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Empowered Stakeholders

Upgrading the water systems in New Jersey’s cities and towns is a generational challenge that must serve the residents and businesses who pay the bills, and the elected officials responsible for addressing a host of community issues.

Effective community engagement processes feature active the participation of community partners and ratepayers, who are able to influence the planning and management of their water infrastructure. Community support is also reflected in municipal plans, ordinances.

Resources

How Americans Relate to Water: A Qualitative Study

Americans are increasingly asked to make important decisions about managing our collective water resources. To do so, Water Main believes that people need both Water IQ, an understanding of key issues, and Water EQ, a personal connection to water.

How do Americans relate to water? To shed light on that question, The Water Main conducted this national study, How Americans Relate to Water: A Qualitative Study, that asked Americans just that.

For this study, How Americans Relate to Water: A Qualitative Study, a total of 201 surveys were completed with respondents from 11 selected regions of the United States, for an overall response rate of 5.5%. This exploratory study begins to break ground on a topic that is not yet well understood.

White paper: https://www.thewatermain.org/s/APM_WaterMainReport_PUBLISH.pdf
Executive Summary: https://www.thewatermain.org/s/Water-handout-vFINAL.pdf

Jersey Water Works Social Media Toolkit on Water Infrastructure

The Jersey Water Works Community Engagement Committee has compiled memes, posts and tweets that can be used to help you raise awareness about combined-sewer overflow pollution, flooding, runoff and the need for water infrastructure investment. Our goal is to engage stakeholders and the public in water infrastructure issues.

Use these posts, tweets and memes strategically on days like; “Imagine a Day without Water” to educate the public on water infrastructure issues. We recommend that you always include images and appropriate hashtags with all of your social media posts to increase engagement.

For posting times, organizations should follow what works best as a result of your own internal analytics, but in general: Facebook: weekdays, especially Thursdays and Fridays in the midday hours between 12pm and 3pm. Twitter: weekdays around lunch and after work hours, multiple times a day. Instagram: weekdays after work hours. Many social media management platforms, such as Tweetdeck and Buffer, will allow you to schedule these in advance.

Help people connect the dots during heavy rainstorms with posts that highlight the connection between our aging water infrastructure and flooding, and keep the discussion going on the need to invest in our water infrastructure.

We’ve also included a list of annual events, both national and international, around which we can organize our efforts.

Memes:

Infrastructure:

Combined-sewer overflow pollution:

Green infrastructure:

Personal actions:

Highlights from Community Survey:

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Suggested Tweets:

  • Infrastructure
  • Flooding
    • How was your commute today? #NJFlooding [Tweet on heavy rain day]
    • Tell us: Where does it flood in your neighborhood?
    • Twitter poll: How often does your property flood?  [Multiple choice answers: never, 1-3 times a year, 5-7 times a year, every time it rains.]
  • CSOs and Pollution
    • Just 0.2 inches of rain can cause combined sewer overflows, aka raw sewage in our waterways! #ConserveH2O during heavy rain
    • Check out this short film on stormwater pollution and #‎greeninfrastructure #‎GreenerIsBetter http://bit.ly/1Sgpthh
  • Infrastructure Investment
  • Green Infrastructure
    • Manage stormwater by mimicking our natural water cycle! #NJGreenInfrastructure [tweet GI image in action]
    • Did you know #rainbarrels at your home can improve water quality? http://www.water.rutgers.edu/Stormwater_Management/rainbarrels.html
    • #GreenInfrastructure has various economic benefits, including increased property values and reduced energy and water costs. #GreenIsGood
    • The old way: Channel precipitation into storm drains to take away. The new way to treat precious rain: Keep it on site and get it in the ground.
    • Better #stormwatermanagement starts with #greeninfrastructure! Learn more http://www.water.rutgers.edu/GreenInfrastructureGuidanceManual.html  #Greenisgood
  • Personal Actions
    • Help out NJ’s stormwater infrastructure by conserving water during heavy rain! #NJWaterInfrastructure
    • Do you love a green lawn and safe-to-drink water? Limiting fertilizers, pesticides improves water quality #savetheworld
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Suggested Facebook posts (Always include images and appropriate hashtags with all of your social media posts to increase engagement):

