Reducing nutrient enrichment of waterways through public education: a taleof two cities

Eutrophication of waterways, expressed as excess growth of cyanobacteria, i s frequently caused by excessive inputs of phosphorus. Human activities are often the origin of such nutrient enrichment and so many governments have addressed the issue by implementing a range of technological, legislative a nd biological measures. By contrast, Australia has taken a different approa ch and also relied heavily on public education. This paper compares the suc cess of two of these 'Phoswatch' public education programmes. One campaign occurred within the R Murray-Darling Basin in a country town called Albury- Wodonga. The other occurred within the Haw Hawkesbury-Nepean Basin in the w estern suburbs of Sydney. The campaigns were evaluated using a series of co mmunity surveys and by monitoring phosphorus loads at a sewage treatment pl ant. The Albury-Wodonga campaign was the most effective of the two campaign s with increases in the number of people reporting a range of behaviours an d these resulted in a decrease in phosphorus loads entering the local treat ment plant. The comparison suggests that clear simple messages, a diversity of media exposure, and some form of feedback are critical to programme suc cess. It is concluded that campaigns such as Phoswatch can provide a long t erm, cost effective way of addressing eutrophication by focusing on the pro blem at source and creating community support for an integrated strategy.