Media Items Archive

Mining threatens clean water, salmon for second year in a row

Contact:

Mike Fiebig, American Rivers, (406) 600-4061

Kevin Lewis, Idaho Rivers United, (208) 343-7481

Evan Stafford, American Whitewater, (970) 420-5377

Washington, D.C. – For the second year in a row, American Rivers named the South Fork of the Salmon River among America’s Most Endangered Rivers®, citing the threat expanded open-pit gold mining in the area would pose to water quality and river health. American Rivers and its partners called on the U.S. Forest Service to protect the South Fork of the Salmon for future generations by denying the proposal for the Stibnite Gold Mine at the river’s headwaters.

“The America’s Most Endangered Rivers report is a call to action to save rivers that face a critical decision in the coming year,” said Mike Fiebig with American Rivers. “The South Fork Salmon still boasts clear, free-flowing waters, and feeds the beloved Wild and Scenic Main Salmon downstream. It’s time for the U.S. Forest Service to put an end once and for all to toxic mining near this treasured river.”

The South Fork of the Salmon is a major tributary to the Wild and Scenic Salmon River— the second longest free-flowing river in the lower 48 states. The Nez Perce, Shoshone-Bannock and Shoshone-Paiute tribes have used the river for fishing and hunting for generations. In addition to providing critical habitat for endangered chinook salmon and steelhead and threatened bull trout, the South Fork of the Salmon boasts some of the state’s best expert-level whitewater. The river has been found eligible and suitable for Wild and Scenic protection by the U.S. Forest Service.

Gold and antimony mining began at the Stibnite site in the late 1800s. Since then, levels of arsenic, mercury, cyanide and antimony in the surrounding creeks and rivers have been high. After decades and $13 million spent to restore and reclaim legacy tailing and waste rock piles, heavy metals are on the decline.

A Canadian mining company has proposed reopening and expanding the open-pit mine. If allowed to proceed, the Stibnite Mine would unearth more arsenic, mercury and antimony that, through natural processes and potential accidents and spills, would deposit directly or indirectly into the South Fork of the Salmon River. Contaminated water will directly affect the fisheries, recreation economy and cultural importance of South Fork waters.

“The South Fork Salmon is an ecological and recreational gem for Idahoans and citizens from across America,” said Kevin Lewis, Executive Director at Idaho Rivers United. “Corporate profits from large-scale mining operations should not take priority over the many societal values already provided by a healthy Salmon River. The failures of the mining industry weigh heavily on rivers across this nation – we can ill afford to add the South Fork Salmon to that list.”

“There’s no doubt that the South Fork Salmon River provides some of the most quality whitewater recreation in the United States. The clean, crisp and crystal-clear water of the South Fork is one of its greatest allures, and combined with its quintessential Idaho rapids, the river draws paddlers from across the world,” said Evan Stafford, Communications Director at American Whitewater. “With numerous excellent roadside stretches and one of the West’s most classic multi-day self-support trips, excellent camping and nearby hot springs, it’s a destination on many paddlers’ bucket lists and a place that deserves to be protected.”

“Mining operations are inherently toxic for rivers,” said Fiebig. “State and federal agencies have worked hard to improve the water quality in this river, and it makes no sense to backtrack. Reopening this mine would have catastrophic repercussions not only for the South Fork of the Salmon River, but also the downstream communities that depend on a healthy Salmon River system for jobs, livelihoods and cultural heritage.”

In August 2019, the Payette National Forest will release a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) on Midas Gold’s proposed project, followed by a public comment period. American Rivers and its partners called on the U.S. Forest Service to protect the health of, and investment in, the South Fork of the Salmon River, the water quality of the Wild and Scenic Salmon River, and the long-term recovery of endangered fish by prohibiting the reopening and expansion of the Stibnite Mine.

The annual America’s Most Endangered Rivers report is a list of rivers at a crossroads, where key decisions in the coming months will determine the rivers’ fates. Over the years, the report has helped spur many successes including the removal of outdated dams, the protection of rivers with Wild and Scenic designations, and the prevention of harmful development and pollution.

Other rivers in the region listed as most endangered in past years include the South Fork of the Salmon River (2018), Middle Fork Flathead River (2017), Smith River (2015, 2016, & 2018), and the Clearwater and Lochsa rivers (2014).

America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019

#1 Gila River, New Mexico
Gov. Grisham must choose a healthier, more cost-effective way to provide water to agriculture than by drying up the state’s last major free-flowing river.

#2 Hudson River, New York

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must consider effective, nature-based alternatives to storm-surge barriers that would choke off this biologically rich tidal estuary.

#3 Upper Mississippi River, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri

State and federal agencies must enforce laws that prohibit illegal levees, which increase flood risk for communities and degrade vital fish and wildlife habitat.

#4 Green-Duwamish River, Washington

Local leaders must produce a flood protection plan that safeguards communities and restores habitat for chinook salmon — fish that are essential to the diet of Puget Sound’s endangered orca whales.

#5 Willamette River, Oregon

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must immediately improve 13 dams to save wild chinook salmon and steelhead from going extinct.

#6 Chilkat River, Alaska

The Japanese investment firm, DOWA, must do the responsible thing and back out of a mining project that could decimate native salmon.

#7 South Fork Salmon River, Idaho

The U.S. Forest Service must safeguard endangered fish by denying a mining proposal that could pollute this tributary of the Wild and Scenic Salmon River.

#8 Buffalo National River, Arkansas

Gov. Hutchinson must demand closure of an industrial hog-farming facility that pollutes groundwater and threatens endangered species.

#9 Big Darby Creek, Ohio

Local leaders must use state-of-the-art science to craft a responsible development plan that protects this pristine stream.

#10 Stikine River, Alaska

The International Joint Commission of the United States and Canada must protect the river’s clean water, fish and wildlife, and indigenous communities by stopping harmful, polluting mines.

2019’s “River of the Year”: Cuyahoga River, Ohio

American Rivers celebrates the progress Cleveland has made in cleaning up the Cuyahoga River, fifty years since the river’s famous fire that sparked the nation’s environmental movement.

ABOUT AMERICAN RIVERS

American Rivers believes every community in our country should have clean water and a healthy river. Since 1973, we have been protecting wild rivers, restoring damaged rivers and conserving clean water for people and nature. With headquarters in Washington, D.C., and offices across the country, we are the most effective river conservation organization in the United States, delivering solutions that will last for generations to come. Connect with us at AmericanRivers.org.

Mining threatens salmon, culture and economy

Contact:

Jessie Thomas-Blate, American Rivers, (202) 347-7550

Dr. Gershon Cohen, Alaska Clean Water Advocacy, (907) 314-0228

Washington, D.C. – American Rivers today named the Chilkat River among America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019, citing the grave threat that mining poses to the river’s salmon, culture and economy. American Rivers and its partners called on the Japanese investment firm DOWA to back out of this harmful mining project.

“The America’s Most Endangered Rivers report is a call to action to save rivers that face a critical decision in the coming year,” said Jessie Thomas-Blate with American Rivers. “Now is the time to stop this mining project that could devastate the Chilkat River and an entire way of life.”