  • CSOs
    • Many of NJ’s cities rely on combined sewer systems — systems in which stormwater runoff from city streets feeds into sewer lines and is treated, along with sewage, by treatment plants. Some of these systems are more than 100 years old and in heavy rain events the sewage drains directly into rivers!
  • Runoff
    • Stormwater brings pollutants and bacteria along for the ride to our waterways. Nutrient pollution in our local waterways can cause excessive algae growth that can kill fish! You can be waterway-friendly by simply using safer fertilizers. Click here for recommendations: http://www.stjohnsriverkeeper.org/river-friendly/fertilizing/
    • When it rains, water flows from roofs, sidewalks and parking lots, picking up everything from oil to pesticides to litter. In many NJ cities, this flows untreated into nearby waterways. This is called stormwater runoff, and it’s one of the largest sources of water pollution. #GreenIsGood https://vimeo.com/52018694
    • Polluted stormwater contaminates our waters, closes local businesses, and harms fish and other wildlife. As stormwater passes over developed land, it picks up pollutants and transports them to the nearest storm drain – and these are connected to local waterways. To reduce stormwater runoff, use environmentally safe fertilizers.
  • Flooding
    • Unable to soak into the ground, urban stormwater runoff quickly transforms into flooding, causing traffic backups, property damage, habitat harm and even school closures.
    • Lack of drainage causes coastal flooding.
  • Green Infrastructure
    • Tired of rainy days with not a pervious surface in sight? Better #stormwatermanagement starts with #greeninfrastructure! Learn more here:   http://www.water.rutgers.edu/GreenInfrastructureGuidanceManual.html #GreenerIsBetter #NJWater
    • Be part of your city’s CSO solution: keep stormwater (rain and snow) on site. #waterisprecious #NJWater
    • At least 23 BILLION gallons of untreated raw sewage is discharged into New Jersey’s waterways each year due to Combined Sewer Systems in older cities. #GreenInfrastructure can be part of the solution to reduce the volume of water entering the sewer system. Learn more: http://www.patersonsmart.org/#!green-infrastructure/srdpx  #GreenIsGood
    • Pervious surfaces let stormwater soak into the ground instead of running offinto streets and contributing to polluted flooding and CSO backups. #NJFlooding #NJWater
  • Personal Actions
    • There are easy ways YOU can help reduce the stress on your city’s sewers. One is to avoid using your washing machine, flushing toilets, and showering during heavy rainfall.
    • What do you love more – a bright green lawn or safe-to-drink water? Limit fertilizers and pesticides, improve water quality, save the world! #greenisgood.
    • Shave. Conserve. #StormwaterManagement #JerseyWaterWorks #NJWater
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Monthly water related events calendar:

February

March

April

May

June

September

October

November

December

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Educational Resources for the Classroom Inside and Outside of School

Educational Resources for the Classroom Inside and Outside of School

The Jersey Water Works Community Engagement Committee worked with a New Jersey Future intern to compile educational resources on water infrastructure that can be used inside and outside of school. We separated the content by what we thought would be most useful for inside and outside of the classroom. Videos, for example, are in the section for outside of the classroom but could be used to supplement a classroom lesson as well. In addition, there are sets of activities for students across grades, which have been further subdivided into categories: Non-Point Source Solutions; Stormwater; Water Cycle; Water Supply and Wastewater; Watershed; Water Quality; and Miscellaneous.

