Forests and forested watersheds in the Southern Appalachian Mountains in the Southeastern U.S. are at serious risk due to development pressure from regional population growth, and as a result of land management practices. Compared to other regions around the country, the Southeast has some of the most vulnerable forests in the U.S. in terms of potential loss to development over the next two decades. At the same time, abundant forested watersheds in this region help provide clean, dependable water supplies to millions of residents in downstream towns and cities by filtering nutrients and sediments, moderating water temperatures, and reducing flood risks. In the process, these forests significantly reduce the need for costly municipal water supply, control and treatment facilities and infrastructure.
Forests and forested watersheds in the region need to be protected and better managed to maintain the invaluable services natural infrastructure provides to local and downstream populations. Because the majority of forested lands in these watersheds are privately owned, upstream forest landowners can benefit from financial incentives and support to maintain forest cover on their property. Downstream water users — municipal governments, water providers, industrial, commercial and private facilities, and residential consumers — can invest in upstream forestland protection and management as a cost-effective alternative to construction of expensive, engineered water supply and treatment systems.
The Etowah River in north Georgia is a characteristic example of a Southern Appalachian forested watershed providing clean and abundant water to downstream users. It also illustrates the vulnerability of these watersheds to development and land use change. American Rivers, The Forest Guild and the Mountain Conservation Trust of Georgia have together established the “Etowah Forest Collaborative” to promote the concept of downstream benefits of upstream forestland conservation and management by educating forest landowners, forest managers, and water users about how they can work together to protect water quality and supply in this beautiful and important forested “source” watershed.
Although best management practices for private and public forestlands in Georgia have been available since 1981 and are widely used, more comprehensive and systematic application of some of these practices on forests in the Etowah watershed would contribute to improved water quality in creeks and streams. One of the keys to minimizing the likelihood that private forestlands in source watersheds will be sold for development is to provide financial alternatives to landowners to keep their property forested.
Several federal and state agencies offer a number of technical assistance, cost-share and financial incentive programs to landowners for managing, protecting, and restoring forests on private property in Georgia. Nonprofit local and national land trusts and conservancies will work with landowners interested in protecting their forestland property with a conservation easement. Such easements are voluntary, with the terms crafted to reflect the short and long-term management objectives of the landowner while also preserving the conservation values of the property.
Finally, emerging “ecosystem services” markets, particularly “payments for watershed services” approaches, may provide additional tools to promote upstream forest conservation and management as a mechanism to ensure abundant clean water for downstream communities.
American Rivers With Economics Evaluation And Research Prepared By University Of Maryland Environmental Finance Center.
American Rivers’ report, The Economic Value of Riparian Buffers presents research findings from the Environmental Finance Center at the University of Maryland to increase what is understood of economic values associated with the current scientific evidence supporting protection and restoration of forested streamside areas known as riparian buffers.
The scientific, economic and policy literature all indicate that riparian buffers deliver multiple benefits for rivers and people and can be an effective restoration, conservation and management practice that is generally appropriate for all land use types.
While the ecological benefits of riparian buffers are well understood, the current state of research provides estimates for only two sources of economic value for residential property and community. This report discusses valuation of buffers in terms of their function and identifies economic models that have been used to monetize the environmental, societal and human value of riparian buffers.
The reported findings from current literature and research include:
- Riparian buffers have a positive economic value in terms of private and public benefits.
- The economic value of riparian buffers generally increases with width and length.
- Riparian buffers generate a price premium for residential property. And,
- The public is willing to pay for watershed restoration with riparian buffers.
The report also identifies room for more research and a need for greater understanding of riparian buffers and the attributes of buffers that are valued in society in order to achieve broad acceptance, improved protection and restoration implementation and measurable conservation gain.
There is an increasingly urgent need for renewed investment in our communities’ water infrastructure. This need is driven by the unfortunate reality that for the many decades, funding to maintain water systems has fallen short of the cost of providing safe drinking water, sewage treatment and flood control. The result is decaying or outdated infrastructure that cannot keep pace with changing demand for water and wastewater treatment, growing population and increasingly heavy rainfall events.