A Canadian-based company, Constantine Metals Resources, is securing permits to develop a copper-zinc mine just outside the Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve and the Tlingit Village of Klukwan. The deposit, known as the Palmer Project, would be a stone’s throw from the Klehini River, one of the Chilkat’s main tributaries. Based on experiences at similar mines, the extraction of copper-zinc-silver-gold-barite ore will likely generate sulfuric acid, which will mobilize heavy metals from mine waste and surface deposits. Given the high levels of rain and snowfall every year in the Chilkat Valley, it is inevitable that metals toxic to salmon will migrate into groundwater and surface waters. To make matters worse, the region is on a major seismic fault and experiences significant earthquakes on a regular basis; several of the largest earthquakes ever recorded were centered within a short distance of the Chilkat Valley. Any storage facility for millions of gallons of contaminated tailings and wastewater would be under constant threat of catastrophic failure.

A Japanese minerals investment firm, DOWA Holdings Company, has been backing the effort to develop this prospect for the past eight years. American Rivers and its partners called on the company to cancel their support for the Palmer Project and leave the Chilkat River and its salmon, eagles, bears and people intact for generations to come.

“The people of Klukwan— in Tlingit, the “Eternal Village”— have been stewards of the Chilkat River watershed for at least 2,000 years. Jilkaat (Chilkat) means a winter storage place for salmon. The Chilkat Indian Village is doing everything in its power to continue that stewardship today for our future generations, no matter what threats are presented,” said Kimberley Strong, Tribal President of the Chilkat Indian Village-Klukwan. “This river is our life. It is our food bowl. Its abundance is how our ancestors survived here for thousands of years; it is what still sustains us today. The public needs to know what the impacts of Constantine’s potential mine could be today, not tomorrow. Our future survival depends on the river’s health.”

“I’ve been a commercial fisherman in Haines for over 40 years. History tells us that when you put mines and salmon in the same place at the same time, the fish lose,” said J.R. Churchill, commercial fisherman and founder of the Haines Fisherman’s Alliance. “This is simple for me, this is where I live. If you’re not going to fight for that, what are you going to stand up for?”

“Given the toxicity of copper to salmon and the entire region’s dependence on those salmon for our food, economy and culture, it is unconscionable to site a mine literally a few miles from the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve, the Tlingit Village of Klukwan and Haines. DOWA and Constantine Metals Resources are gambling a thousand years of our future for ten years of their profits. They should be ashamed to even propose such an idea,” said Dr. Gershon Cohen, local resident and project director at Alaska Clean Water Advocacy.

The river’s magnificent runs of king, sockeye, coho, pink and chum salmon attract the largest gathering of bald eagles in the world every fall in the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve. The Tlingits of the Chilkat Indian Village of Klukwan, who have lived along the Chilkat River for thousands of years, named the eagle gathering area on the Chilkat the “Council Grounds.” Klukwan is one of the longest continually inhabited places in North America. The Chilkat River’s salmon, eagles and bears are the cultural and economic backbone of the entire region. The value of the subsistence, sport and commercial harvests of salmon are rivaled in importance and economic impact only by the tens of thousands of tourists that come to the Chilkat River every year to fish, paddle rafts, kayaks and canoes, and photograph the river and its wildlife.

The annual America’s Most Endangered Rivers® report is a list of rivers at a crossroads, where key decisions in the coming months will determine the rivers’ fates. Over the years, the report has helped spur many successes including the removal of outdated dams, the protection of rivers with Wild and Scenic designations, and the prevention of harmful development and pollution.

This year, the Chilkat River is making its first appearance on this list. Other rivers in Alaska listed as most endangered in recent years include the Stikine River (2019), Rivers of Bristol Bay (2018, 2011) and Colville River (2018).

America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019

#1 Gila River, New Mexico
Gov. Grisham must choose a healthier, more cost-effective way to provide water to agriculture than by drying up the state’s last major free-flowing river.

#2 Hudson River, New York

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must consider effective, nature-based alternatives to storm-surge barriers that would choke off this biologically rich tidal estuary.

#3 Upper Mississippi River, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri

State and federal agencies must enforce laws that prohibit illegal levees, which increase flood risk for communities and degrade vital fish and wildlife habitat.

#4 Green-Duwamish River, Washington

#5 Willamette River, Oregon

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must immediately improve 13 dams to save wild chinook salmon and steelhead from going extinct.

#6 Chilkat River, Alaska

The Japanese investment firm, DOWA, must do the responsible thing and back out of a mining project that could decimate native salmon.

#7 South Fork Salmon River, Idaho

The U.S. Forest Service must safeguard endangered fish by denying a mining proposal that could pollute this tributary of the Wild and Scenic Salmon River.

#8 Buffalo National River, Arkansas

Gov. Hutchinson must demand closure of an industrial hog-farming facility that pollutes groundwater and threatens endangered species.

#9 Big Darby Creek, Ohio

Local leaders must use state-of-the-art science to craft a responsible development plan that protects this pristine stream.

#10 Stikine River, Alaska

The International Joint Commission of the United States and Canada must protect the river’s clean water, fish and wildlife, and indigenous communities by stopping harmful, polluting mines.

2019’s “River of the Year”: Cuyahoga River, Ohio

American Rivers celebrates the progress Cleveland has made in cleaning up the Cuyahoga River, fifty years since the river’s famous fire that sparked the nation’s environmental movement.

ABOUT AMERICAN RIVERS

Reckless development threatens clean water in National Scenic River

Contact:

Katie Rousseau, American Rivers, (419) 215-7748

John Tetzloff, Darby Creek Association, (614) 288-0313

David Miller, Ohio Environmental Council, (419) 944-1986

Washington, D.C. – American Rivers today named Ohio’s Big Darby Creek among America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019, citing the grave threat that urban sprawl poses to this National Scenic River’s clean water and wildlife. American Rivers and its partners called on Columbus, Plain City, West Jefferson, and Madison and Union Counties to produce a science-based development plan to inform how much, and what type, of development will be sustainable and protect Big Darby Creek for future generations.

“The America’s Most Endangered Rivers report is a call to action to save rivers that face a critical decision in the coming year,” said Katie Rousseau with American Rivers. “Unless local leaders prioritize protection of Big Darby Creek and its clean water, one of the Midwest’s most pristine streams will be irreparably damaged by reckless development.”

Some developers are attempting to bypass an agreement forged in 2006 (the Darby Accord) meant to protect sensitive natural areas and clean water from poorly planned development. Research shows that the health of streams starts to decline from impervious surface (such as roads, buildings and parking lots) at around five percent impervious cover. The level of building proposed near Big Darby Creek would put that region of the watershed well above that threshold.

“Big Darby Creek stands at a crossroads. An unprecedented push by developers into the very heart of the watershed threatens to unravel decades of preservation efforts by central Ohio communities. We must press pause until all jurisdictions can agree on a plan to limit development to a sustainable level,” said John Tetzloff, President of the Darby Creek Association.

“The Big Darby is one of Ohio’s most valued natural resources,” said Kristy Meyer, Vice President of Policy, Ohio Environmental Council. “It is a place of exploration, fishing, boating and wonder for kids and adults alike. Due to mounting development pressure, all of the experiences on Big Darby and the wildlife, including numerous rare and endangered mussels and fish, are under threat. We must do everything we can to preserve this special place in Ohio for our children and grandchildren.”

