The COVID-19 crisis is bringing into the spotlight the disparities and hardships that our most vulnerable communities face every day. People of color and economically disadvantaged communities have long been known to be disproportionately impacted by pollution and suffer higher rates of many health problems, and it is no surprise that recent headlines report they are also dying from COVID-19 at higher rates.

In California’s most productive agricultural regions, the Central Valley and Central Coast, our essential farmworkers continue to work the fields to bring food to our tables as most of us shelter in our homes. Farmworkers have always worked under tough conditions, often in regions with poor air quality, extreme heat, and exposure to harmful pesticides. Many of them have no health insurance and no paid sick leave, and the majority are undocumented and thus do not qualify for federal aid under COVID-19 relief packages. Now, Trump is threatening to reduce the minimum wage for farmworkers, at a time when other essential workers are receiving hazard pay.

In many areas of the Central Valley and Central Coast, decades of intensive agriculture has resulted in groundwater that is too polluted to drink, and wells that have gone dry from over-pumping. More than one million people in these regions lack a source of clean water in their homes. This is a hardship even in the best of times, but it puts communities at extremely high risk during this time of crisis. Families that must normally buy their drinking water at stores are now often not able to find any in stores, or they lack the funds to buy it. When they have to visit multiple stores in search of drinking water, they put themselves at higher risk of exposure to COVID-19.

For many years, front line organizations such as Community Water Center, Self-Help Enterprises, Clean Water Action, and Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability have been advocating for clean water for these communities. They were instrumental in passing the 2012 Human Right to Water bill (AB 685) by the California legislature, which states that “every human being has the right to safe, clean, affordable, and accessible water”. Since then, these organizations have taken the lead on advocating for stricter controls on agricultural pollution, as well as the passage of the Safe and Affordable Drinking Water Fund (SB 200) in 2019.

Despite these efforts, once groundwater is depleted or polluted it takes decades to recover, and there has been limited progress in providing clean water to the communities who desperately need it. Now, the drinking water crisis has reached new proportions with the risks posed by COVID-19. American Rivers joined with over 50 others organizations in sending a letter to the CA Senate and Assembly budget committees requesting emergency water distribution and delivery programs to ensure that all in need have access to drinking water, as well as other measures to increase water access.

In the meantime, local organizations are working on the ground to provide relief. The Self-Help Enterprises Emergency Services Program Team is distributing bottled water to communities and homes that lack clean water in Kern, Kings, Tulare, Fresno, Madera, Merced, Mariposa, and Stanislaus counties. The Sierra Health Fund has launched the San Joaquin Valley Health Fund COVID-19 Response Cluster to support vulnerable families, individuals, and the organizations supporting them.

American Rivers Central Valley staff are collaborating with these critical on-the-ground organizations and we are committed to supporting their efforts in environmental justice, and achieving clean water for all.

Coronavirus is shining a national spotlight on the shortcomings and inequities in our nation’s water infrastructure – and revealing where we must invest in clean water and healthy rivers to improve public health and our economy.

The CDC recommends washing hands for at least 20 seconds as one of the best ways to fight the spread of coronavirus. But millions of people in our country aren’t able to practice this necessary, basic hygiene because they don’t have access to clean running water in their homes.

Roughly two million people in our country lack access to running water, indoor plumbing or wastewater treatment. Food and Water Watch did a study in 2016, showing that 15 million people had their water shut off for nonpayment. In many rural and urban areas, water quality is a serious concern. Communities of color and historically marginalized communities are disproportionately impacted, with limited access to clean, safe and affordable water. 

To their credit, several cities including Atlanta, Washington, DC, St. Louis and San Francisco, and states such as Pennsylvania and North Carolina, have taken the important step in issuing a moratorium on water shut-offs during the coronavirus pandemic. And other cities including Phoenix, Denver and Detroit have gone even further and are restoring water access to households whose water was shut off before the pandemic. People experiencing homelessness need access to clean water, too. Portland, Oregon has placed emergency hand-washing stations around the city. All of this is vital to ensuring people can protect themselves and their neighbors, and stop the spread of the virus.

In many river communities, coronavirus is also shining a grim light on the vulnerabilities of our water infrastructure when it comes to flooding. We named the Upper Mississippi and the Lower Missouri the top two rivers in America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2020 because over a century of efforts to “fight” floods and “control” rivers through higher and higher levees and paving over floodplains has put millions of people in harm’s way.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is predicting major to moderate flooding in 23 states this spring. If a flood threatens a community during a coronavirus “stay at home” order, where will people turn for safety and shelter? How will communities that typically rely on volunteers turning out to build sandbag defenses protect homes and businesses if people are in danger of contracting the deadly coronavirus? With scarce resources and supplies, how will communities, states and the federal government respond to both disasters at once? Even during normal times, floods exacerbate inequities. The financial burden of floods on low income communities will be even more dire when communities are under the financial strain caused by coronavirus. It’s clear that we need a new approach to managing flood risk, one that puts people first and gives rivers room to flood safely.

Clean water and healthy rivers are vital to life in our country. Reliable, resilient water infrastructure is essential to our health and safety, our economy and our national security. Not only is it our moral responsibility to ensure everyone has clean water, it’s a smart investment. According to the Value of Water Coalition, every $1 spent on water infrastructure in the U.S. generates $3 to the private economy. 

