Finley warns that trash dumped near the Colorado River could threaten our water quality. | HEAR FINLEY'S RADIO SPOTS
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 USTIN — Finley, LCRA's spokesfish, born from an artist's pen four years ago to help fight pollution in the Colorado River, is facing a busy fall as he continues his crusade for clean water.
The cartoon catfish carries his important message to school children as part of LCRA's stewardship and public education program called "Clean Water ... It Starts with You." The program has focused on school children living near the Highland Lakes and emphasizes problems caused by stormwater that washes chemicals, trash and other pollutants into the streams and lakes. Finley's whiskered face appears in classrooms, book covers, restaurant place mats and even public service announcements projected onto the screens of a movie theater complex in Marble Falls. That move alone introduced Finley to as many as 320,000 people. Earlier this month, Finley took to the radio waves in the Highland lakes area to sound his warning about the threats from stormwater pollution. Finley has been so successful that he has been asked to play an expanded educational role — this time to focus on the problems of illegally dumping trash in or near the water. The new campaign, which is scheduled to begin in September, will extend from the Hill Country all the way to Matagorda Bay. There'll be more book covers and more place mats. Finley will even appear on billboards as well as speak on the radio to deliver his clean water messages. Despite his busy schedule and growing celebrity, Finley agreed to an exclusive interview. Q. You're on book covers, restaurant place mats, movie screens, billboards and now, radio. Can you go anywhere without being recognized?
A. Not really. And I love it. The message I'm helping deliver for LCRA is really important. It's nice to be invited to a fish fry to speak about pollution — rather than to be the fish that's fried. Q. If you could convince people of one thing, what would it be?
A. Great question. The main thing is that it's up to them to protect the river. And there are two key parts to that. The first part is that up to 75 percent of pollution in our lakes happens when storms wash pollutants into the water. You can cut down on this if you use yard chemicals sparingly, recycle used motor oil and never toss trash on the ground. Q. What's the second part?
A. It's just wrong to dump trash in a creek or field. When people dump trash in a stream that runs into the Colorado, they're not only polluting my home, they're threatening the quality of the water that belongs to all Texans. It's the drinking water for hundreds of thousands of people. Q. Who needs to hear that message?
A. Everyone needs to hear it, but two groups in particular. First, I want school children to hear it because they'll go home and talk about it with their families and will understand how terrible it is to dump trash. I also want the people who actually dump the trash to hear it. They need to know that dumping trash not only pollutes the water but can land them in jail if they're caught because dumping is illegal. Q. What makes you such a good spokesfish? How do you hook your audience?
A. Let's not talk about hooks. Q. Sorry. What makes you so effective?
A. I care about the Highland Lakes and Colorado River. My family's lives depend on the river, so I want to keep it clean and beautiful. We have a responsibility to protect the river for our children and our children's children. We need everyone's help. Sometimes kids seem to understand that better than adults. Q. You have been a regular on the big screens of the Driftwood Theater in Marble Falls where your public service announcements have been playing. Who were your acting role models?
A. I look to old-school talent. Charlie the Tuna was my favorite. He had such a great comical delivery. I just laughed myself silly every time he was passed over by StarKist. Q. Do you ever think about retiring?
A. Not a chance. LCRA's job of protecting our river never ends. We all have a lot of work to do. Remember: Clean Water ... It Starts with You. Got a question for Finley? E-mail it to him. White is a communications specialist at LCRA. You can contact him at jerry.white@lcra.org. |
