THE HARBOR COLUMN:For cleaner water use your smarts

Ahoy.

The City of Newport Beach makes another great stride in protecting our waterways from urban runoff pollution with the installation of smart sprinklers. Now, when I heard about “smart” sprinklers, I envisioned various scenarios, but nothing like what is being offered for free to the residents of Newport Coast.

Boaters are constantly taking the heat for any pollution seen in Newport Harbor, yet urban runoff pollution is the overwhelming majority of both seen and unseen pollution dumping into the bay.

Most landlubbers do not realize the impact they have on water quality on a daily basis, since whatever stuff goes down a storm drain is out of sight and out of mind.

Excess water runoff from lawns can be damaging to the water quality because of what’s in the liquid. Fertilizers, bug spray and stuff picked up along the water’s journey to the bay and ocean are the culprits, and you can help.

How many times do you see a gardener fertilizing a lawn with pellets that are spraying out into the street — how many times do you see someone watering his or her lawn and the water is running off into the street?

The smart sprinklers will at least help with the over-watering. The controllers monitor the weather and the condition of your lawn by some space-age technology probably developed for the space shuttle.

Newport Beach has received a $300,000 federal grant for 500 homes in Newport Coast to install smart sprinklers on property that once was buffalo and cattle grazing pastures. Remember the buffaloes? Catalina Island still has buffaloes roaming the rock.

Water quality is very important, and I prefer voluntary, proactive approaches to legislative mandates to protect our waterways.

The rainy season is approaching, and this is bad news for Newport Harbor, as months and months of debris has been collecting inland, upstream of storm drain systems. The first heavy rain of the season means that Newport Harbor will be filled with junk and pollutants washed downstream.

However, you can do your part by picking up trash, not over watering your lawn, carefully washing your car, and not fertilizing excessively. Don’t throw cigarette butts out your car window, and quit dropping bits of trash on the ground. A little effort will go a long way when you multiply it by the millions of people living in the southland.

For information, call(949) 644-3215 or go to www.cleanwaternewport.com.

Maybe other upstream cities will follow Newport Beach’s lead to be proactive with our aquatic environment, helping to protect the oceans, lakes, bays and sounds — especially since the return on investment is not as apparent as other efforts on land like sweeping the streets or cleaning a park.

The news tip of the week comes from the National Marine Manufacturing Assn. (NMMA), which is the nation’s largest recreational marine industry association. A new partnership has been forged between America’s boat builders and the National Forest Service for waterway access, safety and conservation.

NMMA and the U.S. Forest Service have signed an agreement targeted primarily at preserving boating water access for the millions of boating families across the nation. The agreement was announced at the 2006 International Boat Builders Exhibition and Conference in Miami this week.

“Considering more than 70 million Americans go boating each year, I am enthusiastic about the federal government’s appreciation for maintaining access to public waterways,” said Monita Fontaine, NMMA vice president and senior counsel of government relations. The agreement “is the foundation of what we hope will be a long-lasting public-private partnership committed to working together to resolve water access issues.”

In addition to improving boating access, the agreement includes promoting public recreation opportunities and public outreach efforts on boating safety and aquatic stewardship.

Like Newport Beach, other organizations are starting to realize the value and benefit of our waterways for the public.

Remember to tune in to the No. 1 boating talk radio show in the nation at noon Saturdays. “Capt. Mike Whitehead’s Boathouse Radio Show” is on KCBQ-AM (1170) and can be heard online at www.boathouseradio.com.