Big Darby Creek is unique in that it is a National Scenic River adjacent to a major metropolitan area. The creek provides an important recreational and natural area for the more than two million people living in the Columbus region. It offers some of the best canoeing and smallmouth bass fishing in the state. Big Darby is most valued for its aquatic biodiversity, which includes over 100 fish and 44 freshwater mussel species.

America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019

#1 Gila River, New Mexico
Gov. Grisham must choose a healthier, more cost-effective way to provide water to agriculture than by drying up the state’s last major free-flowing river.

#2 Hudson River, New York

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must consider effective, nature-based alternatives to storm-surge barriers that would choke off this biologically rich tidal estuary.

#3 Upper Mississippi River, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri

State and federal agencies must enforce laws that prohibit illegal levees, which increase flood risk for communities and degrade vital fish and wildlife habitat.

#4 Green-Duwamish River, Washington

#5 Willamette River, Oregon

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must immediately improve 13 dams to save wild chinook salmon and steelhead from going extinct.

#6 Chilkat River, Alaska

The Japanese investment firm, DOWA, must do the responsible thing and back out of a mining project that could decimate native salmon.

#7 South Fork Salmon River, Idaho

The U.S. Forest Service must safeguard endangered fish by denying a mining proposal that could pollute this tributary of the Wild and Scenic Salmon River.

#8 Buffalo National River, Arkansas

Gov. Hutchinson must demand closure of an industrial hog-farming facility that pollutes groundwater and threatens endangered species.

#9 Big Darby Creek, Ohio

Local leaders must use state-of-the-art science to craft a responsible development plan that protects this pristine stream.

#10 Stikine River, Alaska

The International Joint Commission of the United States and Canada must protect the river’s clean water, fish and wildlife, and indigenous communities by stopping harmful, polluting mines.

2019’s “River of the Year”: Cuyahoga River, Ohio

American Rivers celebrates the progress Cleveland has made in cleaning up the Cuyahoga River, fifty years since the river’s famous fire that sparked the nation’s environmental movement.

ABOUT AMERICAN RIVERS

Outdated dam operations threaten water quality, salmon and steelhead

Contact:

David Moryc, American Rivers, (503) 307-1137

Travis Williams, Willamette Riverkeeper, (503) 890-1683

Bob Rees, Willamette Salmon & Steelhead Recovery Coalition, Representing the Association of Northwest Steelheaders, (503) 812-9036

Washington, D.C. – American Rivers today named the Willamette River among America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019, citing the threat that outdated dam operations pose to water quality and the river’s imperiled salmon and steelhead runs. American Rivers and its partners called on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to update its dam operation plan, and Congress to fund the plan to improve flows, clean water and habitat.

“The America’s Most Endangered Rivers report is a call to action to save rivers that face a critical decision in the coming year,” said David Moryc with American Rivers. “Unless the Army Corps improves dam operations, the Willamette River’s wild chinook salmon and winter steelhead may be extirpated.”

What was once an estimated annual run of nearly 400,000 spring chinook up the Willamette has dwindled to a few thousand naturally reproducing fish. Last year, the winter steelhead run totaled 512 fish, and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife warns that the run is under imminent threat of extinction.

There are 25 major dams in the Willamette Basin, thirteen of which are operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. In key tributaries, access to up to 40 percent of winter steelhead and 90 percent of spring chinook historic spawning habitat is blocked by high head dams. A primary cause of salmon decline is inadequate downstream fish passage at dams on Willamette River tributaries. The federal government agreed in 2008 to make improvements to water quality and fish passage at the Army Corps dams, but little progress has been made.

American Rivers and its partners called on the Army Corps to act immediately to implement improvements at the dams, including changes in operation to produce more natural flows and improve fish passage. The agency must make structural modifications to the dams to facilitate downstream passage for juvenile salmon and continue to improve upstream passage for adult fish so that they can gain access to their historic spawning habitat. In addition, the groups urged Congress to ensure federal funding for improved dam operations.

“The U.S. Army Corps dams in the Willamette River system cause ongoing harm to native river species, especially spring chinook and winter steelhead, every day. It is time to end this reality in the Willamette River system and make fundamental improvements to these dams,” said Travis Williams, Riverkeeper & Executive Director of Willamette Riverkeeper.

“The Willamette River is the lifeblood of all Oregonians, once producing abundant returns of the world’s most sought-after salmon,” stated Bob Rees, campaign manager for the Association of Northwest Steelheaders. “Willamette spring chinook fuel sport and commercial fisheries from rural Oregon to the Gulf of Alaska, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is choking off this irreplaceable resource. The social and ecological value of these fish can’t be overstated. From the Oregon food bank to bears, eagles and baby salmon, this keystone species provides immeasurable benefit to the entire Pacific Northwest,” Rees concluded.

The Willamette River in Oregon flows 187 miles out of the Cascades and Coast Range Mountains to its confluence with the Columbia River in the city of Portland. The river has thirteen significant tributaries, including the Clackamas, Molalla, McKenzie, and North and South Santiam Rivers.

The Willamette River was previously included on this list in 2006. Other rivers in the region listed as most endangered in recent years include the Green-Duwamish (2019, 2016), South Fork of the Salmon River (2019 and 2018), South Fork Skykomish River (2017) and Green-Toutle River (2017).

America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019

#1 Gila River, New Mexico
Gov. Grisham must choose a healthier, more cost-effective way to provide water to agriculture than by drying up the state’s last major free-flowing river.

#2 Hudson River, New York

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must consider effective, nature-based alternatives to storm-surge barriers that would choke off this biologically rich tidal estuary.

#3 Upper Mississippi River, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri

State and federal agencies must enforce laws that prohibit illegal levees, which increase flood risk for communities and degrade vital fish and wildlife habitat.

#4 Green-Duwamish River, Washington

#5 Willamette River, Oregon

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must immediately improve 13 dams to save wild chinook salmon and steelhead from going extinct.

#6 Chilkat River, Alaska

The Japanese investment firm, DOWA, must do the responsible thing and back out of a mining project that could decimate native salmon.

#7 South Fork Salmon River, Idaho

The U.S. Forest Service must safeguard endangered fish by denying a mining proposal that could pollute this tributary of the Wild and Scenic Salmon River.

#8 Buffalo National River, Arkansas

Gov. Hutchinson must demand closure of an industrial hog-farming facility that pollutes groundwater and threatens endangered species.

#9 Big Darby Creek, Ohio

Local leaders must use state-of-the-art science to craft a responsible development plan that protects this pristine stream.

#10 Stikine River, Alaska

The International Joint Commission of the United States and Canada must protect the river’s clean water, fish and wildlife, and indigenous communities by stopping harmful, polluting mines.

2019’s “River of the Year”: Cuyahoga River, Ohio

American Rivers celebrates the progress Cleveland has made in cleaning up the Cuyahoga River, fifty years since the river’s famous fire that sparked the nation’s environmental movement.

