Articles

First Published in Site Zed, a web site for essays on paddlesports. http://www.sitezed.com/life-and-death-beyond-the-edge/ Please check the link for more articles and thoughtful comments on this essay. Used by permission Life and Death Beyond the Edge   I watched a man die, for the first time, on the Green River.  Witt was vertically pinned against a tombstone shaped rock at the bottom of Chiefs.  I was scouting Gorilla when I heard shouting. “He’s pinned” a panicked voice rang out.  I turned and

The Bureau of Land Management manages more than 2.5 million acres in western Oregon. These lands provide forest products, fish and wildlife habitat, and countless recreation opportunities including whitewater recreation. Unlike national forests, BLM western Oregon public lands are generally not large contiguous blocks. A "checkerboard" of lands make up these federal lands. Currently the BLM is updating their management plan for these lands and the associated rivers and as part of this process they are evaluating rivers for their eligibility

  As an organization, American Whitewater has been quite fortunate to have a committed group of volunteer Board of Directors that provides the organization with high-level oversight and strategic direction. American Whitewater’s Directors are the trustees of organization and act as fiduciaries for the members we serve. AW Directors are responsible for all policy outcomes of the organization including: Strategic direction and initiatives Organizational governance Monitoring operational performance including the fiscal health of the organization and working with the Executive

The lack of clarity regarding the rights of residents and visitors to paddle Virginia's certain rivers and streams has long been an unnecessary source of conflict.  Virginians are now ready to change that by clarifying that in Virginia people have the widely supported right to float down rivers.  Thanks to this grassroots effort, a new stream access bill, SB 737, has recently been introduced in the state legislature that needs your support.   If you are from Virginia, please look

In 2011, Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkely reintroduced legislation to create the Cathedral Rock and Horse Heaven Wilderness Areas in Eastern Oregon. If passed, the legislation would protect almost 18,000 acres as wilderness along the John Day River, which flows freely along its entire length. The river provides habitat for diverse species, including wild steelhead and Chinook salmon, and the area is home to stunning basalt cliffs and rolling hills of high desert juniper and sagebrush. It's no

On December 19th I represented American Whitewater at the annual meeting of their Whitewater Advisory Committee for Summersville Dam . The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which manages the project, has worked closely with whitewater interests for many years. After whitewater was declared a project purpose of the dam in the early 80's the Corps worked closely with commercial and private paddlers to make the famous Gauley Season run smoothly. Their management plan takes into account both lake and downstream

  We are pleased to announce that Bob Nasdor has accepted our offer to become American Whitewater’s Northeast Stewardship Director.  Bob brings a wealth of experience to the position from his 20-year career as a public interest attorney.  Bob served as the executive and legal director for several programs aimed at improving policies and services benefitting low-income and homeless families.   Following these roles he served as the Assistant Attorney General for the state of Massachusetts and has since formed a

This fall, American Whitewater joined with other conservation and recreation groups to file a "Friend of the Court" brief in a case before the Supreme Court. The case addresses whether municipalities should be responsible for cleaning up stormwater pollution. The case was originally brought by NRDC and Santa Monica Baykeeper in 2008. Los Angeles County and the Los Angeles County Flood Control District had violated their NPDES permit under the Clean Water Act, and the organizations sued to hold them

American Whitewater is proud to announce Adam Rettig as our December Volunteer of the Month! AW's Kevin Colburn had this to say about Adam's overall stellarness: A few months ago Adam Rettig called us up and offered to volunteer his mad statistics skills and knowledge of water management. He didn't really care what the project was – he just wanted to help out and keep his skills sharp. After discussing a few possible projects the perfect opportunity came up for

Colorado – American Whitewater is pleased to announce the addition of Chris Menges as a Stewardship Fellow in Colorado, where he joins our Colorado River Program as the Gunnison River Stewardship Assistant.  Chris will be working with AW staff on ongoing strategic efforts to define recreational flow-needs across the Colorado River basin, and to grow our network of grassroots activists engaged in advancing river management policies at the state and federal levels.  In this new role, Chris will work with

  American Whitewater has received a third 4-star rating from Charity Navigator, America's largest and most-utilized independent evaluator of charities.   Dec 1, 2012, Charity Navigator announced that American Whitewater has earned its third consecutive 4-star rating. Receiving four out of a possible four stars indicates that American Whitewater adheres to good governance and other best practices that minimize the chance of unethical activities and consistently executes its mission in a fiscally responsible way. Only 9% of the nonprofits Charity

Deadline approaching: You have through Midnight Pacific Time, December 14th to cast your vote. As an organization, American Whitewater has been quite fortunate to have a committed group of volunteer Board of Directors that provides the organization with high-level oversight and strategic direction. To sustain this healthy and vibrant board an effective process is in place to insure an appropriate transition of Directors over time. This transition process balances the need for fresh ideas with appropriate leadership continuity. Current American Whitewater members

It’s not too early to be thinking about the Holiday gifts you’ll need for all the river enthusiasts on your list. No matter if they’re at home on the water, or just enjoy supporting river stewardship, an AW Membership is the perfect gift choice! For 2012, we've put together a great Membership deal: An American Whitewater Membership plus an AW 2013 Calendar all for just $45. We think it’s a great gift to give to any river lover, or heck, a

Just a friendly reminder: an American Whitewater membership makes the perfect gift for the paddler or river-lover in your life! We've made buying one super easy and quick too. Just fill out our Gift Membership form and we'll take care of the rest. If they already have an AW membership, no problem, we'll just add on another year to it. You get to give a great gift and support your favorite non-profit at the same time. Awesome!

The 2013 American Whitewater calendar is now available for puchase! Each year, we collect the best photos from our gracious  fans and pick out our favorites for our annual calendar. We then sell this calendar and use the funds to support our river stewardship work. It's an awesome fundraiser and a product that we know you'll love. Please consider picking up one (or thirty six) of them today. Thanks!

The 4th ANNUAL YOUGH DEFENSE PARTY will be held on Thursday, November 15th at Wilderness Voyageur's Falls City Pub in Ohiopyle, PA starting at 4:30 pm. –  The event features live music by Meadow Run (5:00 pm) & the Ferncliff Collective (9:00 pm ). Food and drink will be served after 6:00 pm. A great silent auctiom begins  at 5:00 pm; the first phase ends at 8:15 pm, and the second phase ends at 8:45  pm. There will be 20

It's easy to become a high-level supporter of American Whitewater with our Membership installment plans. With these plans, you can pay for any AW membership over $250 in your choice of 4 or 12 annual payments. Maybe you're eyeing one of our awesome member rewards or looking to offset your taxes for next year. Or, maybe you just love saving rivers! Regardless, we hope you'll consider increasing your membership level through our installment program. All memberships over $250 are eligible and you

Earlier this week, Free Flow Power willingly surrendered permits granting them exporation and development rights associated with two proposed new dams on New York's Black River.  The proposed Felts Mills and Great Bend dams, if built, would have inundated 4.8 miles of the Black River that is currently free flowing.    American Whitewater formally intervened in the permitting process for the Felts Mills and Great Bend hydropower projects in 2010.  In our intervention we stressed that these proposed projects required