Does your lawn need that fertilizer? The stuff that is heavy on phosphorus?

The group charged with overseeing the cleanup of the Bay of Quinte is hoping you can do without it.

Belleville has been chosen as a target community for a project called “Zero P Zero Worries.”

In this case, “P” stands for phosphorus.

Designed as a community-based social marketing project, Zero P Zero Worries is a pilot project facilitated by the Bay of Quinte Remedial Action Plan (BQRAP) promoting the reduction of use of lawn fertilizers containing phosphorus because of its detrimental impact on the Bay of Quinte water, wildlife, and habitat qualities.

This project has involved a door-to-door campaign from April 26-29, where Loyalist College student volunteers surveyed homeowners about their fertilizer use.

“This helped the BQRAP collect information about phosphorus-fertilizer use and establish baseline data for future reference,” said project coordinator, Kelsey Jensen. “This project also involves a large-scale information campaign, promoting the use of phosphorus-free fertilizers and alternatives. Our goal through this project is simple, help reduce phosphorus-overloading in the Bay of Quinte by educating Belleville citizens to use phosphorus-free or alternative fertilizers, such as corn gluten, on their lawns this year.”

Lawn fertilizers are frequently overused and the nutrients, especially phosphorus, contribute to excess algae and plant growth in the Bay of Quinte. Algal blooms can cause a variety of adverse impacts including fouling of beaches, taste and odour issues in drinking water, restrictions on water use due to algal toxins, clogging of water intakes, and decomposing algae and weeds take up oxygen in the water that is vital to fish and other animals.

Zero P Zero Worries has been made possible through a partnership with the Ministry of Environment, Environment Canada, Lower Trent Conservation, Quinte Conservation, the City of Belleville, Quinte Watershed Cleanup and Loyalist College,

In addition to the surveying and attendance at some public events (such as the Quinte Living Green Show & Expo, CFB Trenton Health & Safety Show, and Walleye World), information will also be dropped off at select houses.

“We will be at the Farmer’s Market on June 7, 9 and 11, and information about this campaign will be available at some local garden centres,” added Jensen.

Community-based social marketing project is a type of educational information campaign that aims to foster sustainable behaviour. Unlike other types of campaigns, CBSM relies upon community engagement, identifying and removing barriers towards changing behaviour, and promoting the benefits of changing the target behaviour.

For more information about Zero P Zero Worries visit www.zeropzeroworries.ca or call

project coordinator Kelsey Jensen at 613-394-3915 ext 252.

via Green lawn or green Bay of Quinte – Belleville Intelligencer – Ontario, CA.