Resources for outside the classroom, by subject:

Drought:

Project WET Discovering Drought Lesson Plan (Grade 3 – 6):

http://www.projectwet.org/sites/default/files/content/documents/drought-lesson-plan.pdf

Non-Point Source Solutions:

Options (Grade 9 – 12):

http://www.nj.gov/dep/seeds/strmwtr/options.pdf

Getting to the Source (Grade 5 – 8):

http://www.nj.gov/dep/seeds/strmwtr/source.pdf

Storm Drain Survey (Grade 9 – 12):

http://www.nj.gov/dep/seeds/strmwtr/sdsurvey.pdf
https://extension.psu.edu/

Stormwater:

 Modeling Stormwater Runoff (Grade 4 – 12):

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/environmental_education/lesson-modeling-stormwater-runoff.pdf

Soil Infiltration: What Is a Bioswale? (Grade 4 – 12):

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/environmental_education/lesson-soil-infiltration-what-is-a-bioswale.pdf

Educating the Public – (Grade 6 -12):

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/environmental_education/lesson-educating-the-public.pdf

Pet Waste and Water Quality (Grade 6-12):

http://clean-water.uwex.edu/pubs/pdf/pet.pdf

Storm Drain Watch (Grade 3 – 4):

http://www.nj.gov/dep/seeds/strmwtr/sdwatch.pdf

Rain to Drain – Slow the Flow PennState Extension (Middle School):

http://extension.psu.edu/4-h/leaders/resources/publications/rain-to-drain-slow-the-flow

Water Cycle:

The Movement of Water (Grade 3 – 4):

http://www.nj.gov/dep/seeds/strmwtr/move.pdf

Thirstins Water Cycle Activity (Grade K – 3):

https://www3.epa.gov/safewater/kids/pdfs/activity_grades_k-3_watercycle.pdf

Thirstins Wacky Water Adventure (Grade K – 3):

https://www3.epa.gov/safewater/kids/pdfs/activity_grades_k-3_activitybook.pdf

New York City Water Cycle Rain Dance (Grade K – 12):

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/environmental_education/lesson-nyc-water-cycle-rain-dance.pdf

Drop Pass (Grade K – 2):

http://www.nj.gov/dep/seeds/strmwtr/drop.pdf

Save Water Every Drop Counts (Grade K – 6):

http://www.state.nj.us/dep/seeds/docs/everydropcounts.pdf

Water Supply and Wastewater:

I Spy Water (Grade 2 – 12):

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/environmental_education/lesson-i-spy-water.pdf

Waste Water Treatment (Grade 6 – 12):

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/environmental_education/lesson-wastewater-treatment.pdf

Map Resource Guide for Teachers-New York City’s Water Story: From Mountain Top to Tap (Grade 6 – 8):

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/environmental_education/new-york-citys-water-story-teachers-guide.pdf

Neighborhood Water Features (1 – 5):

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/environmental_education/activity-neighborhood-water-features.pdf

EPA Environmental Education: Where Does Your Water Comes From? (Grade 4 – 8):

https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2016-03/documents/activity_grades_4-8_wherewatercomes.pdf

Resource Management: Protecting Your Drinking Water (Grade 9 – 12):

https://www3.epa.gov/safewater/kids/pdfs/activity_grades_9-12_resourcemanagement.pdf

Watershed:

A Community Watershed (Grade 7 – 12):

http://www.njaudubon.org/Portals/10/Education/PDF/NJ%20WATERS/NJWATERS_CommunityWatershed.pdf

Topo Twister (Grade 7 – 12):

http://www.njaudubon.org/Portals/10/Education/PDF/NJ%20WATERS/NJWATERS_StateWatershed.pdf

Thirstin Builds an Aquifer: Aquifer in a Cup (Aquifer on the Go) (Grade K – 3):

https://www3.epa.gov/safewater/kids/pdfs/activity_grades_k-3_aquiferinacup.pdf

Youth Activity: How People Get Their Water—Reservoirs: “Holding Tanks” for Drinking Water (Grade 4 – 8):

https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2016-03/documents/activity_grades_4-8_howpeoplegetwater.pdf

Thirstin’s Ground Water Movement Activity (Grade K – 3):

https://www3.epa.gov/safewater/kids/pdfs/activity_grades_k-3_groundwatermovement.pdf

Build Your Own Watershed (Grade 8 – 12):

https://www3.epa.gov/safewater/kids/activity_grades_9-12_buildyourownwatershed.html