Congress must act to prioritize healthy rivers and clean, safe, affordable water for all. This should include, for the duration of the pandemic emergency, a ban on water shut-offs nationwide and restoration of water services for anyone without access. Congress must also increase water infrastructure funding to ensure clean water and sanitation for communities most in need, and increase funding for innovative, cost-effective solutions that strengthen communities in the face of flooding and other impacts of climate change.

As we navigate this unprecedented crisis, our actions now will define our future. This Earth Day, let’s seize the moment to better protect the health of our families and our neighbors, build more resilient communities, and strengthen our economy. It all starts with something profoundly simple, yet incredibly powerful: water.

In the first installment of a new series, American Rivers’ Southwest Communications Director & Executive Producer Sinjin Eberle discusses a few of his favorite memories on the rivers he’s missing most…

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Fun!! What a great idea and opportunity to share some of our favorite photos from our favorite river memories. I have a bunch, so narrowing it down to just three photos is really hard, but a few jumped out at me right away.

First and foremost, is the distant past. My parents got us out on rivers from a very early age, but for me, the San Juan is the river that holds the greatest memories of them all. I have 22 trips down the San Juan, from Mexican Hat or Bluff down to Clay Hills Crossing in southern Utah. Our family did that trip at least once every summer, then when I went off to college and beyond, I led or participated in my own trips as well. This photo is from about 1990 or so – I would have been at Arizona State University (judging by that jacket!) and my Dad and I were lounging the banks making a small pot of coffee – while sitting next to the old school groover, of course! No better place to brew up the morning joe than right next to the potty!

The second photo is from much more recent American Rivers days – my first full trip down the Grand Canyon, which was just last August. Leading our Grand Canyon efforts, I have been fortunate to have the canyon as one of my “work destinations,” and have had fragments of trips over the years (including one trip with CNN working on The Wonder List,) but I had never had a full Grand Canyon experience. Last year, I was fortunate enough to be invited on a trip with a collection of people who came together to brainstorm about how to make a renewed and focused impact on one of the most iconic landscapes in the country. This photo is taken from just upstream of the confluence with the Little Colorado, where a proposed 1.4-mile tramway could have been built from the rim to the river, without the focused and strategic opposition by American Rivers and our partners in Northern Arizona and the Navajo Nation. This photo illustrates to me the beauty and solemnity that we work to protect, together, every day.

Finally, maybe an unexpected photo, but one I am so proud of from my career here at American Rivers – and ironically a photo I am not in, nor is there a river nearby. But one of the thrills of my life was the opportunity to interview President Jimmy Carter in 2016 as we were working on the production of the film The Wild President, in partnership with NRS as part of our 5000 Miles of Wild campaign. President Carter is so incredibly well spoken, and has such a rich relationship with rivers, both from a boy growing up on a small creek in Georgia, to exploring rivers in Idaho and Alaska as a younger man, to now enjoying fly-fishing with his wife Roslyn on the Chattooga in Georgia or the Salmon in Idaho. We had exactly 30 minutes to capture our conversation with President Carter for the film, and was one of the most exciting and meaningful half-hours of my life!

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Thanks, Sinjin! Keep an eye on AmericanRivers.org/blog over the coming weeks, as we’ll be checking in with other American Rivers personalities to see how they’ve been keeping the river vibes flowing in their seclusion. What are your favorite river photos and memories? Let us know and show us your rivers on our Twitter (@AmericanRivers) and Instagram (@americanrivers) using the hashtag #MemoryFlows.

Good news is a little hard to find these days, but here’s a success story that’s worth celebrating: The Delaware River is the River of the Year for 2020.

Learn more about the communities along the Delaware and their relationships with the river here.

American Rivers gave the Delaware this honor to recognize its momentous progress for water quality, river restoration and community revitalization.

“The Delaware River is a national success story,” said Bob Irvin, President and CEO of American Rivers. “The River of the Year honor recognizes the hard work of many local advocates who understand that a healthy Delaware River is vital to the health of millions of people.”

This is a river that touches the lives of so many. Fifteen million people get their drinking water from the Delaware River. If you live in New York City, Philadelphia, Trenton or Wilmington – you’re drinking the Delaware. The river is also home to one of the largest freshwater ports in the world, and the river contributes billions of dollars to the economy every year from water supply, recreation, tourism and other benefits.

The river has come a long way. Seventy-five years ago, it was choked with pollution and sewage. Parts of the river were dead zones, unable to support fish or other aquatic life. According to the Delaware River Basin Commission, “The river’s water was so foul that it would turn the paint of ships brown as they traveled through or were docked for any period of time. People were sickened simply by the smell of the river.”

Fast forward to today. The Delaware River is on the mend and thriving. The quality of water in the Delaware has dramatically improved, fish and wildlife have returned in tremendous numbers, and the mainstem of the Delaware remains the longest free-flowing river in the eastern U.S., with the most extensive National Wild and Scenic River protection of any watershed in the country.

How did the river make such a dramatic comeback? American Rivers identified four key factors responsible for the Delaware River’s rebound:

1. Federal, regional and state enforcement of clean water safeguards
2. Innovative local water management, prioritizing natural infrastructure and equity
3. State collaboration to ensure adequate water supplies
4. Federal protections for the free-flowing river

Key to this success are the countless local individuals and groups who have worked for decades on the river’s behalf. The progress on the Delaware illustrates the power of partnership and collaboration.

And the good news continues. Just last week, New Jersey finalized new protections for 600 miles of waterways, thanks to advocacy by the many partners of the Delaware River Watershed Initiative and the Coalition for the Delaware River Watershed.

