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| Stakeholders from the Lower Mississippi River Basin recently met in Memphis. |
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Dear America's Watershed Supporter,
We've met with many people and partners throughout the watershed, and I wanted to provide a brief update on the progress we’ve made over the winter and spring months. We appreciate your continued support for America's Watershed Initiative.
If you have questions or suggestions, please feel free to contact me, Jordy Jordahl, director of America’s Watershed Initiative, by e-mail at hjordahl@tnc.org.
Mark Your Calendar:
2014 America's Watershed Summit
We invite you to join us for the 2014 America’s Watershed Initiative Summit in Louisville, Kentucky, Sept. 30 through Oct. 2, to share information and engage with stakeholders from different geographies and sectors in supporting a common vision for the management and sustainable health of America’s great working river—the Mississippi—and its tributaries. Learn more or register online at www.conference.ifas.ufl.edu/AWI.
Watershed Report Card Progress
America’s Watershed report card team hosted our third and fourth big workshops. The first, for the Lower Mississippi River, took place in March at the Ducks Unlimited Headquarters in Memphis. The second, for the Arkansas and Red rivers, took place in Tulsa in May. Read a newsletter summarizing the Lower Mississippi River workshop online here.
“We had an exciting group and some great discussions among the participants at the lower river workshop in March,” said America’s Watershed Director Jordy Jordahl. “And when we met in Tulsa, we had a full house to help us gather information for the Red River and Arkansas River.”
The final sub-basin report card workshop will take place in Rapid City, South Dakota, on May 23, and the report card team will compile and organize data and information at a watershed level during a Mississippi River Watershed workshop in Washington D.C. on June 18.
The America’s Watershed Initiative report card is a project that will help people from throughout the watershed and with different interests work together to build a shared vision for the future of the Mississippi River Watershed. By working together with hundreds of key experts and stakeholders from throughout the basin’s 31 states, the report card has the unique ability to highlight some common issues and opportunities and help us work together to meet future challenges and opportunities. Learn more about the report card process at AmericasWatershed.org.
A draft version of America’s Watershed Report Card will be presented for feedback at the America’s Watershed Initiative Summit, Sept. 30 through Oct. 2 in Louisville, Kentucky.
America’s Watershed Expands Steering Committee
America’s Watershed Initiative is an informal group of stakeholders led by a steering committee that includes leaders from across the basin, representing industry and commerce, local communities, state and federal government, academia, organizations and civil society. The group formed following the America’s Inner Coast Summit in 2010, where more than 100 leaders representing business and commerce, local communities, state and federal government, academia, and civil society came together to discuss their shared interests that were tied to a healthy, productive and sustainable Mississippi River Watershed. At its conclusion, these leaders asked The Nature Conservancy and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to develop a steering committee to spearhead a new, collaborative effort that would unite diverse stakeholders behind a long-term vision for this basin, which ultimately resulted in the formation of America’s Watershed Initiative.
The steering committee members are largely responsible for the leadership and progress of America’s Watershed Initiative. Below is a list of the newly expanded steering committee members—bringing input from the upper and lower Missouri river basin and a connection to marine navigation.
America's Watershed Steering Committee
Randy Asbury
Coalition to Protect the
Missouri River |
Dru Buntin
Upper Mississippi River Basin
Association |
Sean Duffy, Sr.
Big River Coalition |
Stephen Gambrell
Mississippi River Commission,
US Army Corps of Engineers |
Teri Goodmann
City of Dubuque, Iowa |
Sue Lowry
State of Wyoming,
Upper Missouri Basin
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Steve Mathies
Lower Mississippi River Basin |
Daniel Mecklenborg
Ingram Barge Company |
Rob Rash
Mississippi Valley Flood
Control Association |
Michael Reuter
The Nature Conservancy |
Rainy Shorey, PhD
Caterpillar Inc. |
Charles Somerville
Ohio River Basin Alliance |
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Roger Wolf
Iowa Soybean Association |
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In the News
Video: USACE’s High Water Inspection
Watch a presentation by Brig. General Duke Deluca at a Mississippi River public meeting during the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ high water inspection.
Report: Restored floodplains improving water quality in the Mississippi and Gulf
A recent study developed by the University of Notre Dame is shows that floodplain forests are helping keep excess nutrients from rural and urban areas in Indiana out of the Gulf of Mexico. It highlights the pivotal role best management practices at the Wabash River can play in reducing the infamous “dead zone” in the Gulf. Read the full article or watch a 4-minute video about work to reduce nutrients in the Wabash River.
Soy Transportation Coalition Releases Waterways Study
A study recently released by the Soy Transportation Coalition is recommending public-private partnerships to fund improvements on the nation’s inland waterways. Coalition Executive Director Mike Steenhoek said that federal cuts have prompted the coalition to explore new sources of funding. Learn more.
House, Senate reach WRDA conference agreement
The House and Senate reached a conference agreement on the Water Resource Development Act (WRDA), which would provide an $8.2 billion boost to U.S. ports and waterways. Read more.
From Forbes: How Private Capital Is Restoring U.S. Wetlands
Increased compliance with the national “no net loss of wetlands” principle that grew out the 1972 Clean Water Act has significantly slowed the rate wetlands loss, but there still remains room for improvement. Read the full article.
Alliance for Water Stewardship Gaining Momentum
On April 8, more than 25 leading organizations announced their commitment to the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS) in promoting a globally consistent framework that outlines the expectations of responsible water stewardship for sustainable use of the world's limited freshwater resources. The mission of AWS is to promote responsible use of freshwater that is socially and economically beneficial as well as environmentally sustainable. Learn more.
Good News for the Upper Miss. River Restoration Program
Good things are happening with the Upper Mississippi River Restoration Program—Environmental Management Program. The Army Corps' widely distributed “Our Mississippi” e-newsletter features a recent Q&A feature/update on page 7. Read it now.
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