ABOUT AMERICAN RIVERS

Storm surge flood barriers being considered by the Army Corps of Engineers in response to Hurricane Sandy, threaten river health

Contact:

Eileen Shader, American Rivers, (570) 856-1128

Leah Rae, Riverkeeper, (914) 478-4501 ext. 238

Washington, D.C. – American Rivers today named the Hudson River among America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019, citing the grave threat that the potential construction of storm-surge barriers could pose to this rich tidal estuary. American Rivers and its partners called on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to consider alternative solutions that address broader climate-related challenges – both storm surge and sea level rise – without harming the river.

“The America’s Most Endangered Rivers report is a call to action to save rivers that face a critical decision in the coming year,” said Eileen Shader with American Rivers. “Harming this iconic river with massive flood barriers doesn’t make sense when we should be identifying better, more cost-effective options to protect people and property, as well as river health.”

“We are already feeling the impacts of climate change in the Northeast, including storm-surge and sea-level rise, and it’s only going to get worse. We have an opportunity on the Hudson to demonstrate how protecting public safety and river health should go hand-in-hand in an era of climate change.”

“Abusing and degrading our rivers will make us more vulnerable to climate impacts. Protecting and restoring the river will make us better prepared to face future floods and safeguard communities,” Shader said.

Ever more extreme weather events and rising sea levels, the predicted impacts of climate change, are threatening cities and communities on the Atlantic Coast. In 2012, Hurricane Sandy devastated New York City and surrounding communities. The hurricane, and the storm-surge it brought with it, caused large-scale flooding and cost billions in damage. As a result, the Army Corps is studying options to build storm surge barriers— essentially massive sea walls with gates to separate the Hudson and New York harbor from the ocean. These walls, even with gates open, could act like dams, blocking fish and wildlife, including Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon, American shad, American eel, river herring and sea lamprey, from moving up- and downstream and restricting the natural flow of the river. Obstructed by barriers, sewage and other contaminants could flush into the ocean more slowly, increasing localized pollution in the Harbor. With inhibited tidal energy, higher nutrient levels could lead to more frequent algae blooms and lower dissolved oxygen that would impact the health of the estuary and upriver tidal marshes.

The gates of these massive in-water barriers would usually remain open for ships to pass, leaving communities vulnerable to flooding from sea level rise. In an era of changing climate, future major storms will undoubtedly overtop the offshore barriers, ending the limited protection they can provide. American Rivers and its partners called on the Army Corps of Engineers to develop a comprehensive, adaptable plan that includes a full suite of management approaches to reduce the impacts of rising floods, including natural infrastructure that restores natural features like floodplains, wetlands, barrier islands, and oyster reefs; nonstructural approaches that relocate, floodproof and elevate buildings and infrastructure; and where necessary, land-based approaches to protect buildings and infrastructure that cannot be relocated.

“For the Hudson, the stakes in this decision cannot be overstated. These storm barriers pose a truly existential threat to the Hudson. We cannot – must not – allow these barriers to be built. The twice-daily tides are the essential respiration and the heartbeat of this living ecosystem. The mouth of the river must remain open and unrestricted, as it has been for millennia,” said John Lipscomb, Riverkeeper Patrol Boat Captain and Vice President of Advocacy. “The Hudson has never faced a threat even close to this magnitude.”

“In-water storm surge barriers, despite costing endless billions, would not do a thing to protect against the daily flooding that would come with sea level rise – only against storms. They are only half a solution, and yet they threaten to cause permanent, catastrophic harm to the river. How do we protect against coastal flooding? Riverkeeper and our allies are demanding comprehensive, science-based, land-based solutions that will not harm the river.”

“The entire Hudson Raritan Estuary is put at risk by these shortsighted resiliency plans that threaten to block the tidal flow and fish migrations in our waterways,” NY/NJ Baykeeper Greg Remaud said. “The in-water barriers being considered by the Army Corps threaten the ecological, economic and recreational viability of the waters surrounding New York – New Jersey Harbor. The harborwide, in-water barriers under consideration will suffocate our regional waterways, including the Raritan, Passaic and Hackensack rivers in New Jersey, the Hudson, the Meadowlands and Jamaica Bay.”

“Other communities and waterways along the East Coast, and worldwide, may soon face harmful proposals like these, and we all need to be informed, vigilant and engaged,” said Marc Yaggi, Executive Director of Waterkeeper Alliance, which includes more than 300 groups around the world. “Waterkeepers are sworn to protect our rivers and waterways, and we will protect these vital resources as humankind begins to fortify itself against sea level rise – which humankind itself has provoked. Our response to increased sea levels must not come at the expense of the health and vitality of our waters.”

“As an American Heritage River running from its headwaters in the Adirondack Mountains to New York Harbor, the Hudson is a vitally important waterway—ecologically, culturally and economically,” said Scenic Hudson President Ned Sullivan. “For too long, the Hudson has been imperiled by pollution and unwise development decisions. The 70-year legacy of toxic PCB pollution by General Electric has reached a critical decision point in 2019. The Environmental Protection Agency must acknowledge that General Electric’s cleanup has failed to achieve its goals and require the company to conduct additional remediation of the river to standards that are protective of human health and the environment and unleash the river’s job-creating potential. At the same time, the storm surge barriers under consideration by the Army Corps could devastate the Hudson’s ecosystem and the communities living alongside it. As the Army Corps moves forward with its review process, it must ensure that any solution prevents coastal flooding from both storms and sea level rise without damaging the Hudson.”

“We have come so far in our fight to restore the Hudson. We see generations of children on our Sloop every day eager to continue this progress. We must not allow a short-sighted decision by the Army Corps to undo all the progress that we’ve made over the past half-century. The Corps’ study has enormous implications for generations into the future. The governments of New York, New Jersey and New York City that are funding the Army Corps of Engineers study must demand a comprehensive approach to coastal flood protection that addresses sea level rise, not just storms,” said Greg Williams, Executive Director with Hudson River Sloop Clearwater.

The Hudson River flows 315 miles from the Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York through the Hudson Valley and into New York Harbor. As the second largest estuary on the East Coast, the Hudson provides critical habitat for endangered species, including Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon, and threatened species including banded sunfish and Blanding’s turtles. The river is at the heart of a $5.5 billion tourism industry, attracting visitors who explore the history, forests, shorelines and communities across the Hudson Valley.

The Hudson River was previously included on this list in 1996, 1997 and 2001. Other rivers in the region listed as most endangered in recent years include the Susquehanna River (2016) and St. Lawrence River (2016).

America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019

#1 Gila River, New Mexico
Gov. Grisham must choose a healthier, more cost-effective way to provide water to agriculture than by drying up the state’s last major free-flowing river.

#2 Hudson River, New York

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must consider effective, nature-based alternatives to storm-surge barriers that would choke off this biologically rich tidal estuary.

#3 Upper Mississippi River, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri

State and federal agencies must enforce laws that prohibit illegal levees, which increase flood risk for communities and degrade vital fish and wildlife habitat.

#4 Green-Duwamish River, Washington

#5 Willamette River, Oregon

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must immediately improve 13 dams to save wild chinook salmon and steelhead from going extinct.

#6 Chilkat River, Alaska

The Japanese investment firm, DOWA, must do the responsible thing and back out of a mining project that could decimate native salmon.