This guide is intended to acquaint advocates with the financing practices and imperatives that define drinking water management today. it can be used to prepare for engagement with drinking water utilities, the city councils that set water rates and the State Revolving Fund administrators that help to finance water infrastructure. And it can be used by advocates of all different stripes – environmental, affordability and taxpayer advocates – to strategize collaboration.
This guide should help advocates understand not only how to be more effective opponents of destructive and bloated infrastructure projects, but also how to be more effective proponents of sustainable drinking water systems. It covers such important topics as:
- How do water systems pay for infrastructure?
- What risks come along with financing water infrastructure?
- Why don’t water systems put conservation first?
- How should water systems structure their rates?
- How do water systems pay for conservation?
- How do we balance conservation and affordability?
- How do we build support for conservation?
Preserving and protecting small streams is the best approach to ensure environmental and community benefits such as clean water and flood reduction. In highly urbanized areas, however, where small, headwater streams are often buried, hidden, and forgotten, protecting headwater streams is not possible. Stream daylighting is a relatively new approach that brings these buried waterways back to life by physically uncovering and restoring them. Daylighting is an applicable technique to assist communities in reducing polluted runoff, addressing flash flooding concerns, and improving the livability of the built environment.
This report describes the importance of small streams and provides the context for why many of today’s urban streams are buried. It also identifies and analyzes the benefits of stream daylighting, including water quality improvements, flood mitigation, and community and economic revitalization. Case studies below illustrate the benefits provided to communities by daylighting. While there are many examples of daylighting, we found daylighting projects in both Kalamazoo, Michigan and Yonkers, New York illustrated the most developed benefits to flood mitigation and community revitalization, respectively.
Daylighting, furthermore, provides economic benefits to communities through cost effective alternatives to ongoing culvert maintenance and by keeping stormwater out of combined sewer systems, thereby reducing water treatment costs. Municipalities also gain ecological and water quality benefits, such as improved habitat and nutrient retention, by revitalizing a previously buried stream. In fact, daylighting streams can also mitigate floods by restoring floodplains which increases hydraulic storage, reducing channelization which slows water thereby decreasing flooding potential, and removing choke points such as culverts where water backs up and causes localized flooding.
Finally, to identify ways to better facilitate daylighting projects in the future, this report examines barriers to daylighting, including major water policies. This report also highlights numerous case studies where communities have implemented daylighting, and provides potential funding mechanisms for communities considering daylighting. Recommendations for enhancing the use of stream daylighting as a tool to improve clean water and communities, improve habitat, and reduce localized flooding include:
Increasing scientific research and comprehensive monitoring
Additional research and monitoring efforts will improve scientific data on daylighting allowing for more comprehensive guidance.
Utilizing a standardized daylighting database
A comprehensive database with a set of standardized measureable values would vastly assist stream daylighting implementation.
Removing policy barriers to aid the implementation of stream daylighting where appropriate
Policies and funding which make daylighting projects easier to implement are imperative in order to make these more common practices.
Raising awareness of buried streams to galvanize community involvement and reconnect people to rivers
Raising awareness of buried streams within urbanized environments can engage community residents and create interest in clean water, community health, and revitalization.
Implementing these recommendations can vastly improve daylighting, while also making it easier for communities addressing stormwater controls and water quality issues to adopt this relatively new approach. Currently, there are a suite of practices used to control stormwater runoff including bioretention, rain gardens, and green roofs; however, daylighting could add to this repertoire and in some instances be a more economical and environmentally effective option, if certain policy barriers are removed and scientific data improved. As communities find ways to improve their built environment, daylighting should be considered with the suite of techniques used to improve urban environments.
The report highlights numerous case studies where communities have implemented daylighting including: Bee Branch Creek, Dubuque, Iowa; Arcadia Creek, Kalamazoo, Michigan; Saw Mill River, Yonkers, New York; Peyton Creek, Staunton, Virginia; Blackberry Creek, Berkeley, California. Additionally, case studies from Michigan, South Korea, Indiana, and Washington are discussed.
