The SMART Goal, Program The SMART Goal, Program Concepts and OutcomesConcepts and Outcomes

A NESC and RCAP partnered, EPA funded program using Social Marketing techniques to invigorate small community audience participation in the development of wastewater management focused source water and well head protection plans.

Framing the Approach:The Overriding Principles In SMARTThe SMART approach incorporates these principles:

1. Community Resilience: the ability to withstand, prevent or protect against threats and restore services, minimizing disruptions to life and economy. Safe and secure sources of drinking water fosters this.

2. Interrelatedness between drinking water and waste water requires that activities in one area be conducted in recognition of the other.

3. Interdependency between safe drinking water, health and economics exists in that; economy, quality of life and health depends on the safety of the water supply which depends on the local economy.

4. Social Marketing requires all sectors or audiences within the community to actively engage in the source water protection planning process for the planning and implementation to be viable. “Buy in” is critical to success and innovative use of limited resources.

5. Financial Capacity of small community drinking water and waste- water systems is limited, while they are the most expensive to operate per capita. This has led to compliance issues and local inability to implement source water protection programs .

The EPA Grant Requirements:Primary Goal and Objectives

• The SMART Goal is to stimulate voluntary planning activities among small and very small Community and Non Community public water supplies focusing on untreated wastewater from failing septic and sewer systems.

• The Rationale: By focusing on the greatest drinking water threat first, a basis for action consistent with State Source Water Assessment Plans is created.

• The 3 Objectives of SMART are :1. To build an understanding of the beneficial connection between effective wastewater treatment and source water protection.2. Address the lack of human and financial resources by facilitating partnerships with volunteer groups.3. Prepare operators and local officials for the need to develop contingency plans for supplying safe drinking water in emergencies.

EPA Grant Requirements: Strategies for Implementing SMART and Expected Outcomes

• EPA’s Strategic Plan sub-objective 2.1.1 requires that by 2011 90% of small community public water systems provide drinking water that meets all applicable health based drinking water standards, including effective treatment and source water protection.

• The SMART program intends to assist EPA in meeting this objective through a 3 pillar strategy of: 1.) Training; 2.) Technical Assistance and 3.) Transfer of Results.

• An Evaluation component is also incorporated into each strategy to gage effectiveness.

• In addition, referrals to sources of information on non wastewater related contaminants and on contingency planning will be made.

• State source water protection coordinators and appropriate local officials will be advised of regional training and technical assistance activities.

RCAP Staff, SMART Training Outcomes

Training delivery, Strategy 1, for 245 small communities has the following outcomes:

1. Increased awareness and understanding of source water assessments by local officials.

2. Impart knowledge on conducting planning and obtaining community support

3. Understanding of the interrelatedness between source water protection and wastewater treatment

4. Awareness of information resources available to officials.

5. Awareness of volunteer organizations that can assist.

6. Increase in requests to NESC and RCAP for technical assistance.