#7 South Fork Salmon River, Idaho

The U.S. Forest Service must safeguard endangered fish by denying a mining proposal that could pollute this tributary of the Wild and Scenic Salmon River.

#8 Buffalo National River, Arkansas

Gov. Hutchinson must demand closure of an industrial hog-farming facility that pollutes groundwater and threatens endangered species.

#9 Big Darby Creek, Ohio

Local leaders must use state-of-the-art science to craft a responsible development plan that protects this pristine stream.

#10 Stikine River, Alaska

The International Joint Commission of the United States and Canada must protect the river’s clean water, fish and wildlife, and indigenous communities by stopping harmful, polluting mines.

2019’s “River of the Year”: Cuyahoga River, Ohio

American Rivers celebrates the progress Cleveland has made in cleaning up the Cuyahoga River, fifty years since the river’s famous fire that sparked the nation’s environmental movement.

ABOUT AMERICAN RIVERS

Pollution from hog operation threatens clean water

Contact:

Jessie Thomas-Blate, American Rivers, (202) 347-7550

Lin Wellford, Ozark River Stewards, (870) 480-8644

Washington, D.C. – American Rivers today named the Buffalo National River among America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019, citing the grave threat that a massive hog operation poses to the river’s clean water. American Rivers and its partners called on Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson to close down the Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (CAFO) to save the river and its clean water for future generations.

“The America’s Most Endangered Rivers report is a call to action to save rivers that face a critical decision in the coming year,” said Jessie Thomas-Blate with American Rivers. “Governor Hutchinson must take a stand to ensure that hog waste doesn’t destroy everything that makes the Buffalo such a treasure for the state and the nation.”

A 6,500-head hog CAFO, including massive indoor feedlots and two manure filled ponds, sits on a hill along one of Buffalo National River’s main tributaries, Big Creek, less than six miles from the mainstem of the river. Each year, millions of gallons of liquid hog waste are sprayed onto pastures and fields, some of which lie in the floodplain. Contaminants in the manure fields and ponds are having far reaching effects, including polluting groundwater wells and threatening endangered species. CAFOs are one of the largest sources of pollution to streams and waterways across the U.S., according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Following the listing of the Buffalo as one of America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2017, the state denied the permit for the CAFO’s operations and ordered it to shut down. Rather than comply, the owners have decided to fight the issue in court. American Rivers and its partners called on Governor Hutchinson to close the facility down and save America’s first National River. The National River designation should protect the river from industrial uses, dams and other obstructions that would impact fish and wildlife habitat.

“If we can’t as a nation protect the country’s first National River, is any river safe from pollution?” asked local resident Teresa Turk with Ozark River Stewards.

“Industrial-scale animal farming is a huge and growing threat to most American waterways. Our rivers will continue to get dirtier until corporations are forced to find safe and sustainable ways to deal with the massive waste that their animals are producing,” said Lin Wellford, a local resident with Ozark River Stewards.

Winding its way through the forested Ozark Mountains of northwest Arkansas, the 153-mile long Buffalo National River flows through soaring bluffs, deep pools and gravel bars that lure millions of visitors annually from all over the world. People come to camp, paddle, hike and enjoy the river’s sparkling waters, vistas and clean air. In 2017, more than 1.47 million people visited the Buffalo National River generating $62 million in revenue and employing over 900 people in tourism related activities (e.g., cabins and hotels, restaurants, kayak/canoe rental).

The Buffalo National River was previously included on this list in 2017. Other rivers in the region listed as most endangered in recent years include the Big Sunflower River (2018) and Pascagoula River (2016).

America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019

#1 Gila River, New Mexico
Gov. Grisham must choose a healthier, more cost-effective way to provide water to agriculture than by drying up the state’s last major free-flowing river.

#2 Hudson River, New York

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must consider effective, nature-based alternatives to storm-surge barriers that would choke off this biologically rich tidal estuary.

#3 Upper Mississippi River, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri

State and federal agencies must enforce laws that prohibit illegal levees, which increase flood risk for communities and degrade vital fish and wildlife habitat.

#4 Green-Duwamish River, Washington

#5 Willamette River, Oregon

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must immediately improve 13 dams to save wild chinook salmon and steelhead from going extinct.

#6 Chilkat River, Alaska

The Japanese investment firm, DOWA, must do the responsible thing and back out of a mining project that could decimate native salmon.

#7 South Fork Salmon River, Idaho

The U.S. Forest Service must safeguard endangered fish by denying a mining proposal that could pollute this tributary of the Wild and Scenic Salmon River.

#8 Buffalo National River, Arkansas

Gov. Hutchinson must demand closure of an industrial hog-farming facility that pollutes groundwater and threatens endangered species.

#9 Big Darby Creek, Ohio

Local leaders must use state-of-the-art science to craft a responsible development plan that protects this pristine stream.

#10 Stikine River, Alaska

The International Joint Commission of the United States and Canada must protect the river’s clean water, fish and wildlife, and indigenous communities by stopping harmful, polluting mines.

2019’s “River of the Year”: Cuyahoga River, Ohio

American Rivers celebrates the progress Cleveland has made in cleaning up the Cuyahoga River, fifty years since the river’s famous fire that sparked the nation’s environmental movement.

ABOUT AMERICAN RIVERS

Outdated flood management threatens salmon, river health

Contact:

Brandon Parsons, American Rivers, (512) 517-4001

Logan Harris, King County Dept. Natural Resources and Parks, (206) 477-4516

Doug Osterman, Green/Duwamish & Central Puget Sound Watershed (WRIA 9),

(206) 477-4793

Cathy Cochrane, Puget Sound Partnership, (360) 790-7958

Mindy Roberts, Washington Environmental Council, (206) 631-2600

Washington, D.C. – American Rivers today named the Green-Duwamish River among America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019, citing the grave threat that outdated flood management poses to chinook salmon and river health. American Rivers and its partners called on the King County Flood Control District to develop better plans that protect people and property, as well as the salmon runs vital to endangered southern resident killer whales.

“The America’s Most Endangered Rivers report is a call to action to save rivers that face a critical decision in the coming year,” said Brandon Parsons with American Rivers. “Outdated flood management on the Green-Duwamish not only puts communities at risk, it’s harming our salmon and orcas.”

“We are already feeling the impacts of climate change in the Pacific Northwest, including higher temperatures and bigger floods, and it’s only going to get worse. Abusing and degrading our rivers will make us more vulnerable to these threats. Protecting and restoring the river will make us better prepared to face future floods and safeguard communities. It’s our choice to make.”

The King County Flood Control District has initiated development of a flood hazard management plan, which in its current form would result in a larger and more extensive levee system. This, in turn, would result in further loss of critical habitat and almost certain continued decline of salmon. Chinook salmon are vital to local tribes and communities and critical to the diet of endangered orca whales. The already extensive levee system dramatically decreases the number of shade-giving trees along the river, which negatively impacts water quality. The levees also separate the Lower Green River from 82 percent of its historic floodplain, reducing salmon rearing habitats and turning the lower river into a constricted canal that shoots juvenile fish into the heavily contaminated Duwamish estuary.

Current flood management is inadequate to protect local communities from existing flood risks and climate change is only going to increase those risks as winter storms will bring more rain and less snow.

