American Rivers wants increased federal funding for variety of waterway programs

(Posted to the web Friday, Oct. 30, 1998, 11:55 a.m., EST)

The organization American Rivers today called on Congress and the White House to provide additional funding in the fiscal year 2000 budget for local projects along the nation's rivers.

Among the proposals advanced by the group was increased funding for removal of hydropower and other dams along rivers and increased appropriations for controlling non-point pollution such as agricultural runoff and runoff from logging and mining. There is also considerable emphasis on more land acquisition by the federal government.

Substanial appropriations increases are sought for the programs in the proposal.

American Rivers released its proposal, "National Priorities for Local River Conservation in FY 2000" and said the recommendations are supported by "165 local river conservation groups."

The proposal focuses on 15 projects that "play a critical role in the health of the nation's rivers," the group said. "The goals of the programs cover a wide range of river restoration and protection efforts, including reversal of channelization impacts, support for agency involvement in the relicensing of hydropower dams, cleanup of acid-mine damaged streams, acquisition of ecologically important land from willing sellers, assistance to landowners in controlling polluted runoff, and river habitat restoration," the proposal said.

Here are some of the elements of the proposal:

-- Hydropower Program, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. "In the next 12 years," American Rivers said, "operating licenses for 500 U.S. hydropower dams will expire, and dam owners must apply for new licenses from FERC. To do an effective job, FERC needs a thorough review of a dam's environmental impacts."

-- Columbia River Fish Mitigation. "Four large federal dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers are responsible for killing most of the migrating juvenile fish and a large percentage of adult fish each year," the group said. "Scientific analysis shows that dam removal is the only way to save these fish from extinction."

-- Non-point Source Pollution Control Program. "Polluted runoff from agriculture, timber harvesting, mining, grazing and urban development degrades more rivers and streams than any other source of pollution," American Rivers said. "Sec. 319 of the Clean Water Act provides assistance to landowners trying to address use issues that contribute to polluted runoff," the proposal said.

-- Environmental Management Program. "EMP is the primary habitat restoration and monitoring program on the Upper Mississippi River, which is severely impacted by dams and levees."

-- Environmental Restoration. "Increasingly, the Army Corps of Engineers has engaged in the restoration of river systems degraded by existing Corps projects."

-- Missouri River Restoration. "The goal of the Missouri River Fish and Wildlife Mitigation Project," said the group, "is to reverse the impacts of the construction and operation of federal water projects, through land acquisition from willing sellers."

-- Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), operated by the Agriculture Department. "This voluntary conservation programs helps farms and ranchers facing threats to soil, water, and other natural resources to develop successful conservation practices."

-- Land & Water Conservation Fund. "LWCF funds are used to purchase ecologically important federal and state lands from willing sellers, one of the most successful means of protecting rivers."

-- Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program. "This program provides citizens, communities, and states with technical advice and consel on how to protect hometown rivers and streams."

For more information, contact American Rivers, Suite 720,1025 Vermont Ave., NW, Washington DC 20005; telephone (202) 347-7550; fax (202) 347-9240; e-mail: amrivers@amrivers.org.

(-30-) 

Copyright © 1998