Articles

Starting on March 21st Denny Alsop, a 69-year old member of Housatonic River Initiative and a Berkshire county grandfather and canoe builder, will set out, for the second time in his life, on a month-long canoe canoe trip across Massachusetts to bring attention to the importance of clean water for the Commonwealth. “I last made this journey in 1988 and many of the rivers I plan to travel are cleaner now than they were a generation ago,” said Alsop. “But

Idaho Power announced that as of March 7th they have stopped generating power at their upper dam on the Malad River, likely for the remainder of 2016. This dam normally removes a large percentage of the flow from roughly half of the Class IV whitewater run on the Malad.  The project shut down is necessary for the replacement of a turbine in the powerhouse. Paddlers can expect higher flows and a much longer season on the upper half of the

The Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), American Whitewater and other consultation group members including Jim Eicher, BLM Mother Lode Associate Field Manager, have scheduled the required 2016 recreational flows for South Fork Silver Creek below Ice House Reservoir and the South Fork American River below Slab Creek Dam. The releases are part of the FERC license for the Upper American River Hydropower Project and this will be the first required release for the long awaited gem of the South Fork

The Dolores River was named the "River of Sorrows" by early Spanish explorers, though they never could have guessed how fitting that name would become.  The water of the Dolores River today, is a fully-allocated resource. A transbasin diversion takes the water from the Dolores River to serve the agricultural communities of Southwest Colorado in the San Juan River Basin. But at what cost? With persistent drought, declining native fish populations, and increased agricultural demands, the impacts of the Trans-Basin

Hydropower License Implementation American Whitewater remains engaged during the implementation of a new hydropower license to insure elements that protect our river habitat, provide access and recreational flows are fully executed within the spirit of what was originally negotiated, Take, for example, the Sacramento Municipal Utility District’s (SMUD) Upper American River Project. This is the project that feeds flows into Pacific Gas & Electric’s Chili Bar Reservoir, which in turn provides flows for the South Fork American River below Chili

Last week, American Whitewater recommended that the U.S. Forest Service assess whether numerous whitewater rivers in California are eligible for Wild and Scenic status. The agency is currently revising Forest Plans for the Inyo, Sequoia and Sierra National Forests, and this process provides an opportunity to evaluate rivers for whether they are eligible for Wild and Scenic designation. If a river is found eligible through this process, the Forest Service protects the values that could make it worthy for Wild

We are pleased to recognize Edgar Peck as the Volunteer of the Month for February, 2016.  Edgar is a fixture on the classic Watauga River near Boone, North Carolina, so it was only natural that he discovered an opportunity to establish public access at the river's put-in.  Edgar then developed key partnerships with the landowner, local government representatives, a land trust, and funders to purchase a tract of land at the put in and develop a management plan. It was

Army Corps announces 2016 F.E. Walter Dam water release schedule The U.S. Army Corps Engineers’ Philadelphia District released the 2016 Flow Management Plan for the Francis E. Walter Dam in White Haven, PA. The plan, developed in partnership with Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, lists dates and release amounts for whitewater and fisheries releases for the 2016 recreation season. The plan incorporates several changes from the previous year agreed upon by partner

A coalition of conservation groups filed suit this past week to protect Puget Sound Chinook salmon, steelhead and bull trout – all threatened with extinction – from being killed by the Electron hydroelectric project on the Puyallup River.   "Wild salmon and steelhead are part of who we are in the Pacific Northwest, and protecting this habitat is critical to their recovery. This is a clear-cut case of illegal 'take' of three species threatened with extinction," said Andrea Rodgers, attorney

The Washington Department of Natural Resources is embarking on a new planning project that will guide recreation on DNR-managed lands in the Nooksack River and Whatcom Lake watersheds for the next 10-15 years (view planning website). The plan will help DNR ensure recreation on DNR-managed lands in the Whatcom County area is fun and sustainable for years to come.   For river runners, the DNR lands include sections of the North Fork Nooksack River downstream of the Canyon (including land