Polluted stormwater runoff is the leading pollution problem in our state’s most populated areas. Lots of people and lots of dogs are a big part of that pollution problem.
When it rains, pollution on the land washes downstream, moving that pollution along into our waters.
Protecting our waters
Regulations alone cannot keep Washington’s waters, including Puget Sound, pollution-free. We have learned that people will generally do their part to change their behaviors and prevent pollution if they have an awareness of the problem, and if they know what to do.Building that awareness is not free. But we believe spending money to inform people is a cost-effective way of address pollution problems in Puget Sound.
Since 2005, our state has invested more than $100 million to help local governments build locally designed stormwater programs. Washington made these investments through grants to local governments and intergovernmental partnerships, with funding from dedicated environmental accounts intended to prevent pollution. Our state made these investments to help us clean up our waters and restore Puget Sound and other waters of the state
If we do it right, our lakes, streams and Puget Sound receive huge benefits.
We all can help
By far, the least expensive way to fight pollution is to prevent it in the first place. Cleaning our waters is much more costly. Pollution problems in the Spokane River, and in many parts of Puget Sound, are good examples of how expensive cleanup can be.A small example of how this investment is beginning to show up is the recent “Dog Doogity” video, produced by a consortium of counties that border Puget Sound, calling themselves STORM.
The state helped provide funding for this video project through funding it has passed along to local governments to help them develop local stormwater programs that meet local needs.
STORM launched its Puget Sound Starts Here education effort — a broadly based, Sound-wide approach to give Puget Sound residents the information they need to make their own decisions about protecting the Sound.
The Dog Doogity video is one small effort by the STORM communities. It’s specifically aimed at dog owners in Puget Sound communities.
Low cost, high value
A video like this is cost-effective because it is meant to spread rapidly like a virus — to become “viral.” People share it with their friends — it passes from one dog owner to another, and on and on.Update for July 11, 2014
New numbers about the video:
· We are currently at 205,200 views.
· 95 percent of the viewers who vote like us.
· The video has been covered more than 80 times by media outlets locally and nationally – approximately 94 percent of the coverage has been positive.
Dog Doogity is doing exactly what we hoped: drawing attention to the issue of pet waste and its impact on Puget Sound. It’s working!
Read more here: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/washington_waters/dogdoogity.html
When Washingtonians get involved in preventing pollution, everyone gets our money’s worth.
For more information about the video, see The Scoop on “Dog Doogity” and dog waste in our waters
