The USGS is reporting at http://waterdata.usgs.gov/md/nwis/uv?01646500 plans to cut the Little Falls gauge on the Potomac due to lack of partner funding. The USGS states:
NOTICE (03/31/05) –“As of June 30, 2005, data collection at this streamgage will be discontinued due to funding reductions from local agencies. Although historic data will remain accessible, no new data will be collected unless one or more new funding partners are found. Users who can contribute funding for the non-Federal share of costs to continue operation of this streamgage should contact the USGS Maryland, DC, Delaware Water Science Center at 410-238-4259 or email gtfisher@usgs.gov.”
This is the most significant gauge for sustaining whitewater recreation in the Washington, DC metropolitan area. Thousands of boaters and hundreds of businesses rely on access on this gauge for accurate, timely information about water flows. River level changes of as little as 1/10th of a foot result in real differences in visitor experiences from a safety and entertainment standpoint. Access to this streamgauge helps to sustain the whitewater market throughout the DC region. Boating classes rely on this streamgage data to schedule locations and dates of trips and roll clinics; Potomac Whitewater Festival organizers rely on this data to determine sites for rodeo competition; emergency response services use this data to schedule swiftwater training clinics and to determine launch points for rescue crafts at different levels; the water utilities require this information to monitor withdrawals from the river, business owners in Georgetown use this gauge to predict damage or risks from flooding; and even the National Park Service uses this data to judge when rangers need to patrol the shore to reduce the risk of rock hopping fatalities (generally at levels between 3 and 4.5 feet).
The gage will cost $11,500 to maintain in 2005 and a little over $12,000 in 2006. The USGS can provide almost half the funding to cover the expense of operating this gauge; the remaining $6040 is supplied by partners. Historically these matching funds have been provided by the Council of Governments, which has withdrawn their funding for this project.
The USGS is optimistic that the Council or the local water utilities will step up and provide funding to continue this guage, particularly as the utilities have a streamgaging requirement in their water withdrawal permits.
Loss of this streamgage would be terrible for Potomac boaters whether they are floating downstream from Angler’s Inn, paddling up to the Chutes, running Great Falls, or training for the Olympics at Brookmont.
Please call or email Mr. David Robertson, Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, Executive Director, 202-962-3260, drobertson@mwcog.org and Mr. Steven Bieber, Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, Water Resources Technical Manager, 202-962-3219, sbieber@mwcog.org and ask the Council to restore funding for 2005 and 2006 or to work to secure funding from new sources before the gauge is removed from operation.
Also contact:
National Park Service, Superintendent Audrey Calhoun, George Washington Memorial Parkway, c/o Turkey Run Park, McLean, Virginia 22101 or fax 703-285-2223.
Maryland Office of Tourism, Dennis M.Castleman, Director, 410-767-6266, dcastleman@mdwelcome.org
Virginia Office of Tourism, Martha W. Steger APR, Director of Public Relations, 804-371-8169, msteger@virginia.org
When you contact these individuals, please be courteous, but make the following points clear:
- I am a boater, I live in ______, I use or intend to use the Little Falls streamgage. Describe how.
- I spend $____ in the region each year boating.
- This gauge has important public health and safety uses in addition to recreation.
- I am concerned about the potential loss of this gauge and ask that extraordinary measures be taken to preserve it.
If you learn anything new that will be helpful in protecting this gauge, please tell American Whitewater.