The Delaware River can be an inspiration for other communities across the country.

“The Delaware shows how a healthy river can be an engine for thriving communities,” Irvin says.

How can a city protect its river, its greatest natural asset? How can we prioritize equity in river conservation efforts? How does clean water contribute to a strong economy? How can a healthy river be a source of strength and opportunity for all?

Read more about the secret to the Delaware River’s success, and learn how we can keep the positive momentum going, here.

“We must use these lessons to ensure healthy rivers, equitable access and clean water in cities nationwide,” says Irvin.

Last year’s River of the Year honor went to Ohio’s Cuyahoga River, recognizing the progress that has been made to clean up the river, and marking the 50^th anniversary of the river catching fire that sparked the nation’s environmental movement.

American Rivers made the River of the Year announcement in conjunction with the release of America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2020. The annual list spotlights ten rivers facing urgent threats. See: AmericanRivers.org/EndangeredRivers

As the novel coronavirus upends our economy, our communities and our daily lives, do America’s Most Endangered Rivers of 2020 matter?

Today, American Rivers releases its list of America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2020.  This is our annual list of ten rivers under threat that all Americans can take action to protect. And it’s our most popular campaign, generating hundreds of news stories, thousands of visits to our website and – most importantly – tens of thousands of citizen actions to save rivers every year.  The success of the list is evident to anyone who has recently visited the Hoback River in Wyoming, the Elwha in Washington, the Buffalo in Arkansas, the Holston in Tennessee, or any one of dozens of rivers across the country that were spared from existential threat by actions rallied by the America’s Most Endangered Rivers list.  But it’s fair to ask, as the novel coronavirus inflicts personal tragedy, economic hardship and unprecedented societal damage across the country, does the list matter in 2020? 

American Rivers believes that we need clean water and healthy rivers more than ever now. Rivers provide the clean water that is absolutely vital to combat infectious disease; they keep our bodies hydrated, our hands and surfaces at home and in the workplace clean and disinfected.  In a time of social distancing and the lonely disconnection it fosters, rivers can provide solace and nourish the spirit, even if it’s only the daydream of a walk along the banks with a loved one, the perfect cast, or the ideal trim of a kayak.  Rivers and wetlands are home to wildlife and fish that bring joy to so many of us, whether you love the gleam of a trout’s scales, the goofiness of an otter’s play, or the chatter of a kingfisher as it looks for its next meal.  And while many of us are sheltering-in-place, others are still out there working, many on the rivers that continue to move our goods, treat our wastewater, generate our power, and feed our families.  We believe that life needs rivers, a conviction that is strengthened in a time when life seems more vulnerable than it did a few weeks ago.  We believe rivers connect us, and that connection is more important than ever.

Furthermore, American Rivers believes that we cannot rest even for a season in the battle against climate change.  The first river on our 2020 list, the Upper Mississippi, was ravaged last year by flooding exacerbated by climate change.  River cities and towns and local farmers barely recovered from last year’s floods are bracing for another onslaught in 2020.  Traditional community responses to flooding – volunteers rushing to build barriers against the rising water – will be undermined as people quarantined in their homes to combat the coronavirus are forced to choose between public health and public safety.   But it doesn’t have to be this way.  Bold and ambitious solutions that will help secure Upper Mississippi communities from devastating floods are at hand, and you can help make them a reality. 

Because above all, America’s Most Endangered Rivers of 2020 is about solutions.  It highlights threatened rivers and provides the public with an opportunity to take concrete action to create a better future.  And in this most endangered year, when it’s easy to feel powerless in the face of a global pandemic, a little action-taking may be just what we need right now.  So, let’s get to it.

America’s Most Endangered Rivers of 2020:

1. Upper Mississippi River (Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin)
2. Lower Missouri River (Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas)
3. Big Sunflower River Mississippi)
4. Puyallup River (Washington)
5. South Fork Salmon River (Idaho)
6. Menominee River (Michigan, Wisconsin)
7. Rapid Creek (South Dakota)
8. Okefenokee Swamp (Georgia, Florida)
9. Ocklawaha River (Florida)
10. Lower Youghiogheny River (Pennsylvania)

The rivers on America’s Most Endangered Rivers of 2020 were selected based on 1) the significance of each river to people and wildlife, nationally or regionally; 2) the magnitude of the threat to the river; and 3) an impending decision about the river’s fate that the public (you) has an opportunity to influence over the next twelve months. 

• There is no environmental threat of greater magnitude today than climate change, the key factor affecting the fates of the Upper Mississippi, the Missouri, and the Big Sunflower, the number one, two, and three rivers on the 2020 list.
• The Puyallup is menaced by a salmon-killing dam that threatens not only the fish but the cultural heritage of local Native American tribes.
• The South Fork Salmon, Menominee and Rapid Creek rivers and the Okefenokee Swamp are endangered by another all too common scourge to rivers: mining and the habitat destruction and pollution that comes with it.
• The Ocklawaha River has been trapped and devastated by a dam built 50 years ago for a canal project that was never completed.
• The Lower Youghiogheny is overrun by natural gas development, including fracking wells, tanks, pipelines, freshwater pump operations and other infrastructure.

In each case there is a solution, a course of action that will save the river and benefit the local communities that depend on it.  With your help, those solutions can be realized.  Learn more about our Most Endangered Rivers list of 2020 and take action today! 

