Smuttynose Brewing Co. and Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership Unite For The Greener Good

By Austin Sorette

The relationship between the Smuttynose Brewing Co. and the Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership (PREP) was inevitable. Smuttynose beers consist of about 90% of water in all twenty plus styles that they brew, so having the best local water available is of paramount importance.

PREP is an organization which monitors, protects, and restores the health of the Seacoast's rivers, lakes, marshes, Great Bay and Hampton-Seabrook estuaries. PREP raises awareness about pollution and encourages the local community to take action in making our water cleaner. By bringing in Smuttynose's loyal fan base, the two companies can easily support each other and help engage the Seacoast community to help prevent pollution and protect the places where we can enjoy kayaking, fishing, and swimming.

Smuttynose and PREP have been promoting one another's work since the relationship began this summer. Smuttynose donated $8,500 in cash to support PREP's water monitoring, research and outreach efforts. They have become major sponsors for PREP events such as the Clean Water Music Series and the King Tide Photo Contest. They even have their own “Clean Water Tasty Beer” pint glasses with the PREP logo and Facebook address on the glass and matching coasters to put them on.

And in return, PREP is able to continue preserving and protecting the clean, fresh water that Smuttynose uses for their brews, while highlighting Smuttynose's award-winning beer to a new population of environmentally aware customers.

“We wanted to find a business that would benefit from the kind of work we were doing, while also being able to connect to a hip, active audience,” says Jill Farrell, the Community Impact Program Manager for PREP. “Smuttynose is using their dedicated fan base to help PREP get the word out about clean water and gain equally loyal fans who will take action to protect it.”

Last October, PREP held its first King Tide Photo Contest where residents of the local community set out around the Seacoast, taking photographs of various places that were, or were at risk of, flooding during “King Tide”, the Seacoast's highest astrological tidal surge of the year.

“This is a way to get photographers to help the scientists that work for us make the public safer,” says Farrell, “We want to get everyone engaged because we're all living here and we all want to be part of the solution.”

Another major PREP event that Smuttynose sponsors is the Clean Water Music series, a concert series that took place all summer and into the fall; the last concert of the series took place on September 21^st at the Stone Church in Newmarket and featured performances by Kings Highway and Todo Bien. The Clean Water Music Series mission is “to unite Seacoast residents on the importance of caring for lakes, rivers, marshes and...Estuaries, while having a great time enjoying performances from the most talented musicians across our water shed”.

The guys at Smuttynose were empathetic to PREP's mission.

“The water we use to brew Smuttynose beer comes right out of the Piscataqua River watershed,” says JT Thompson, who is the Minister of Propaganda at Smuttynose Brewing Co., “so on a base level, we need to support PREP. We also have a lot of fishermen and kayakers on staff and in our customer base, so we feel that it's vital to preserve not only our brewing water, but our way of life on the Seacoast.”

It was through various connections that the partnership reached the ears of the Green Alliance, a local green business union that specializes in promoting local businesses, just like Smuttynose. Both Smuttynose Brewing Co. and their sister restaurant and brew pub, The Portsmouth Brewery have been green-certified Business Partners with the Green Alliance for years. So the Smuttynose/PREP partnership was right in the eco-friendly business’s wheelhouse. To further deepen the local green connections, Green Alliance non-profit partner Conservation Law Foundation joined in for a three way partnership to preserve the regions water and grow awareness.

The main goal between Smuttynose and PREP is simply to support their community and to allow folks to have fun learning about and supporting a good cause. Both organizations are passionate about the Seacoast; they thrive on it. They want to change the way locals think about their water, and to build a culture around protecting it. Water is a huge part of the community's lifestyle, from swimming to sailing to dining, it's part of what makes living here so great. Smuttynose and PREP are concerned about the quality of that water and they want to do their part to protect it for future Seacoasters to enjoy.

“PREP wanted to reach out to a local brewery for the music series,” says Thompson, “That's the way grassroots business gets done: it's all about community and connections. This partnership is like a softball up the middle—because of how these two different communities overlap and become a part of our larger Seacoast community. All you have to do is swing and you're guaranteed that it's going to go far.”

Visit www.CleanWaterMusic.com for more info on concerts

Learn more about PREP on Facebook

www.Facebook.com/PREPCommunity

Checkout Smuttynose at www.Smuttynose.com

Learn more about the Green Alliance at www.greenalliance.biz