American Rivers and its partners called on the King County Flood Control District to select community supported alternatives that will improve flood management and significantly increase salmon habitat. The King County Flood Control District must strengthen the plan by defining integrated goals, maximizing the number of levee setbacks to increase flood storage capacity and salmon habitat, and offering clear habitat restoration actions to address the critical needs of salmon rearing habitat and riparian shade in the Lower Green River.

“We are at a crossroads for the Green-Duwamish River. Returning salmon face lethal water temperatures, southern resident orca are critically endangered and tribal treaty rights are at risk,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine. “Our changing climate raises the urgency of actions to reduce flood risks to our residents and economy, while restoring the natural systems we have so degraded. We can and must pursue solutions that meet all of these needs. The days of 1950s, single-purpose flood control are over.”

“The continued polluted condition of the Green-Duwamish River impacts not only the health of the ecosystem and all the creatures that depend on it, but also the health of the people and communities along its banks, many of them low-income,” said Sheida Sahandy, Executive Director at the Puget Sound Partnership. “Recovering the Green Duwamish has long been a goal for many community groups, as well as state and federal water quality managers. We can wait no longer to ensure that projects to improve habitat, water quality and human wellbeing get the needed policy and funding support to make recovery of this river successful.”

“The Lower Green is a major bottleneck to salmon recovery because juvenile salmon born in up-river areas do not have nearly enough habitat to rear as they move down river,” said Doug Osterman with the Green/Duwamish & Central Puget Sound Watershed (WRIA 9). “Creating salmon rearing habitat is one of the most important actions to be taken to recover the chinook salmon population of the Green River which, in turn, will provide more food for Puget Sound killer whales.”

The Green River flows unimpeded for 30 miles through forested mountains before reaching two dams: Howard Hanson Dam, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers flood control facility, and Tacoma Headworks Diversion Dam for the city of Tacoma’s drinking water supply. Roughly half of the currently inaccessible historic habitat for salmon and steelhead lies above these dams. Downstream of the dams, the river provides some of Puget Sound’s best salmon and steelhead spawning habitat as it flows through forests, farms and the scenic Green River Gorge. At the city of Auburn, the river transforms into a channelized urban river with limited natural habitat. As the river approaches Seattle, it becomes the Duwamish River. The tidally-influenced Duwamish River provides critical nursery habitat for young salmon and a historically rich estuary before emptying into Elliot Bay and Puget Sound.

The Green-Duwamish River was previously included on this list in 2016. Other rivers in the region listed as most endangered in recent years include the Willamette River (2019), South Fork of the Salmon River (2019 and 2018), South Fork Skykomish River (2017) and Green-Toutle River (2017).

America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019

#1 Gila River, New Mexico
Gov. Grisham must choose a healthier, more cost-effective way to provide water to agriculture than by drying up the state’s last major free-flowing river.

#2 Hudson River, New York

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must consider effective, nature-based alternatives to storm-surge barriers that would choke off this biologically rich tidal estuary.

#3 Upper Mississippi River, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri

State and federal agencies must enforce laws that prohibit illegal levees, which increase flood risk for communities and degrade vital fish and wildlife habitat.

#4 Green-Duwamish River, Washington

#5 Willamette River, Oregon

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must immediately improve 13 dams to save wild chinook salmon and steelhead from going extinct.

#6 Chilkat River, Alaska

The Japanese investment firm, DOWA, must do the responsible thing and back out of a mining project that could decimate native salmon.

#7 South Fork Salmon River, Idaho

The U.S. Forest Service must safeguard endangered fish by denying a mining proposal that could pollute this tributary of the Wild and Scenic Salmon River.

#8 Buffalo National River, Arkansas

Gov. Hutchinson must demand closure of an industrial hog-farming facility that pollutes groundwater and threatens endangered species.

#9 Big Darby Creek, Ohio

Local leaders must use state-of-the-art science to craft a responsible development plan that protects this pristine stream.

#10 Stikine River, Alaska

The International Joint Commission of the United States and Canada must protect the river’s clean water, fish and wildlife, and indigenous communities by stopping harmful, polluting mines.

2019’s “River of the Year”: Cuyahoga River, Ohio

American Rivers celebrates the progress Cleveland has made in cleaning up the Cuyahoga River, fifty years since the river’s famous fire that sparked the nation’s environmental movement.

ABOUT AMERICAN RIVERS

Mining threatens salmon, culture and economy

Contact:
Jessie Thomas-Blate, American Rivers, (202) 347-7550
Rob Sanderson Jr., Southeast Alaska Indigenous Transboundary Commission Board Chair, (907) 821-8885
Jennifer Hanlon, Southeast Alaska Indigenous Transboundary Commission Vice Chair, (907) 723-9922

Washington, D.C. – American Rivers today named the Stikine River among America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019, citing the grave threat that current and proposed mining projects pose to the river’s salmon, culture and economy. American Rivers and its partners called on the International Joint Commission of the U.S. and Canada to stop the mining projects from devastating the river, its salmon and communities.

“The America’s Most Endangered Rivers report is a call to action to save rivers that face a critical decision in the coming year,” said Jessie Thomas-Blate with American Rivers. “Now is the time to stop the mining projects that threaten the Stikine River and an entire way of life.”

The Stikine is threatened by the pollution from an operational mine at the headwaters—the Red Chris Mine, with others proposed nearby. These mines are extracting minerals, including silver, gold, molybdenum and copper. The Red Chris Mine is owned by the same company, Imperial Metals, responsible for a massive dam failure in 2014 at its Mount Polley site that polluted lakes and rivers with 24 million cubic meters of toxic waste. Mines have to keep their tailings (toxic ore waste potentially containing cyanide, arsenic, and/or mercury) immersed in water in perpetuity. The earthen dams holding the tailings at the Stikine mines are engineered in the same way as the failed dam at Mount Polley.

Loretta Williams, Chair of the First Nations Women Advocating for Responsible Mining, explains why a repeat of the Mount Polley disaster in the Stikine would be tragic. She stated, “I am from the Tsilhqot’in Nation and we are The River People in the interior of British Columbia, Canada. Our 6 communities are near three river systems, Chilko, Chilcotin and Taseko Rivers which are the headwaters to the mighty Fraser River which is another system where we have a Tsilhqot’in community. The Fraser River has been hard hit by industry, including mining companies. The Dam of Imperial Metals’ Mount Polley Mine breached causing destruction to everything downstream and that flowed into the Fraser River. There still hasn’t been any acknowledgement from the company of the devastation they caused and no real efforts to fully restore the ecosystem to what it was. Taseko Mines Limited continues to dump effluent into the Fraser River from their Gibraltar Mine and Taseko is proponent of the Pebble Project in Alaska. How much can a river endure in order to properly sustain itself?”

American Rivers and its partners called on the International Joint Commission to stop allowing mining contamination to endanger the transboundary Stikine River. In addition, the groups called on the U.S. State Department to request an immediate moratorium on new mines or mine expansions based on a lack of analysis of the cumulative and downstream impacts to water quality and fish habitat.

According to Rob Sanderson Jr., Board Chair for the Southeast Alaska Indigenous Transboundary Commission (SEITC), “It is vitally important that our transboundary rivers be preserved for future generations. Our entire way of life is being threatened by corporate mining and greed!”