Stay healthy.  Stay Safe.  And stay involved!

P.S.  And while you’re learning more about our Most Endangered Rivers of 2020, don’t forget to check out our featured River of the Year for 2020, the Delaware River, a dramatic comeback story of a horribly polluted river brought back to vibrant life by federal protection and community action.

This blog was written in partnership with Harpeth Conservancy to highlight all of the work they have accomplished over the past five years, since the Harpeth River’s designation as number 9 on America’s Most Endangered Rivers list of 2015. 

To many people, the Harpeth River is yet another river they have never heard of, but to me the Harpeth River is home. Growing up in Kingston Springs, TN I have spent the last 19 years of my life floating, fishing, swimming, and loving the Harpeth. Some of my fondest memories have occurred on its banks. And I’m not alone.

For years, thousands of people in the greater Nashville area have spent countless hours recreating on the Harpeth, but most of them have never even realized the free-flowing river was one of America’s Most Endangered Rivers in 2015. 

Tennessee’s Scenic River was ranked number nine on the MER list due to pressure from infrastructure expansion from one of the fastest growing metro areas in the country. 

The Harpeth’s 2015 MER listing was in partnership with the Harpeth River Watershed Association — now known as Harpeth Conservancy. Dorie Bolze, the President and CEO of Harpeth Conservancy, became involved with the organization shortly after it was founded to help monitor and improve conditions in the Harpeth.  Bolze brings 35 years of work experience in the field of water quality science and policy, conservation policy and biology related to wildlife conservation. “A variety of issues can negatively impact water quality including sewer and drinking water treatment plants, agriculture, development, and infrastructure expansion.  These all need to strike a balance while also ensuring a clean and healthy river for citizens to enjoy,” Bolze said.

When the organization started 20 years ago, the Harpeth River did not have a nutrient TMDL (“Total Maximum Daily Load”) set in place — a pollution plan that sets a maximum amount of pollutant a body of water can receive while still meeting state water quality standards. “A lot of people were noticing poor water quality, bad smell, the river being so sluggish, especially in the Williamson County area,” Bolze said in relation to how excessive withdrawals of water and high  nutrient pollution can lead to algae growth and poor water quality, particularly during the hot dry summer months. At the time of the MER listing, the Harpeth River’s water quality was impaired by excessive nutrients — such as phosphorus — that feed toxic algae growth which can cause dangerous conditions for wildlife and public health. 

According to Harpeth Conservancy’s Watershed Science and Restoration Program Director, Ryan Jackwood, Ph.D., “The Harpeth has a number of uses including  fishing, drinking, and recreation.” The lack of cleanliness was “affecting everybody that lives or visits that area,” Dr. Jackwood said. “[The water treatment plants] were sucking too much water during the dry summer months causing the river to have very little or almost no flow at all. I’m sure you can imagine how difficult it would be for aquatic life to survive when the river has very little water.”

The Harpeth is home to rich freshwater biodiversity, including more than 80 species of fish and 30 species of mussels, while flowing 125 miles to meet the Cumberland River: the drinking water source for tens of thousands of people in three different counties in middle Tennessee. 

“[The river’s cleanliness impact] is direct and indirect. The trick is that some of it is not obvious,” said Bolze. “The real challenge is trying to help people understand what to look for, so they know when something is a risky situation or an overall healthy situation.”

The good news is that American River’s listing of the Harpeth on the Most Endangered Rivers list of 2015 did just that. 

Bolze recalls the exact moment in 2015 when the Harpeth River was announced as one of America’s Most Endangered Rivers. Harpeth Conservancy was meeting with the City of Franklin that morning to negotiate a final permit over the excessive water withdrawal from the river: 

The story of the [MER] announcement hit the cover of The Tennessean, Nashville’s newspaper, the morning of a big meeting to finalize the permit that manages the city’s drinking water plant withdrawals from the Harpeth.  That listing and the national press attention was enormous and highlighted the importance of the river and its value to the region. At the meeting, everyone agreed the Harpeth needed a new pollution reduction plan.  That went a long way to support our work, especially efforts to improve operations of the 3 sewer plants along the Harpeth and to reduce nutrient pollution, particularly from the City of Franklin’s sewer treatment plant.

The Harpeth MER listing came while Harpeth Conservancy was in the midst of a citizen suit under the federal Clean Water Act with the City of Franklin, related to excess nutrient pollution being discharged in the Harpeth River from their sewer treatment. Harpeth Conservancy raised a number of issues in that action, including repeated sewer overflows and Franklin’s failure to submit a nutrient optimization report as required by the discharge permit for the plant. Harpeth Conservancy successfully settled that case, resulting in a number of improvements in the operations of the Franklin sewer plant and brought about the expansion of the sewer plant that is currently underway which will reduce nutrient discharge dramatically. This legal action forced the City of Franklin to meet important nutrient pollution reductions, which, according to Bolze, would not have been possible without the MER designation.

Since the City of Franklin started operating using their new nutrient reduction strategies, the current sewer treatment plant has reduced the amount of phosphorus entering the Harpeth River. The new discharge permit and MER designation were instrumental in this reduction, which has decreased levels by 30%. 

One of the non-physical, but arguably most important, impacts of Harpeth’s MER designation was getting more local citizens and Tennesseans to genuinely care about environmental improvement. Before the listing, a lot of people found themselves wondering “Why should I dedicate time or money on this?” 

