DAPHNE, Ala.—From now until the stockings are hung, the halls are decked and the malls are filled with shoppers, Daphne’s Rave Motion Picture Theatre at the Jubilee Square Shopping Center will show an environmental infomercial before each movie.

While some patrons are still loading up on popcorn, candy and sodas, a short educational advertisement about preventing stormwater runoff will fill the giant screens. The commercial directs viewers to visit www.gulfallianceeducation.org, a Web site dedicated to preventing runoff pollution in the area surrounding the Gulf of Mexico.

The total cost of the project is about $10,500, which covered the production of informational advertisement and purchasing advertising time, Weeks Bay Reserve training coordinator Michael Shelton said.

The film was developed through a partnership between the Gulf of Mexico Alliance, Weeks Bay Reserve, the Weeks Bay Foundation and the Dauphin Island Sea Lab and Lands Division of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. The Gulf of Mexico Alliance is a partnership between environmental groups working in Florida, Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi and Alabama. The alliance coordinates outreach activities that address issues facing the Gulf of Mexico such as: water quality, habitat conservation and restoration and coastal community resiliency.

“Baldwin County residents are aware of how important local waters are to their quality of life,” Shelton said in a news release. He added that this area annually receives 67 inches of rainfall. “With all this rain, residents need to know where that rain goes,” he said. “It washes through our cities, bringing pollution to local waters which damages water quality, natural resources and can cause flooding.”

The Web site—hosted by Mississippi State University—provides informative videos, links to environmental resources and a free download of “Greener by the Yard,” a residential guide to preventing pollution.

Also on the site is a stormwater-runoff prevention trivia game in which guests can test their knowledge of pollution-prevention techniques.

“The Web is a great source of information on stormwater-related pollution and on actions citizens can take to prevent and reduce this type of pollution,” Shelton said. “Our project page has useful information for local residents and links for even more helpful hints to reduce damage to our local waterways.”

The site also has a section on how to dispose of hazardous wastes including automotive-related materials, pesticides, aerosol cans, paint, swimming pool chemicals and fertilizers.

The guiding rule for preventing pollution, according to the site, is to stop man-made chemicals or eroded soil from reaching storm drains or other drainage pathways.

Proper use, disposal and storage of fertilizer, soil-erosion prevention and proper pet waste disposal will also reduce runoff pollution.

“Groups concerned with the health of Baldwin County’s waters decided to try something different to get the environmental message to residents,” Shelton said of the infomercial.

Coordinators, having seen the project’s potential to reach a large and diverse movie-going audience, decided to try non-traditional means of communicating their message.

“Movie-going ranks high as a leisure time activity,” Shelton said.

A Daphne Bulletin reporter went to the Rave theatre June 28 to see “Transformers 2,” with the intent of catching the infomercial—and seeing giant robots beat each other up.

The reporter showed up 20 minutes early, unsure if the program would air with the traditional commercials or during the film previews.

No infomercial aired.

A Rave spokesperson confirmed that the commercial has since begun airing and will continue until Christmas.

Volunteers will regularly conduct surveys outside the theater, asking moviegoers what they thought of the commercial.

Daphne has long felt the effects of sedimentation and erosion in the creeks and streams that comprise the D’Olive Bay Watershed.

The city has recently instituted a working maintenance plan that will address the watershed’s most critical areas, including Tiawassee Creek and Yancey and Joe’s branches.