Selected Projects

Backyard Pet Waste Campaign

Did you know that dogs in Kitsap County produce over 11 tons of waste per day? And that pet waste is a contributor to fecal coliform bacteria found in local waterways? We recently assisted the Kitsap Peninsula Clean Runoff Collaborative in evaluating a pet waste education effort in five pilot neighborhoods. Using a web-based survey, we compared the effects of a direct mail outreach campaign to comparable control neighborhoods. The survey addressed self-reported behavior change and reactions to the direct mail postcards, including images, messages, reaction to the giveaways, and attitudes towards other information vectors for messaging.

STORMing Puget Sound Media Campaign

Cunningham Environmental is part of a consultant team for the STORMing Puget Sound Regional Educational Campaign. We have helped shape the media campaign through formative research on everyday activities that impact stormwater. We recently conducted focus groups around the Sound to get feedback on images and messages for an upcoming TV ad campaign and website. We discovered that awareness of the linkage between your own backyard and Puget Sound is crucial for understanding that individuals are contributing to water pollution through their daily behaviors. The tagline, “Puget Sound starts here” was born. Stay tuned for the ads that will be re-airing this spring! Read the STORM Focus Group Findings.

Stormwater Focus Groups

We conducted two focus groups of Kitsap County citizens to discover how best to communicate about stormwater issues and publicize a reporting hotline. The focus groups provided a setting for detailed and open-ended discussion about their awareness about how the storm drain system works and their ability to identify spills that could impact water quality. We used this forum to test messages and images that would both educate and motivate citizens to report spills and illicit discharges, and to find out which methods of educational outreach would be most effective.

Business Stormwater Management

We conducted 100 in-person interviews of business owners and managers in the City of Bellevue followed by two focus groups. The business survey was based on an extensive literature review to identify barriers and motivators for businesses to implement and comply with stormwater Best Management Practices. The focus groups explored in more depth the findings from the interviews. This primary market research will form the basis for a social marketing plan of education and outreach activities related to the new NPDES Phase II permit requirements.

Transfer Station Recycling Survey

On any given day, King County residents are queued to recycle at the transfer station drop boxes. The County was interested in finding out why the recycling services are heavily used and needed data on who the customers are and what materials they are recycling. The County also wanted to know what percentage of the transfer station's customers subscribe to curbside recycling and garbage collection. Ellen designed the survey instrument, supervised the field crew, created an Access database, and analyzed trends and patterns from more than 1,000 surveys. The results were beneficial to County staff since many of the outcomes could not be predicted based solely on observation. The data are being used by County staff to plan for future recycling at the transfer stations and for promoting curbside collection.

Natural Soil Building Program

As part of a team of evaluation experts, Ellen played a key role in developing measurable outcomes for the Seattle Public Utility's natural soil building program. In response to Seattle's asset management goals, Ellen was instrumental in crafting a five-year evaluation program that focuses on behavior changes. The program goal is to educate residents about cultivating a greener Seattle through soil improvement, water conservation, and reduction of pesticide use. Ellen designed three surveys: 1) a phone survey to identify barriers and incentives in using the Natural Lawn & Garden Hotline, 2) a mail survey for customers purchasing yard waste bins and Green Cones to identify the target market, and 3) another mail survey for Green Cone purchasers to find out about customer satisfaction and use.

Household Pharmaceuticals Survey

Washington Citizens for Resource Conservation (WCRC) is a non-profit advocacy group working to keep Washington a leader in recycling and product stewardship. With a grant from The Russell Family Foundation, WCRC contracted with Cunningham Environmental to develop the groundwork for a pharmaceuticals take-back pilot project that will make unwanted household pharmaceuticals as easy to return as they are to purchase. One of the main motivations for the project is that in the past people have been told to flush unwanted medicines down the toilet where they enter surface water. Ellen designed a phone survey of King County residents to determine disposal practices, awareness of the environmental impacts of disposal options, and willingness to utilize pharmacy drop-off programs. The survey results supported the viability to pilot test a take-back program of unwanted medicines, which was then implemented at select Group Health pharmacies.

In the next program phase, Ellen designed self-administered surveys for Group Health pharmacy customers aimed at uncovering motivators and barriers to using the medicine return dropbox. Ellen also designed an on-line survey for the pharmacists to uncover their level of engagement with project and get feedback about their attitudes towards the pilot program and suggestions for improvement. The results of both these surveys were used to modify the program before expanding it to nursing homes and other pharmacies throughout western Washington.

Electronics Recycling Pilot Project

Electronic waste (e-waste) including computers, monitors, TVs, and cell phones, is a rapidly growing problem. With advances in technology and lower prices, electronic products are replaced as often as every two years. The International Association of Electronics Recyclers predicts that by 2010, Americans will be tossing 400 million electronic devices annually. When considering the usage and trends from all sectors, it is estimated that about one billion units of computer equipment will become scrap between now and 2010.

Office Depot launched a national electronics recycling pilot during the summer of 2004. Working with the Northwest Product Stewardship Council government partners, Ellen synthesized voluminous data collected at the Office Depot distribution docks and the recycling facility in California. The report, used to support legislation for electronic waste recycling programs, presented detailed information on the materials recycled, an analysis of the logistics model used, and program costs.

Food Waste Compost Survey

Seattle Public Utilities is educating residents to reduce the amount of waste going into the garbage can and down the garbage disposal. In coordination with Seattle Tilth, Cunningham Environmental designed a phone survey to gauge the interest level in residential food waste composting using Green Cones. The results of the 600 residents showed a high level of interest in food waste composting, but there were also statistically significant differences based on demographic characteristics. A marketing plan based on the segmentation analysis was developed to target the most likely purchasers of Green Cones in preparation of a large-scale sales event.

Statewide Litter Survey

Washington State has a growing litter problem. In 2004, crews collected more than 6 million pounds of litter. The Department of Ecology has conducted biannual surveys of litter along roadways and areas used by the public to determine the quantity and composition of the litter and reasons why people litter. Ellen devised a methodology for selecting the 250 sample sites. After the team developed the list of land use categories, the next steps involved defining the universe of potential sites and randomly selecting the candidate sites for inclusion in the study. The protocols used to list the universe of potential sites differed for each category. Ellen used definitions and data from the U.S. Census Bureau to make the methodology credible. A range of databases that could define all potential sites were used and modified to match the land use categories in this study. Ellen developed defensible protocols for selecting sites for those categories with an unmanageable number of potential sites. The result of the first litter survey culminated in a public education campaign “Litter and It Will Hurt”.

Residential Backyard Composting Program

Seattle Public Utilities was at the forefront in the late 1980’s for promoting recycling and resource conservation. At that time they began offering compost bins at a reduced price and educational materials to encourage waste reduction and soil enhancement. The program has been enormously successful, boasting a near 20% participation rate among single-family residences. Cunningham Environmental conducted annual program evaluations of Seattle's yard waste bin distribution program during its first decade. The evaluation focused on use and satisfaction with the bins, compost product, quantity of yard waste diverted, and usefulness of the educational programs. Responsibilities included designing the survey instruments, administering telephone surveys of 400 participants each year, and documenting the methodology and results. Recommendations developed from the evaluation resulted in changes in the bin design, educational materials, and program logistics. Ellen integrated the results from six phone surveys to analyze trends over the 10-year period of the program. The effects of key variables - bin type, mode of educating the resident, and length of bin ownership - on bin use and satisfaction were analyzed. The results of the programmatic evaluation helped focus the client on the future direction of the project.

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