“The MER listing really helped us answer that question by having a nationally recognized organization that’s saying it’s an endangered river, and why it’s so great, and why we should really work to protect it,” said Dr. Jackwood. 

The key word here is “we.” 

The designation of Tennessee’s Scenic Harpeth River as a Most Endangered River in 2015 really brought together all of the surrounding communities. They began to recognize that the river connects them all, and every one had a role to play in protecting the river’s health. It was a collaborative effort. 

Harpeth Conservancy is currently working with the EPA and other local organizations on a pollution reduction plan that can be modeled for all rivers across the state. “Our efforts in the Harpeth  are meant to show a typical river, and the way you solve its problems are very typical: you pull your communities together,” said Bolze. 

“We don’t have the answers yet, but having that [MER] designation made all of that possible. We’re not done yet. The river is not officially restored,” Bolze said. According to their website, Harpeth Conservancy is confident that the Harpeth could be the first river basin in the state to recover and get a clean bill of health.

Join us for Episode 24 of We Are Rivers, as we de-wonk Colorado’s instream flow program, a critical tool to protect and enhance river flows across the state of Colorado. 

Rivers form the lifelines of Colorado’s economy and lifestyle. On both sides of the Continental Divide, rivers provide world class fishing, paddling and fantastic scenic canyons. Not only do rivers provide engaging recreation opportunities, they also provide most of Colorado’s clean, safe, reliable drinking water, support our thriving agricultural communities, and substantially contribute to Colorado’s culture, heritage, and economy. 

Recognizing the importance of rivers and the fact that the state needed to correlate the demands humans place on rivers with the reasonable preservation of the natural environment, Colorado established its Instream Flow Program in 1973. This program allows the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) to hold instream flow water rights – a legal mechanism to keep water in a specific reach of a river – to preserve or improve the natural environment of a stream or lake. The CWCB is responsible for the appropriation, acquisition, protection and monitoring of instream flow water rights. 

The CWCB is the only entity in the state that can hold an instream flow water right, however many different entities including cities, agriculture, recreation and the environment benefit from instream flow water rights. In this episode of We Are Rivers, we explore the benefits of the program and discuss the important partnerships and collaborations that occur between different water users. 

Take for example the City of Steamboat Springs. The 2002 and 2012 droughts significantly reduced flows in the Yampa River, impacting all water users. In 2002, the river experienced some of its lowest flows on record. River sports shops closed their doors, there was a voluntary ban on angling, and farmers and ranchers had less water. The river and the community suffered. Flash forward to 2012, and the community faced similar drought conditions. But partners got creative, and used the instream flow program to bolster flows in the Yampa River, preventing history from repeating itself. This partnership included the CWCB, Colorado Water Trust, and Upper Yampa Water Conservancy District. Together, they temporarily leased water from Stagecoach Reservoir, improving flows in the Yampa through the City of Steamboat. The short-term leases from Stagecoach Reservoir were vital to the health of the Yampa River and its surrounding communities, and were used not only in 2012, but also 2013 and 2017. This is just one example of how a diverse set of partners came together and utilized the instream flow program for many benefits. 

The instream flow program underwent an exciting expansion earlier this year that will provide more opportunities for communities to benefit from collaborative instream flow solutions. After a multi-year stakeholder effort, the Colorado Legislature passed a bill to expand Colorado’s existing instream flow loan program – HB20-1157. The law expands protection of rivers without threatening or hindering existing water rights. It authorizes a targeted expansion of the loan program that makes the program more useful to water right owners and benefits Colorado’s rivers and streams. Specifically, it adjusts the amount of time a user can exercise a renewable loan from 3 years out of 10, to 5 years out of 10 years and it allows water right owners to renew participation in the program for up to two additional 10-year periods, for a total of 30 years. This is a huge opportunity for rivers and communities: take, for example, the benefit this provides to the Yampa River. The partners working together to secure the 3 in 10 instream flow loan on the Yampa through the city of Steamboat Springs now have two additional years in this 10-year period where water can be leased under the expanded program. Future climate conditions make frequent droughts more likely, and the opportunity to curb impacts during those back-to-back drought years is another important and timely benefit of the expanded ISF program. 

The complexity of Colorado Water Law is a lot to digest, and the instream flow program is no exception. We hope you join us for Episode 24 to break down the specifics of the instream flow program and what it means for rivers and communities. Take a listen today! 

In 2019 American Rivers listed Washington’s Green-Duwamish River as one of America’s Most Endangered Rivers® based on the need to increase critical salmon habitat and sustainable flood management. One year later, we’re celebrating a major shift by the King County Flood Control District that will strengthen the District’s investments in salmon habitat, Southern Resident orca recovery, and other environmental benefits. This shift represents a commitment to restoring the Green-Duwamish and the salmon that are keystone species for the Puget Sound.

The River

The Green-Duwamish River was once one of the largest salmon producing rivers in the Puget Sound. Now, decades of development have replaced complex habitat with levees and urban sprawl, leaving salmon populations endangered and residents cut off from their greatest natural resources.

In the summer of 2019, American Rivers made a short documentary with Google Earth to bring awareness to the plight of this endangered river.

To access the lower river, we had to navigate a maze of suburban office parks and carefully maneuver down steep banks to find a small beach. The levees in the lower Green create a kind of artificial canyon devoid of life and unknown to those that aren’t intimately familiar with it. It is an eerie feeling to slowly paddle past man-made walls, now covered in invasive blackberry. There are none of the sounds present on a healthy river – no birds chirping or rustling in the willows and no sound of water flowing over riffles and logs. It feels claustrophobic. Also, there are not any marked access points to get out of the river in case of an emergency and all you see above are slivers of buildings and the slate grey sky.

