programs only offer students limited exposure to valuable real-world, professional nonpoint assessment techniques. The curriculum was tested in a pilot course taught at Drexel University which was well received.

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Malibu, California's Local Coastal Program Containing New Water Quality Policies, and Water Quality Protection and On-Site Wastewater Disposal System Ordinances is Approved: On September 13, 2002, the California Coastal Commission voted 10-1 to adopt a local coastal program (LCP) for the City of Malibu. Acting under a statutory mandate, Commission staff worked for two years to develop the LCP with input from the City, other state agencies, non-governmental organizations, property owners, and the public. The newly-adopted Malibu Local Coastal Program has two primary elements: (1) the Land Use Plan (LUP); and (2) the Local Implementation Plan (LIP). Both plans comprehensively address non-point source pollution. The LUP includes policies for Watershed Planning, Development, Hydromodification, Wastewater and On-Site Treatment Systems, and Agriculture and Confined Animal Facilities, which incorporate and, in some cases, expands upon the 6217 (g) guidance. For example, the LUP requires the City of Malibu to develop and use a water quality checklist during the permit evaluation process to assess potential water quality impacts, develop a program to detect and remove illicit discharge connections, and instate a minimum 100 ft. riparian buffer. The LIP establishes a comprehensive ordinance for Water Quality Protection as well as a separate On-Site Wastewater Disposal System Standards Ordinance.

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Puerto Rico Will Highlight Coastal Nonpoint Program at Upcoming Coral Reef Task Force Meeting: The Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources will highlight the Commonwealth's fully approved Coastal Nonpoint Program during the upcoming meeting of the United States Coral Reef Task Force in San Juan. The Department is sponsoring a full-day "summit to the sea" field trip examining best management practices for controlling polluted runoff. Such runoff degrades coral reefs, and the Coastal Nonpoint Program is an important element in Puerto Rico's coral reef protection strategy.

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Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Signed Executive Directive: In its original submission for the Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Program, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marina Islands did not have enforceable policies and mechanisms in place to address several of the measures required by the (g) guidance. Therefore, as a means to address this issue, the governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern Marina Islands (CNMI) signed an Executive Directive on September 20, 2002 addressing the conditionally approved measures of its Coastal Nonpoint Program. The Directive, entitled xControl of Sources of Nonpoint Pollution in the Commonwealth of the Northern Marina Islands Coastal Zone; To Adopt Mandatory Management Measures requires the Coastal Resource Management Office (CRMO) to include in its program, enforceable policies and mechanisms to implement management measures consistent with the (g) guidance to control pollutants from land uses and activities including Marine Siting and Design, Marina Operation and Maintenance, Watershed Protection, and Existing Development. Similarly, the Directive also orders the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to implement enforceable policies and mechanisms for the measures under its jurisdiction (i.e. Agriculture as it relates to Animal Waste Control and Nutrient Management, OSDS inspections, Watershed Protection, and Existing Development). In addition, the DEQ and the Bureau of Environmental Health are to execute a Memorandum of Understanding to implement CNMI's OSDS Inspection Program, developed July 2002, and form a septic system tracking system. The tracking system is to ensure all OSDSs are permitted, operating properly and maintained correctly. Finally, the Directive requires the CRMO and DEQ to create an interagency committee to form and identify Critical Coastal Areas that may need additional management measures to protect these valuable areas from nonpoint source pollution. The CRMO and DEQ are moving forward on tackling the tasks included in the Executive Directive. The DEQ's Individual Wastewater Disposal Regulations were officially amended this past December and amendments to the CRMO Rules and Regulations are currently under public review and are expected to be signed by mid-February barring any significant public comments.

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Alaska Creating Clean Water Actions: Alaska's Clean Water Actions (ACWA) is a unified approach among state resource agencies to prioritize actions for water quality, quantity, and aquatic habitat. In 2000, Governor Tony Knowles directed state agencies to work together to set priorities for Alaska's waters and aquatic habitat. As a result, the three state resource agencies-Departments of Fish and Game, Natural Resources, and Environmental Conservation, and the Division of Governmental Coordination-have formed an ACWA Workgroup to work closely in a coordinated effort towards better stewardship of Alaska's waters. Right now, efforts are focusing on developing Stewardship Report Cards, a Waterbody Decision Tree/Ranking Process, and a combined Request For Proposal (RFP) for ACWA pass through grant programs.

The ACWA Stewardship Report Cards will assess the effectiveness of the State's water and habitat stewardship programs. The report includes information on the primary services offered by the programs, interagency coordination, program accomplishments, and gaps recognized in each program. The reports help to identify the strengths and weaknesses of Alaska's water resource programs and to direct funding towards priority areas.

A team of technical water resource agency staff have been working together to develop a waterway decision tree and ranking system to prioritize waterways for future projects. All waterways have been entered into the ACWA database and both the decision tree and ranking process have been adjusted after undergoing public review resulting in a credible process to prioritize ACWA waterbodies. A contractor is currently testing the draft process on 24 waterbodies and will make recommendations by the end of this month regarding any additional changes that may be needed to improve the process's efficiency.

Finally, the ACWA workgroup is developing a combined RFP for ACWA pass through grants to be used in a joint solicitation in Feb/March 2003. The RFP will ensure pass through funds are targeted towards ACWA priority areas and will reduce the administrative burden associated with managing multiple grant programs. The combined RFP will also reduce administrative burden on grantees, enabling them to complete one grant application for several grant programs.

 

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