OCR Text |
Show 9 necessity in an agency's water conservation program. This is because consumers need information in order to change their attitudes toward water consumption. The role of education in regulation, either voluntary or mandatory, is initially to inform the public about the regulations. In order to maintain public relations, the water agency must also provide information about water conserving methods. Education plays a similar role with economic incentives. For a program based on economic incentives to work, a water agency must inform the public about the rate increase and how to avoid paying higher costs. Benefits of an education- based water conservation program include simplicity in programming and process of presentation within the agency and to the public. These programs do not face the same public relation and political problems as regulation and economic incentive. However, programs based on education face several drawbacks. First, the behavior that this education is trying change is often deeply ingrained habit, and the information provided is ignored or otherwise ineffective in changing these behaviors. Often a program based on education targets long- term change in public behavior. This means that the actual conservation of water takes longer. Additionally, educational programs face obstacles with the content that they are trying to communicate. Because many of the reasons for a water conservation program are complex, an agency's decision on what to include in the program, combined with budgetary restraints create an obstacle to the effectiveness of educational programs. Finally, the public is also a target for many other messages about water |