This part of the river was not designed for recreation, and salmon were not considered when the river was straightened, and the levees went up. The communities in the lower Green grew up around the river but turned their back on it to make way for industry and the full cost of those decisions is just now being realized.

Flood Control

The need to restore salmon habitat on the Green-Duwamish must be balanced with the need to protect the citizens and businesses that are at risk of flooding – a risk that increases as climate change increases the frequency and intensity of flooding. The King County Flood Control District is responsible for flood protection on the Green-Duwamish. The District is tasked with the day to day maintenance and repairs to levees, acquiring properties most at risk of flood damage, and warning citizens when floods are imminent. The District is charged with planning future flood protection projects.

In 2018 the King County Flood Control District released a plan to add over 30 miles of new or improved levees to the Lower Green River that would exacerbate salmon declines. At the time, American Rivers was disappointed that the plan prioritized these outdated flood control measures over multi-benefit solutions- like levee setbacks- that would reduce flood risk, increase habitat and provide safe access to the river for thousands of residents – a good use of taxpayer dollars.

Due to the imminent threat this plan posed to salmon recovery efforts, American Rivers named the Green-Duwamish one of America’s Most Endangered Rivers of 2019. Over 500 public comments were sent directly to the King County Flood Control District, urging them to develop a more habitat friendly flood plan.

They listened.

A New Hope

In January of this year, Council Member Dave Upthegrove was elected as Chair of the Flood Control District. As a longtime champion of the environmental community, he pledged to oversee major reforms at the District that are critical to saving the Green-Duwamish including:

1. Strengthen the District’s commitment to habitat, salmon and Southern Resident orca recovery, and other environmental benefits.
2. Provide more opportunities for areas outside of major river corridors to benefit from the work of the district.

On March 10^th, the King County Flood Control District passed a new budget translating these goals into meaningful action. The new budget contains critical funding priorities, including:

• Double funding for salmon recovery – from $4.8M to $9.6M.
• Providing new ongoing funding to address urban streams, barriers to fish passage and coastal erosion throughout all parts of the County.
• Funding two immediate projects that provide essential fish habitat and enhanced flood protection.

King County has committed to invest an additional $6 billion in the next decade to unify efforts to protect clean water and habitat throughout the region. An additional $1 billion will also be invested over the next 50-years to provide fish passage at Howard Hanson Dam, clean historic contaminants in the Duwamish estuary and implement an environmentally friendly Lower Green River Corridor Flood Hazard Management Plan.

Aligning the Flood Control District’s work with these existing programs is essential to tackling King County’s most complex environmental problems and is a smart investment.

When I was floating the river last summer, I felt like a stranger trespassing through a land I didn’t belong. But the Green-Duwamish belongs to all of us and no one. No single issue can dictate the future of this river when so much depends on it. The recent decision by the King County Flood Control District gives me hope that a new era for this endangered river is coming and we can begin to resurrect our greatest natural resource – growing our economy, restoring our environment and creating a better home for all of us.

Read about the Green-Duwamish listing in America’s Most Endangered Rivers of 2019 here.

We have a tendency to think about the water in our cup as a direct product of the local, mainstem river we presume it came from. But drinking water’s journey is rarely that straight forward. Because beer and rivers go so well together, it might be more accurate to think about that cup of drinking water more like a pint of beer.

Your favorite IPA, for example, is a unique blend of water, hops, malt, and yeast. Or say you’re not much for beer: your favorite cocktail might include equal parts gin and tonic, with a splash of lime. Unless you’re a beer nerd, you probably don’t know the specific hop varieties or source of the yeast fermented for your brew; or the herbs infused in your gin of choice.

And unless you’re a river nerd, you may not know the intimate details of tributaries that make up a river—the unique sum of drops that coalesce in your cup. Most drinking water isn’t the product of one single stretch of river but, rather, the combination of tributaries that flow into rivers, the product of an entire watershed. 

Take the small, southwest Colorado town of Durango, for example. The Animas River (the River of Lost Souls) flows through town, providing some of the local communities’ drinking water and certainly of other communities downstream, while the Florida River (a tributary of the Animas River), provides most of the drinking water for Durango itself. Regardless, nearly all of the drinking water that pours from faucets in Durango is a unique blend of water filtered through high alpine meadows in the nearby Wilderness. Water that’s pumped from the Animas has its origins in mineral-laden streams from mining country near Silverton, CO, or snowmelt filtered through Ponderosa forests before cascading down Lime Creek, Hermosa Creek, and others, and converging with the mainstem.

Like a well-made brew, rivers are the sum of their lesser known but distinct and critical parts. And, as is often the case with small, important things, these distinct and lesser-known parts are most visible when they tarnish the whole.

***

During the summer of 2018, the 416 Fire burned over 50,000 acres of the Hermosa drainage on the outskirts of Durango. The fire remarkably and fortunately did not damage any structures or take any human lives (thank you, firefighters!) and it provided ecological benefits to the fire-starved landscape it burned through.

Flames settled in mid-July and scorched soil smoked as welcome monsoons poured down over the mosaic burn scar. On July 16, a particularly heavy rain sent a torrent of dark, thick debris pulsing down Hermosa Creek. The sludgy, ash-ridden flow joined the mainstem of the Animas River and, as it moved downstream, killed nearly 80% of the trout population.

