New England NEMO (Nonpoint Education for Municipal Officials)
Extension: Educational Programs and Training
Since nonpoint source pollution, a critical threat to New England ground and surface waters, is generated by individual actions and community land use decisions which are not extensively regulated by federal and state authorities, education becomes the primary weapon in the battle to protect our watersheds. New England Extension programs conduct educational workshops and training sessions aimed at helping its land use decision makers effectively manage watersheds to improve and protect water quality.
NEMO Programs
Working with local land use officials, New England
NEMO programs use geo-spatial technologies and educational
programs to demonstrate land use effects on water
quality. Using this information, Extension programs
work with communities to implement actions to protect
local water resources.
CT
NEMO 
program
developmed tools that
analyze impervious
cover as an indicator of watershed health.
Ten additional educational modules were integrated
into the program’s original pilot project, Linking
Land Use and Water Quality .
The project’s workshops continue to be a NEMO
programmatic mainstay.Catalyzed by NEMO educational programs
and information, towns throughout CT have
changed their land use plans, regulations, policies
and procedures in order to protect water quality. The
CT State Nonpoint Source Plan, Coastal Nonpoint
Source Plan, and new Stormwater Quality Manual incorporate
NEMO principles.
A
project at UConn aimed
to determine whether the quality of runoff from a local
suburban neighborhood would improve as a result of
educating homeowners about residential
Best Management Practices (BMPs). The
results from the study were published in the Journal
of Extension.
The New Hampshire Natural Resources Outreach Coalition (NROC),
UNH's Extension-led NEMO program
has facilitated various community–based
natural resource protection initiatives, such as the
creation of a water quality monitoring program,
an outreach campaign, “Growing
Greener” and a land conservation committee. With coaching and support from NROC, one NH community raised $200,000 for conservation purposes.
URI NEMO program
uses MANAGE to help rural
communities and land trusts identify
and evaluate pollution risks related to land use and
onsite wastewater disposal.
URI NEMO co-led a regional conference with U.S. EPA New England highlighting the RI communities that effectively implemented comprehensive onsite wastewater management programs to protect public health and sesitive water resources.
The Maine
NEMO program
has developed a lakes
educational module and other educational programs
based on the original NEMO model. UMaine NEMO program, with assistance from UMaine Cooperative Extension, held
a workshop in 2002 in Camden, which led to the
development of a comprehensive zoning plan for the
town. The plan incorporates language for the protection
of water quality and is being reviewed at
the state level.
Coordinating with the Volunteer Water Quality Monitoring focus area, UVM NEMO held "Reducing and Preventing Beach Closures on Lakes and Rivers in Northern New England: Strategies for Detection, Correction and Financing" for decision makers in ME, VT, and NH.
Collaboration
among states in New England and other regions is assisted
by the National
NEMO Network , a
CSREES National Facilitation Project based at UConn. The Network is comprised
of 33 programs in 32 US states and territories, including
CT, ME, NH and RI.The
National NEMO Network has met to share resources and
knowledge annually since 2000.
NROC developed an evaluation process for the National NEMO Network based on the logic model . This approach captures the impact that NEMO programs across the country have at the local level and provided guidance in the development of the NEMO's web-based reporting form.
GIS Education Programs
New England Extension programs offer classes
and training to the general public and local officials
on the use of Geographic Information Systems. For
example:
University
of Connecticut GeoSpatial
Technology Program
University
of Massachusetts Extension Connecticut River Watershed
Monitoring Project Professional
Development Workshops
University
of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension GIS/GPS Training
University
of Rhode Island Cooperative Extension Geographic
Information System Training Programs
Other Land Use Education Programs
The Green
Valley Institute (GVI) is
a comprehensive new program of information
management, continuing education, volunteer recruitment
and training,
and technical assistance in natural resources and
land use. Fifty-one GVI short courses, workshops, retreats and training sessions were taught to 1,223 community leaders, landowners and other targeted audiences.
GVI generated a new aquifer data layer. The new digital aquifer data gas been incorporated into natural resource inventories and used to make better land use decisions that are designed to protect water quality while promoting sensible community growth.
Landowners attending GVI "Protecting Family Farm" workshops made a committment to protect 5,156 acres of undeveloped land.
UIVM Extension collaborates with Cornell Extension
on the LEAPE
(Locally-led Education and Action for Protecting the
Environment) program,
an educational program for local governments interested
in protecting water
resources in their communities.
UMass Extension is an active
partner of the Massachusetts
Watershed Initiative (MWI) .
MWI is developing and implementing outreach
plans on a statewide basis within the 27 designated
watersheds.