Nonpoint source pollution is our nation's largest remaining water quality problem. It is not caused by discharges from big factories or from sewage treatment plants. Rather, it is generated by all of us, a product of millions of actions that we take each day, including activities such as applying pesticides, fertilizing our lawns, or the manner in which we dispose of oil. While most of our individual actions have relatively small impacts on water quality, the cumulative impacts of how we choose to interact with our land and water, is huge. However, by becoming more aware of the effect of our actions on our rivers, streams, lakes, and oceans, we can all develop more water-friendly habits and practices that will enable us to protect and restore the quality of these waters. This guide offers advice on how watershed groups, local governments, and others can maximize the effectiveness of public outreach campaigns to reduce nonpoint source pollution and protect the lakes, rivers, streams, and coasts that we treasure. It expands upon a 1998 publication by the Council of State Governments, titled 'Getting in Step: A Guide to Effective Outreach in Your Watershed.' This update has benefited greatly from new information from the growing field of community-based social marketing, and contains significant additions in every section. It is intended as a reference that pulls together principles, techniques, and information for effective watershed outreach into a single, user-friendly source.

Title from p. {2} of cover. "December 2003." "Based on the original guide, Getting in step : a guide to effective outreach in your watershed, published in 1998 by the Council of State Governments ... as a companion to this guide, EPA and the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food jointly developed Getting in step : a video guide for conducting watershed outreach campaigns." "New and improved tips and tools for creating awareness, educating specific audiences, and motivating positive behavior change to improve water quality"--Cover. "EPA 841-B-03-002." Includes bibliographical references.