This kind of impact from flows on a tributary to a mainstem river isn’t altogether abnormal. Even without humans, tributaries of rivers like the Animas are often impacted by something like post-burn flows. Add humans to the landscape, and tributaries to the Animas (like many other rivers) are impacted by pollution from mining, nutrients from agricultural runoff or human waste, or other sources of pollution.

Before the 416 Fire, Hermosa Creek provided a critical burst of clean water to the main stem of the Animas, bolstering aquatic life and improving the overall water quality in the river. During the post-burn flooding and consequent muddying of the river, nearby tributaries like Junction and Falls Creek provided critical safe havens for fish populations.

In this way, tributaries work together as a system that, when healthy, provides clean water, critical habitat, and consistent flows.  It’s important to state here that the very influx of sediment, like from the post-fire Hermosa Creek, can be beneficial for rivers in the long run and are, in fact, part of the vital role tributaries play in providing nutrients to their connected rivers. This is especially evident for dam-impacted rivers that don’t receive a natural flush of nutrients during spring flows.

Consider another example: the Paria River in southern Utah. The sandy bottom and steep canyon walls usher much-needed sediment to the mainstem Colorado River in Arizona. In the post-dam era on the Colorado River, these inputs from the Paria are critical to the formation of sandbars and other habitat for riparian vegetation and wildlife habitat throughout the Grand Canyon.

But the Paria is ephemeral. And Hermosa Creek is small.

These qualities make both the Paria River and Hermosa Creek vulnerable under the Trump administration’s latest rollback of key clean water protections. In the wake of dangerous roll-backs of environmental policies—roughly 95 since his inauguration—the administration’s recent assault on clean water protections for small tributaries, wetlands, and ephemeral streams is particularly troublesome. According to a recent LA Times article, over 80% of Southwest streams would lose protections that help protect critical drinking water. In New Mexico, that number is closer to 96%.

These and other threats to critical headwater meadows, creeks and streams bring the need to view rivers on a watershed scale into sharp focus.

That’s why American Rivers is working  across the country and in the halls of Congress to protect important legislation like the National Environmental Protection Act and the Clean Water Act that reinforce the value of small, lesser known tributaries and meadows—taking a watershed approach, let’s call it a whole-brew approach, to the health of rivers, and to the clarity and safety of the water in your cup.

Life as we know it has shifted. COVID-19 has dominated our news stations, our Facebook timelines, and even our thoughts. The impact of COVID-19 is cross cutting. This global pandemic crosses race, socioeconomic status, geography and religion. No individual is immune to the harmful health implications. On the other hand, the degree to which we feel the impact of COVID-19 does vary. During perilous times, our most vulnerable communities suffer first, and worst. 

While health officials encourage hand-washing to contain the spread of COVID-19, there are homes in the U.S. without access to running water. According to this report, more than two million people in our country are living without running water, indoor plumbing or wastewater treatment.

When homes lack access to water, we place those families and entire communities at a higher health risk. The need for water for the sake of public health is undeniable. There is no better time than now for the federal government to demand water be restored to all homes and water shut offs be banned for the duration of this crisis. 

“It is our moral duty to ensure everyone has access to water to help prevent the spread of this virus.”

Too many low income and communities of color do not have access to water due to unaffordable bills. But access to water is critical to keeping people healthy and stopping the spread of the virus. Community-led frontline organizations have been amplifying this message. These local champions are galvanizing communities, policy-makers, and water utilities to take action. To afford each person the opportunity to protect themselves and their neighbors by fighting for access to water, our communities are rising to the challenge. 

Now, we need the federal government to support communities across the country as they organize to guarantee access to clean water for all. Read our joint policy statement by American Rivers and River Network.

Immediate Water Needs 

A national ban on water shut offs would allow everyone to practice basic hygiene and hand-washing that are vital to personal and public health. It would also help ensure people can prepare meals at home, as they abide by “shelter in place” rules. Restoration of water services is critical to providing water to those unable to afford their water services previous to the pandemic. Additionally, safe restoration of services should be communicated with residents to protect them from contaminated water. Immediate federal action to ensure these water needs will give us all a better chance as we work together to fight COVID-19. 

Moving Forward

Water’s connection to public health now is key due to COVID-19, but access to water will be an issue once we are past the crisis. Projections show that by 2022, one third of Americans will not be able to afford their monthly water bill. This is due to our nation’s aging water infrastructure. To address the rising cost of water, federal funding should be increased and sustained for water infrastructure replacement and maintenance, in particular for our most marginalized communities. 

As we endure this unprecedented crisis, our actions now will define our future. In our lifetime, public health and water may never be as intertwined as it is today. Medical professionals call on us to take responsibility for ourselves and our neighbors. 

We must answer this call and advocate for everyone to have a chance to protect themselves from contracting COVID-19. 

And that chance starts with water. 

To our American Rivers family,

All of you – our supporters, partners and friends – are in my thoughts during these challenging times. I wanted to let you know how our organization is adapting to keep ourselves and our communities safe, and how we are continuing our important work for rivers and clean water.

We closed our headquarters and field offices on March 13 and staff have been working from home. We cancelled all work travel and postponed National River Cleanup® events. We are moving forward with the release of our report, America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2020, on April 14, which will spotlight solutions for rivers and communities in the face of climate change.

