Hilton Head Public Service District (PSD) has earned the 2024 Excellence in Education and Outreach Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s WaterSense program. The PSD earned the award for its efforts to inform and educate customers about water efficiency and environmental sustainability programs. This is the PSD’s third EPA WaterSense Excellence Award.
“With a continuous stream of water conservation messaging, Hilton Head PSD earned its third WaterSense Award for Excellence in Education and Outreach,” the EPA said in a statement. “To reach a larger audience, Hilton Head PSD partners with the Clemson University Extension Service to provide education about responsible lawn care and landscaping through social media, newsletters, and their website at www.hhpsd.com.”
The PSD promotes a variety of WaterSense outreach campaigns, including encouraging customers to take the I’m for Water Pledge at the beginning of the year; helping homeowners identify leaks during Fix a Leak Week; and getting those with irrigation systems to conduct a Sprinkler Spruce-Up. The PSD suggests improvements to Hilton Head’s many swimming pools by sharing WaterSense’s pool efficiency resources in the summer, and it encourages customers to look for the WaterSense label on fixtures at the end of the year through its Tis the Season for Savings campaign.
“Congratulations to our customers, who truly care for our most precious natural resource – water,” said PSD General Manager Pete Nardi. “Earning this national recognition from the EPA is a demonstration of the importance that Hilton Head Island places on water resource stewardship and our delicate island environment.”
The PSD actively promotes Clemson University Cooperative Extension’s “Carolina Yards” program, which teaches sustainable landscape management practices. It also informs customers about the local irrigation and rain-sensor ordinance on Hilton Head Island that restricts irrigation to no more than two days a week at all times and requires working rain sensors on all irrigation systems. WaterSense campaigns such as Fix a Leak Week and Shower Better are highlighted in PSD communications. The PSD uses communication tools such as its e-newsletter, The Liquid Letter, social media, and bill-insert newsletters to inform and educate customers, among other outreach efforts. The PSD is assisted in its promotional outreach by Bragg Media Marketing and its founder, Heather Bragg.