The Stikine River flows from an area known as the Sacred Headwaters in British Columbia into Southeast Alaska. The Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian people have occupied this region for more than 10,000 years. The Stikine supports five different species of salmon, as well as moose, geese, deer and multiple other game that are integral to the diet of the entire community.

“Rivers and tributaries are the lifeblood of our homelands for all walks of life,” said Williams. “Without that vein, all that depend on those waters will slowly diminish. Losing a river system will severely interrupt an ecosystem and our culture. The return of the spawning salmon is a cycle that we depend on annually. The teachings that go with that cycle are very important to our people. If we were to lose that entire ecosystem, that will extinguish our connection between teachings, stories, language and sustenance. As mothers, we will do all that it takes to preserve and protect what is existing, because it isn’t much anymore, not like the abundance we once had. We stand united with all First Nations to preserve our rivers.”

The annual America’s Most Endangered Rivers® report is a list of rivers at a crossroads, where key decisions in the coming months will determine the rivers’ fates. Over the years, the report has helped spur many successes including the removal of outdated dams, the protection of rivers with Wild and Scenic designations, and the prevention of harmful development and pollution.

This is the first time that the Stikine River is included on this list. Other rivers in Alaska listed as most endangered in recent years include the Chilkat River (2019), Colville River (2018), and Rivers of Bristol Bay (2018, 2011).

America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2019

#1 Gila River, New Mexico
Gov. Grisham must choose a healthier, more cost-effective way to provide water to agriculture than by drying up the state’s last major free-flowing river.

#2 Hudson River, New York
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must consider effective, nature-based alternatives to storm-surge barriers that would choke off this biologically rich tidal estuary.

#3 Upper Mississippi River, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri
State and federal agencies must enforce laws that prohibit illegal levees, which increase flood risk for communities and degrade vital fish and wildlife habitat.

#4 Green-Duwamish River, Washington
Local leaders must produce a flood protection plan that safeguards communities and restores habitat for chinook salmon — fish that are essential to the diet of Puget Sound’s endangered orca whales.

#5 Willamette River, Oregon
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must immediately improve 13 dams to save wild chinook salmon and steelhead from going extinct.

#6 Chilkat River, Alaska
The Japanese investment firm, DOWA, must do the responsible thing and back out of a mining project that could decimate native salmon.

#7 South Fork Salmon River, Idaho
The U.S. Forest Service must safeguard endangered fish by denying a mining proposal that could pollute this tributary of the Wild and Scenic Salmon River.

#8 Buffalo National River, Arkansas
Gov. Hutchinson must demand closure of an industrial hog-farming facility that pollutes groundwater and threatens endangered species.

#9 Big Darby Creek, Ohio
Local leaders must use state-of-the-art science to craft a responsible development plan that protects this pristine stream.

#10 Stikine River, Alaska
The International Joint Commission of the United States and Canada must protect the river’s clean water, fish and wildlife, and indigenous communities by stopping harmful, polluting mines.

2019’s “River of the Year”: Cuyahoga River, Ohio
American Rivers celebrates the progress Cleveland has made in cleaning up the Cuyahoga River, fifty years since the river’s famous fire that sparked the nation’s environmental movement.

ABOUT AMERICAN RIVERS

March 26, 2019

Contact: Amy Kober, 503-708-1145

Washington – As the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources prepares to consider President Trump’s nomination of David Bernhardt as Secretary of the Interior, American Rivers President and CEO Bob Irvin released the following statement:

“With climate change posing unprecedented threats to our public lands and waters, we need an Interior Secretary who follows the science, values public input, and understands the importance of healthy rivers and ecosystems to our communities and economy.”

“The American people deserve a Secretary of the Interior who will safeguard the public lands and waters that belong to us all. Unfortunately, David Bernhardt has made a career of prioritizing polluters over people. He worked for twenty years as a lobbyist for the fossil fuel industry. As Deputy Secretary of the Interior, he has consistently fought to undermine protections for sensitive lands and waters and endangered fish and wildlife, from California’s Central Valley to the Arctic Refuge to Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National monuments.”

“Now is not the time to weaken protections for our environment. Healthy rivers, forests and public lands are absolutely vital to strengthening our communities in the face of climate change impacts such as droughts, floods and rising temperatures. We need a Secretary of the Interior who will put the well-being of our lands, waters and communities first.”

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February 26, 2019

Contact: Amy Kober, 503-708-1145

(Washington) — American Rivers today applauded the passage of a landmark bill protecting Wild and Scenic Rivers and other public lands and waters nationwide. The U.S. House passed S. 47, the largest package of Wild and Scenic River designations in nearly a decade. The U.S. Senate passed the same bill earlier this month by a vote of 92-8.

“This is the biggest advancement for river protection that we’ve seen in nearly a decade,” said Bob Irvin, President and CEO of American Rivers. “As we celebrate 50 years of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, it is fitting that there is bipartisan support for protecting hundreds of miles of new Wild and Scenic Rivers from Massachusetts to California, including adding protections for tributaries of the Rogue River, one of the original eight rivers protected in 1968.”

“We are especially grateful to Rep. Grijalva and Rep. Bishop, the Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee, for their commitment and leadership in championing this important, bipartisan legislation. Clean, free-flowing rivers are vital for our drinking water supplies, local economies and the outdoor recreation industry. We urge the President to sign this important bipartisan legislation.”

The legislation is a reflection of the years of hard work by local communities, businesses and river groups including the Nashua River Watershed Association, American Whitewater, the Farmington River Watershed Association, Molalla River Alliance, and K.S. Wild.

The bill adds more than 600 miles of rivers to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, forever protecting them from new dams and other harmful development. The bill protects:

256 miles of the Rogue, Molalla, Nestucca, and Elk rivers in Oregon
110 miles of the Wood-Pawcatuck rivers in Rhode Island and Connecticut
76 miles of Amargosa River, Deep Creek, Surprise Canyon and other desert streams in California
63 miles of the Green River in Utah
62 miles of the Farmington River and Salmon Brook in Connecticut
52.8 miles of the Nashua, Squannacook and Nissitissit rivers in Massachusetts and New Hampshire

The bill includes other critical river protection and restoration measures, including:

Authorization of the Initial Development Phase of the Yakima Basin Integrated Plan, a long-term climate adaptation, water supply reliability, river restoration and lands management plan for farms, fish and people in Washington state.
Reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund, the nation’s largest and most important conservation program that provides hundreds of millions of dollars annually to secure the purchase and protection of public lands.
Creation of the Frank and Jeanne Moore Wild Steelhead Sanctuary, protecting steelhead habitat in Oregon’s North Umpqua River watershed in honor of Frank Moore, a World War II veteran and his wife, Jeanne, beloved stewards of the river.
Mineral withdrawals to protect the Yellowstone River in Montana, the Methow River in Washington and the Wild and Scenic Chetco River in Oregon from harmful mining.
The long-overdue name change for Oregon’s Wild and Scenic Whychus Creek.