I am grateful for the continued support of our dedicated members and donors. And, I am grateful for our staff, who continue to do an incredible job under difficult and unprecedented circumstances.

This pandemic is devastating families and communities nationwide. It is disrupting so many aspects of our lives. In the midst of the fear and uncertainty, I’ve been reflecting on the persistence of rivers. I recently came across this line by the poet Alex Dimitrov: “Time is a river. That river is always in motion. And motion is hope.”

We will get through this. Our work will continue. And when individuals and communities are ready to heal, their rivers will be there: a source of health, strength and opportunity.

A source of life.

I’ve always loved our tagline, Rivers Connect Us. In this time of social distancing, I’m feeling the power of that statement more than ever. Rivers connect us to each other, to the wonder of the natural world, and to our future.

American Rivers has been advancing solutions for healthy rivers and communities for nearly 50 years. And together with you, we will continue — doing everything in our power to make our shared future prosperous, beautiful and bright.

Bob

P.S. – To pass the time, and to fill your heart and mind with positive stories while you are staying home, watch one of our short films, listen to our We Are Rivers podcast, or – if you have kids at home — download our learning guide for parents and teachers.

It’s been three years since our nation’s tallest dam, Oroville Dam, partially failed, forcing downstream evacuations, environmental damage, and costly emergency repairs. In the wake of the main spillway failure, a host of environmental groups (including American Rivers), the public, and governmental agencies responded. The takeaway was clear: dam safety across the United States needs to be improved. As America’s infrastructure continues to age and faces new threats posed by our changing climate, we need to be more proactive about making updates to the structures we rely on for public safety and resources.

Aging Infrastructure, Changing Climate, Increased Risk

“70% of the nation’s dams are over 50 years old. [They were] built with the best engineering and construction standards at the time; however, as the scientific and engineering experience has increased, many dams are not able to safely accommodate our current prediction of large floods and earthquakes” (American Society of Civil Engineers). The dams in the US collectively earned a ‘D’ on the ASCE report card released in 2017 (you can view the report here). Dams were not individually ‘graded’ in the report card, but Oroville is one of 15,498 (17% of catalogued dams nationwide) that have been identified as high-hazard potential dams, meaning that they pose a significant threat to human life or property if they fail.   

Downstream Communities and Ecosystems

As the high-hazard grade would imply, this dam’s failure had serious ramifications for communities and ecosystems downstream. The Association of State Dam Safety Officials (ASDSO) stated that, “The Oroville Dam spillway incident was caused by a long-term systemic failure to recognize and address inherent spillway design and construction weaknesses, poor foundation bedrock quality, and deteriorated service spillway chute conditions.” It is now clear that the spillway was built on unstable bedrock (Independent Forensic Team Report Oroville Dam Spillway Incident) and as a result the concrete separating the bedrock and thousands of gallons of water per second rushing over the spillway was worn paper-thin over its years of use. This resulted in the concrete coming off the hillside in large chunks as the water eroded it away. Meanwhile, the emergency spillway’s efficacy had never been tested, so when it was forced into use, it too eroded the hillside. The Department of Water Resources (DWR) was left with no choice but to order the evacuation of the three counties (188,000 people) that would be impacted in the case of a complete dam failure.

The spillway failure in 2017 was more than a scare, it had negative impacts on downstream communities, ecosystems, and the dam owners; the evacuation displaced thousands of people, negatively impacted the ecosystem by washing tons of sediment downstream, and cost DWR over $1 billion to repair (which does not include the economic impacts on the community). Salmon and steelhead fisheries were already impacted by the construction of the dam, which blocked them from reaching their natal spawning grounds. After the spillway failure, sediment from the hillside choked out miles of habitat and anything living there.

Updating Infrastructure in the Face of Climate Change

Since February 2017, DWR has completed the reconstruction of the main spillway so its foundation is better anchored into the bedrock, reinforced the emergency spillway with concrete (though it still is not safe to rely on that spillway regularly), among other projects. Oroville Dam is looking stronger, but there’s still a lot of work that needs to be done to reduce its public safety risk. It is not alone: thousands of dams need to be dramatically updated or run the risk of failure.

Updating our infrastructure is important, but it’s critical that it’s done in a way that is relevant to the context we live in: a changing and increasingly variable climate. More extreme weather events such as floods or drought have become commonplace. These climatic variations put increased strain on the infrastructure in terms of ability to function during extreme weather events (i.e. hydroelectric power generation during droughts and ability to safely store water in a Probable Maximum Flood). Even since DWR reconstructed both spillways on Oroville Dam, the release capability still falls short of the standard for a Probable Maximum Flood situation, putting the dam and the people and ecosystem downstream at risk (Independent Forensic Team Report).

A New Approach to Dam Safety

The bad ASCE report card grade proves that we need to be proactive about monitoring dams to avoid disasters like what happened in 2017, especially when the environment in which they exist is changing as well. At the same time, dam safety departments nationwide are insufficiently funded and staffed and cannot keep up with thousands of dam inspections that need to happen annually. To alleviate some of the pressure on under-resourced agencies, some states are now requiring private dam owners to either pay for their inspections through annual fees or directly hire qualified engineers to complete inspections and submit inspection reports to the states. These approaches dramatically increase the capacity of dam safety offices and hold owners accountable, therefore increasing the overall safety of dams.

American Rivers is a leader in creating innovative solutions for water storage. For dams whose impacts exceed their benefits, American Rivers has long advocated that the most effective approach to dam safety is dam removal.