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Messages for Change:

StormwaterCommunications Research

Katherine Baer

How We Got Here

• Water Words that Work Polling (2005)– Spawl and

overdevelopment is bad…

– Traffic, crowded schools, open space

– Few understand overdevelopment as a water issue

Message Research

• Goal – to craft clear and persuasive messages for local leaders to be delivered by clean water advocates to:

– Create political will for better approaches for stormwater;

– Link land use decisions with clean water;– Make stormwater a priority by coming from a

different angle;– Develop and test message concepts.

Polluted stormwater runoff is unhealthy for our community and for our local economy.

Polluted stormwater

carries bacteria into our

streams, rivers, and

lakes; 3.5 million people

who swim in polluted

water become sick each

year in the U.S.

Closed beaches, rivers

and waterways severely

impacts recreational

tourism, an industry that

generates over $16.5

billion in revenue and

206,900 jobs in Virginia.

Simple, cost effective

solutions exist to reduce

polluted stormwater

runoff and grow a

healthier community.

Rethink stormwater. Treat rain as a resource.

Low impact development techniques reduce water treatment costs.

The most cost efficient and effective way to protect drinking water supplies is to keep pollutants out of drinking water sources.

Stormwater management through low impact development greatly reduces water treatment costs by placing less burden on treatment plants.

Rethink stormwater. Treat rain as a resource.

Low impact development increases property values by improving the health and vitality of your community.

Low impact development techniques are simple. They cost less to build because of decreased site development and conventional infrastructure costs.

Low impact development techniques treat stormwater as a resource, retaining natural features and vegetation to prevent pollutants from entering our waterways.

Low impact development sites are more attractive to buyers because of their environmental amenities including flood prevention and pollution reduction.

Rethink stormwater. Treat rain as a resource.

Message Testing - Results Summary

• All concepts worked – but wanted to see how plausible to their community;

• Pictures were powerful – visual response;

• “Getting” solutions;• Need more closely linked images.

Message Has to Make the Connection Between Problem and Solution

We showed this problem with this solution example:

A Better Example Would Be:

Implications for trash