How Watersheds Work (Grade K – 2):

http://www.nj.gov/dep/seeds/strmwtr/hwwork.pdf

A Dynamic Watershed (Grade 5 – 8):

http://www.njaudubon.org/Portals/10/Education/PDF/NJ%20WATERS/NJWATERS_DynamicWatershed.pdf

A Changed Land (Grade 6 – 8):

http://www.njaudubon.org/Portals/10/Education/PDF/NJ%20WATERS/NJWATERS_ChangedLand.pdf

The Nature of Imperviousness (Grade 6 – 8):

http://www.njaudubon.org/Portals/10/Education/PDF/NJ%20WATERS/NJWATERS_Imperviousness.pdf

Water Quality:

Water Quality Matters: 4 H Water Project-Unit 3 (Grade 8 – 10):

http://extension.psu.edu/4-h/leaders/resources/publications/do680a-the-4-h-water-project-unit-3-water-quality-matters-unit-3.pdf

Miscellaneous:

Measuring Slope Around School (Grade 8 – 12): 

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/environmental_education/lesson-measuring-slope-around-school.pdf

Environmental Protection Agency-Environmental Education-The Role of Plants in Water Filtration (Grade 4 – 8):

https://www3.epa.gov/safewater/kids/pdfs/activity_grades_4-8_plantsinwaterfiltration.pdf

Decision Making-A Mock Town Meeting on a Proposed Tank Farm (Grade 9 – 12): 

https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2016-03/documents/activity_grades_9-12_proposedtankfarm.pdf

VIDEOS:

These are video tutorials for students across age groups. Most of the videos are local case studies that educate students about water challenges around them.

Rainwater:

Rain Gardens: Saving Streams One Yard at a Time (Grade 8 – 10):

http://www.ecoexpress.org/video_detail.php?videoId=163&notes=0,0,1,0

Capturing Rainwater is Good Business Practice (Grade 5 – 7):

http://www.ecoexpress.org/video_detail.php?videoId=170&notes=0,1,0,0

Stormwater:

Bio- Retention Island (Grade 11 – 12):

http://www.ecoexpress.org/video_detail.php?videoId=167&notes=0,0,0,1

Stormwater Bump-outs: Calming a Community while Protecting the Creek (Grade 11 – 12): http://www.ecoexpress.org/video_detail.php?videoId=183&notes=0,0,0,1

Green City, Clean Waters (Grade 11 – 12):
http://www.ecoexpress.org/video_detail.php?videoId=158&notes=0,0,0,1

Streamside Forest Buffers: Improving Water Quality (Grade 11 – 12):
http://www.ecoexpress.org/video_detail.php?videoId=168&notes=0,0,0,1

Percy Street Goes Green: Another Philadelphia First (Grade 11 – 12):

http://www.ecoexpress.org/video_detail.php?videoId=164&notes=0,0,0,1

Watershed:

The Watershed Connection: East Falls (Grade 8 – 10):

http://www.ecoexpress.org/video_detail.php?videoId=181&notes=0,0,1,0

Miscellaneous:

Healthy Urban Waters: Empowering People, Improving Communities, Creating

Jobs (Grade 8 – 10):

http://www.ecoexpress.org/video_detail.php?videoId=182&notes=0,0,1,0

Water Cycle (Grade 3 – 6):

http://video.projectwet.org/incredible-journey/

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Resources for inside the classroom:

Lesson:

These lessons are arranged in Water Conservation, Water Supply, Watershed and Miscellaneous categories. The lessons not only teach concepts and skills to students, but also provide appropriate background information for teachers.

Water Conservation:

Water Conservation With the Water Lion—the 4-H Water Project Unit 1 (Age 8 – 11):

http://www.water-research.net/Waterlibrary/privatewell/waterconservation.pdf

Water With the Water Lion—4-H Water Project Unit 2 (Age 8 – 11):

http://ecosystems.psu.edu/youth/sftrc/lesson-plan-pdfs/incrediblewater

Water Supply: 

The Water We Drink (Grade 6 – 12):

http://extension.psu.edu/natural-resources/water/youth/drinking-water/the-water-we-drink

Watershed:

NJ WATERS:  A Watershed Approach to Teaching the Ecology of Regional Systems (Grade 6 – 8):

http://www.njaudubon.org/SectionEducation/NJWaters/NJWATERSLessons.aspx

Clean Water Book: Choices for Watershed Protection (Grade Not Specified):

http://www.nj.gov/dep/watershedrestoration/waterbook_tble.html

Miscellaneous:

Hudson River Estuary Climate Change Lesson Project (Grade 5 – 8):

http://www.seagrant.sunysb.edu/hriver/pdfs/climatechange/HudsonRiverEstuaryClimateChangeLessonProject.pdf

4 H Project: Unit 3-Supplement Riparian Buffers (Age 5 – 19):

http://extension.psu.edu/4-h/leaders/resources/publications/BUFFers.pdf

WORKSHEETS:

This section consists of worksheets such as crosswords, fill-in-the-blanks, match the words, and Sudoku. The curriculum is organized in the categories of Wastewater, Water Cycle, Water Supply, and Watershed.

Wastewater:

Sewer Sudoku (Grade not specified):

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/environmental_education/worksheet-sewer-sudoku.pdf

Grease Crossword Puzzle (Grade 6 – 12):  

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/environmental_education/activity-grease-crossword-puzzle.pdf

Wastewater Treatment Crossword Puzzle (Grade 6 – 12):

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/environmental_education/activity-wastewater-treatment-crossword-puzzle.pdf

Secrets of New York: The Sewers (Grade 6 – 12):

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/environmental_education/worksheet-secrets-of-new-york-the-sewers.pdf

Water Cycle:

The Water Cycle—Where Does Water Come From, and Where Does It Go? (Grade 3 – 6):

http://www.discoverwater.org/resources/Water_Cycle_Educator_Resources.pdf

Word Scramble (Grade 4 – 8):

https://www3.epa.gov/safewater/kids/pdfs/activity_grades_4-8_wordscramble.pdf

Water Supply:

How Does Water Flow in NYC? (Grade 6 – 12): 

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/environmental_education/worksheet-how-does-water-flow-in-new-york-city.pdf

Matching Game: How Much Water? (Grade 4 – 8):

https://www3.epa.gov/safewater/kids/pdfs/activity_grades_4-8_funfactsmatchinggame.pdf

Water Pollution:

Tracking Pollution A Hazardous Whodunit (Grade 9 – 12):

https://www3.epa.gov/safewater/kids/pdfs/activity_grades_9-12_trackingpollution.pdf

Watershed:

Estuary: Group A Data Form: Water Characteristics (Grade 7 – 12):   

http://www.njaudubon.org/Portals/10/Education/PDF/NJ%20WATERS/NJWATERS_StateWatershed_estuary.pdf

Pond/Lake: Group A Data Form: Water Characteristics (Grade 7 – 12):

http://www.njaudubon.org/Portals/10/Education/PDF/NJ%20WATERS/NJWATERS_StateWatershed_pond.pdf

Freshwater Stream/River: Group a Data Form: Water Characteristics (Grade 7 -12):

http://www.njaudubon.org/Portals/10/Education/PDF/NJ%20WATERS/NJWATERS_StateWatershed_freshwater.pdf

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Check out the classroom resources compiled by DC Water here.

Complementary or in Conflict? Community Organizing and Collective Impact

Marshall Ganz of Harvard Kennedy School delivered the keynote address at the 2017 Collective Impact Convening in Boston. Ganz spoke about organizing and highlighted the importance of relationships and narrative.

Opportunities for Municipal Clean Water Utilities to Advance Environmental Justice & Community Service

The National Association of Clean Water Agencies prepared this report to increase awareness of the many benefits America’s clean water utilities provide to their communities. The projects in this compendium represent efforts by NACWA members to reach beyond the traditional model of simply conveying and treating wastewater and stormwater, to become assets and partners in their communities. Some of the projects included in this compendium represent work to address specific environmental justice issues, while others are examples of efforts by clean water utilities to better serve their communities as a whole.

Opportunities for Municipal Clean Water Utilities to Advance Environmental Justice & Community Service (National Association of Clean Water Agencies)

Links

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