First Published: April 3, 2026 | Last updated: June 5, 2026
Thank you for your time and consideration with PREP's Communication Strategy. The public comment period has now closed. We look forward to addressing your input. Later this summer, we will post a record of submissions to our website per the public comment process. Here, it will become part of the public record. This webpage has been retained for archival purposes.
The Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP) invites public feedback on a draft of our ten-year communications strategy: PREP Communications Strategy – A Ten-Year Plan (2025–2035).
The public comment period will be open April 6 to June 5, 2026. We welcome input from community members, partners, and anyone interested in the future of communication about our region’s estuaries and clean water efforts.
PREP’s public review process helps ensure transparency and accountability in program planning. PREP is one of 28 National Estuary Programs funded under Clean Water Act §320. As part of a federal, non-regulatory program under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, all comments submitted during this period will be captured, recorded, and will be responded to by PREP.
Submissions become part of the public record and will be posted to our website: https://prepestuaries.org/
Thank you so much for taking the time to read, think about, and respond to our communications strategy. We are required to respond to every public comment submitted. We appreciate your support.
Why your feedback matters
Public comment is an important part of this process. Under EPA requirements, all comments submitted during the public comment period will be captured and become part of the public record.
Feedback helps ensure the final plan reflects the needs and perspectives of the people and organizations working to protect and restore our estuaries.
If you choose to submit comments, we encourage you to reference specific page numbers or section titles when possible. This helps us review and respond to feedback more efficiently.
Thank you for taking the time to review the plan and share your perspective.
What is a Strategic Communications Plan
“Strategic communications” is one of those phrases that sounds important but isn’t always explained clearly. At its core, it simply means communicating with purpose.
When creating our strategic communications plan, we asked ourselves:
- Why are we communicating?
- Who are we trying to reach?
- What do we want them to understand?
- How, when, and where should we communicate to reach them effectively?
In other words, a strategic communications connects communication efforts to real outcomes, be proactive rather than reactive, ensures messages stay consistent, and helps determine what communications efforts are most useful.
For PREP, our communications is always in service of a larger goal: supporting the work of the region’s 2025-2035 Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP) and helping people understand, care about, and take action for healthy estuaries.
What PREP's Strategic Communications Plan Is & Isn't
This plan is a required supplement to PREP’s CCMP under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which oversees the non-regulatory National Estuary Programs, like PREP.
PREP’s new Strategic Communications Plan brings together our communications goals and framework for the next ten years. It is designed to guide how PREP communicates about estuary science, restoration, partnerships, and water quality efforts across the Piscataqua Region watershed.
Importantly, the plan is not a project work plan or a detailed schedule. It does not include timelines, task lists, or deliverables for specific campaigns or initiatives. It is also not a content calendar for social media posts or newsletters.
Instead, it provides a framework that helps guide communication decisions across many projects over time. Individual projects, outreach efforts, and campaigns will still be developed as needed, using this plan as a guide.
The plan also does not redefine PREP’s mission or CCMP goals, and it does not tell municipalities or partners how they should communicate. All PREP communications remain non-regulatory, science-based, and consistent with our role within the National Estuary Program.