Updates On Critical Environmental And Access Issues from the ACA Conservation and Public Policy Department.
Effort To Save Everglades Launched
On Dec. 6, in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of Everglades National Park, the Clinton Administration and the state of Florida announced a major effort to save this great natural area known as "the river of grass." At a ceremony rededicating the Park, Vice-President Gore, EPA Administrator Browner, Secretary of Interior Babbitt, and Florida Governor Chiles announced a number of major new initiatives, including the federal government's purchase of the 50,000-acre Talisman Sugar Plantation. The protection effort will include other acquisitions of land as well, all of which will be returned to their natural state. Other parts of the plan include the restoration of freshwater flows from the Everglades' headwaters and the clean-up of agricultural pollution, both of which threaten the Everglades eco-system. All told, around $7 billion will be spent on Everglades restoration in the coming years. "Our plan," says Gore, "is to ensure that the Everglades remain a river of grass."
--dj
FERC Orders Edwards Dam Removed
A Nov. 25 ruling by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) marked a turning point for river restoration nationwide. The unprecedented action ordered the destruction of the 160-year-old Edwards Dam at the dam owner's expense, concluding that environmental concerns outweigh any hydroelectric benefits. This action represents the first time in history that FERC has denied an application to relicense a dam, and the first time the agency has ordered the removal of a dam for which the owner was seeking a new license. At least 20 small, non-hydroelectric dams, mostly in Wisconsin and Michigan, have been intentionally destroyed in recent years, but this was the first ordered down against the wishes of dam owners.The Edwards Dam is 40 feet high and spans 1,000 feet across the Kennebec, one of Maine's longest rivers. The removal of the dam has been a major focus of recreation and environmental groups for many years. The Kennebec Coalition and the Hydropower Reform Coalition worked tirelessly on the project, and REI provided a good portion of the funding for the groups seeking the dam's removal.
According to FERC, the spawning needs of salmon, shad and the endangered shortnose sturgeon take priority over the continued operation of the dam. River advocates are hoping the decision will be the first of many that require the removal of dams for environmental reasons. "The Edwards decision reflects a change in the way the federal government looks at dams," says Margaret Bowman, Director of Hydropower Programs for American Rivers, a Washington, D.C.-based river-conservation organization. "In the past, FERC has viewed dams as permanent structures on the landscape. With the Edwards decision, FERC has recognized that, just like all other things, dams have a finite life cycle."
--ahb
Conservation Alliance Grants Awarded
Waterways in Tennessee and California recently received a boost that will help boaters: Last year, Conservation Alliance Grants of $35,000 each were awarded to the Tennessee's Upper Chattahoochee River Keeper Fund and the Phoenicia, N.Y.-based American Whitewater Affiliation (AWA). The River Keeper Fund will use the grant to continue maintaining the environmental integrity of the Chattahoochee River; the AWA will use its funds to work on hydropower issues in California. "This grant will have a tremendous impact on our ability to address the issues facing California river recreation," says AWA Executive Director Rich Bowers. Paddlers back east are equally as pleased. "Given the Chattahoochee's designation as one of the country's 10 Most Endangered Rivers, the grant will help direct issues shaping its future, which is likely to be determined in the next 18 months," says Alliance Board Member Risa Shimoda Callaway, adding that the fund will ensure water quality, biological diversity, and environmental and recreational issues are top priorities in the water allocation process. The Conservation Alliance, comprised of such companies as The North Face, Kelty, REI, Patagonia and Perception, donates $70,000 annually to non-profit environmental organizations. For more information call (864) 859-7518.
--ahb
Wilderness Society Bestows Murie Award
Who says good deeds go unnoticed? Certainly not the Washington, D.C.-based Wilderness Society, which recently awarded its Olaus and Margaret Murie Award to St. Paul, Minn.'s Maggie Wille for her role in protecting Minnesota's Boundary Waters Canoe Area. First given in 1988, this award is given annually to unsung heroes of the environmental movement who have shown dedication to protecting the nation's natural heritage. "I consider it a privilege to know and work with Maggie Wille," says Wilderness Society Vice President Darrell Knuffke. "She has never wavered in her commitment to help preserve the Boundary Waters." Wille, an occupational therapist and wellness counselor, has participated in more than a dozen Boundary Waters wilderness adventures in the last 11 years. The Murie Award is named for Olaus and Margaret Murie, major figures in the American conservation movement. Olaus, who passed away in 1963, was a federal biologist and founder of the Wilderness Society. Margaret, known as "the matriarch of the American conservation movement," is the author of three conservation books and played a prominent role in the passage of The Wilderness and Alaska Lands acts.
--ahb