Along with the designation of East Rosebud Creek in 2018, Montana’s first new Wild and Scenic River in 42 years, today’s action is a major step forward for the 5,000 Miles of Wild® campaign, an effort led by American Rivers, American Whitewater, NRS, OARS, YETI, REI, Nite Ize, Keen Footwear and other partners to protect 5,000 additional river miles and 1 million acres of riverside by October of 2020. See https://www.5000miles.org/about/

American Rivers annual survey shows continued demand for healthy, free-flowing rivers

February 21, 2019

Contact: Amy Kober, 503-708-1145

View the full list of dams removed in 2018: AmericanRivers.org/DamRemoval2018
Infographic: AmericanRivers.org/DamInfographic
Database of all dam removals: AmericanRivers.org/DamRemovalDatabase
Map of all dam removals: AmericanRivers.org/DamRemovalsMap

(Washington) – Eighty-two outdated dams were removed in 2018, restoring rivers, improving public safety and recreation opportunities, and revitalizing fish and wildlife in communities nationwide, American Rivers announced today.

Communities in 18 states, working in partnership with non-profit organizations and state and federal agencies, removed the dams last year to restore more than 1,230 miles of streams.

Dams were removed in the following states: California, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.

In 2018, with the removal of 33 dams on the Cleveland National Forest alone, California had the highest number of dam removals, for the first time surpassing Pennsylvania, the leading dam removal state for the past 15 years. The top three states removing outdated dams in 2018 were:

California: 35 dams removed
Pennsylvania: 7 dams removed
Michigan: 7 dams removed

“The river conservation movement in our country is stronger than ever,” said Bob Irvin, President of American Rivers. “Twenty years ago this summer, Edwards Dam was removed from Maine’s Kennebec River, sparking a river restoration movement nationwide. Today, not only is the Kennebec thriving, but rivers nationwide are coming back to life thanks to the removal of harmful and outdated dams.”

When a dam is removed, a river can again flow naturally, which has benefits for water supply, flood protection, wildlife habitat and ecosystem health.

The American Society of Civil Engineers gives the nation’s dams a D grade in its report card on the nation’s infrastructure. One of the most cost-effective ways to deal with outdated, unsafe dams is to remove them.

2018 was the second-best year for removing unsafe, outdated dams in the U.S. 2017 was the top year, with 89 dams removed.

“The growing number of dam removal projects across the country shows that there is strong demand from communities for clean, free-flowing rivers which are vital to our health, economy and future,” said Irvin.

American Rivers is the only organization maintaining a record of dam removals in the United States. The database includes information on 1,578 dams that have been removed across the country since 1912. Most of those dams (1,355) were removed in the past 30 years. American Rivers played a role in 13 of the dam removals on this year’s list. The complete list includes all known dam removals, regardless of the extent of American Rivers’ involvement.

Factors that contributed to successful dam removal and river restoration projects in 2018 include increased awareness about the benefits of removing outdated, unsafe dams; efforts by American Rivers and others to train organizations and increase capacity to manage dam removal projects; and the cost of maintaining aging dams, which pose liability and safety hazards for their owners.

HIGHLIGHTS OF DAM REMOVAL AND RIVER RESTORATION EFFORTS IN 2018 INCLUDE:

Bloede Dam, Patapsco River, Maryland

The Bloede Dam was removed in 2018 as part of a larger plan— which included removal of the Union and Simkins dams in 2010— to restore more than 65 miles of spawning habitat for blueback herring, alewife, American shad, hickory shad, and more than 183 miles for American eel in the Patapsco River watershed. Originally built by a private company in the early 1900s to supply electricity to the cities of Catonsville in Baltimore County and Ellicott City in Howard County, the 34-foot high by 220-foot long dam, located in Patapsco Valley State Park, was most recently owned by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. At the time of demolition, it no longer produced power or any other economic benefit, but contributed to numerous injuries and deaths, including at least nine dam-related drownings since the 1980s. Its removal reconnects habitat for one of the highest runs of river herring in the Chesapeake Bay.

Contact: Serena McClain, American Rivers, 202-347-7550, smcclain@americanrivers.org

Cleveland National Forest, California

The Cleveland National Forest removed 33 dams in total—18 dams from Holy Jim Creek, four in upper San Juan Creek, 10 in lower San Juan Creek and one from Trabuco Creek—in 2018. The dams were originally constructed for varying uses, including to create pools for a stocked rainbow trout fishery and provide water for fire suppression. However, years of disuse and, in some instances, a 40-year maintenance backlog resulted in the decision to remove these structures as a way to improve stream conditions and provide adequate fish passage and wildlife habitat. The efforts of the Cleveland National Forest demonstrate the power of coupling smart management of outdated water infrastructure with the potential re-establishment of extirpated species like the southern California steelhead trout.

Contact: Kristen Winter, Cleveland National Forest, 858-674-2956, kwinter@fs.fed.us

Columbia Lake Dam, Paulins Kill, New Jersey

The 18-foot tall and 330-foot long Columbia Lake Dam was originally built in 1909 and, at the time of removal, owned by New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Division of Fish and Wildlife. The project consisted of the removal of Columbia Lake Dam and a downstream remnant dam on Paulins Kill. These two dams were physical barriers to fish migration and negatively impacted river flow. The removal of the Columbia Lake Dam restored access to more than 10 miles of historic habitat for migratory fish including American shad, restored 32 acres of floodplains, and provided safe and new recreational opportunities. The project is anticipated to increase abundance and diversity of macroinvertebrates, including freshwater mussels, that are indicative of good water quality.

Contacts: Laura Craig, American Rivers, 856-786-9000, lcraig@americanrivers.org

Barbara Brummer, The Nature Conservancy, 908-879-7262, bbrummer@tnc.org

February 14, 2019

Contact: Amy Kober, 503-708-1145

Washington — The Trump administration today released its long-anticipated rewrite of the Clean Water Rule, and as expected the proposed rule eliminates federal protection for wetlands with no apparent surface connection to nearby water bodies, and expressly excludes from protection “ephemeral” rivers and streams that flow in times of heavy rain and snow. These are important parts of healthy river ecosystems that are vital to protecting water quality and providing flood protection and critical wildlife habitat nationwide.

The current Clean Water Rule, promulgated by former President Obama and now under ceaseless attack by polluters and their allies in Congress and the Trump administration, ensures protection of wetlands and ephemeral streams based on the overwhelming scientific consensus that they are vitally important to healthy rivers that supply drinking water to two-thirds of Americans. The Trump administration is attempting to reverse the Rule on no apparent scientific basis.

While the Trump administration claims that the new rule does not significantly reduce protections, in fact millions of acres of wetlands nationwide will be affected.

Bob Irvin, President and CEO of American Rivers, made the following statement:

“We need to be doing more as a nation, not less, to safeguard clean water. Unfortunately, the Trump administration’s proposal today fails to deliver – indeed it actively undermines – the protections our rivers and communities need.”

“Too many people in our country, urban and rural, are living with unsafe drinking water. More and more people are worried whether the water flowing from their taps is safe to drink. Low-income communities, indigenous peoples and communities of color are hit hardest by pollution and river degradation.”

“Protection for rivers, streams and wetlands that are the sources of our drinking water supplies must be a top priority to ensure clean water for all. It is time to strengthen, not roll back, safeguards for our rivers and wetlands”

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