Many cities are defined by their relationship to rivers. People need clean water for drinking and bathing, but urban areas can have profound impacts on water quality and supply.
Furthermore, the neighbors that share the river add to these impacts. By managing all water resources in a holistic way, and by engaging with neighbors throughout the watershed, city leaders can integrate management at many levels.
In partnership with Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, Johnson Foundation at Wingspread, and Mayors Innovation Project, American Rivers explored these themes in a two day convening. This report collects the ideas, inspirations, and expertise of the mayors, municipal leaders and urban water managers who attended. It also charts a path forward for American Rivers, cities, and water agencies interested in pursuing integrated water management.
The Upper Nooksack River Recreation Plan will help guide the management of recreation and natural resources along the upper Nooksack River system in Washington state. The plan recognizes and supports the economic and health benefits of recreation, along with protection and restoration of the natural and cultural values of the upper river basin.
The recreation plan was developed through a collaborative planning process led by an advisory committee comprised of representatives from American Rivers, American Whitewater, Hydropower Reform Coalition, Mount Baker Club, National Park Service, Nooksack Tribe, Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association, Pacific Northwest Trail Association, the United States Forest Service – Mt. Baker Ranger District, Whatcom Chapter of Back Country Horseman of Washington, Whatcom County Parks and Recreation Department, Whatcom Events (Ski to Sea Race), the Whatcom Land Trust, and Wild and Scenic River Tours. Planning assistance was provided by the National Park Service’s Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance Program.
This manual is written to provide stormwater managers and site designers with a common understanding of Low Impact Development (LID) goals and objectives, site assessment considerations, and a toolbox of stormwater Best Management Practices (BMP) applicable to the Lower Maumee and Ottawa River watersheds. BMP information includes design guidelines, specifications, details, and maintenance concerns as well as assistance in selecting the BMPs based on the unique characteristics of a particular site. This is a technical manual and the information provided is targeted toward engineers, planners, landscape architects, and technical staff, as well as policy makers and developers.
In addition, this manual will help to foster a watershed approach to improving water quality within the region. With this understanding, the manual focuses on stormwater BMPs that apply across the two watersheds, ranging from using vegetated buffers in agricultural areas to vegetated roofs in urban areas. The aspiration is to create a user-friendly watershed-wide LID Manual to help protect the rivers and streams within the Lower Maumee and Ottawa River watersheds.
Stormwater that dirty, oily runoff from streets and parking lots that contaminates local streams is a leading cause of water pollution in Ohio and around the country. American Rivers and Midwest Environmental Advocates released a report, “Local Water Policy Innovation: A Road Map for Community Based Stormwater Solutions” to help citizens tackle this pervasive problem and ensure clean water in their communities.
The threats posed by stormwater are caused locally, seen locally, and are best addressed locally. Stormwater pollution begins when natural landscapes are altered, changing the way water moves over the land. Hard structures such as parking lots and rooftops prevent water from naturally soaking into the ground. The rain water picks up pollution from streets and runs off into local streams. A typical 10-acre parking lot will create 270,000 gallons of polluted stormwater runoff after only one inch of rain. Our paved surfaces and rooftops generate 16-times more runoff than the fields they replace, increasing the frequency and severity of flash flooding. Due to sprawling impervious surfaces, many urban areas now lose between 300 and 690 billion gallons of water annually that would otherwise be filtered back into groundwater and drinking water supplies.
This report explains how to improve stormwater policies in local communities and capture the attention of policy makers. Local governments already have the processes in place to ensure good stormwater practices with zoning districts, site plan reviews, zoning ordinances, and Comprehensive Plans now it’s time to act.
By following the steps and guidelines in this report, citizens will be on their way to reducing stormwater pollution and making lasting changes in policy that preserve the natural landscape so many enjoy in local parks and at local waterways.
