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Potomac River
The Potomac Watershed
The Potomac American Heritage River covers the entire 14,670 square mile
Potomac watershed, including major tributaries such as the South Branch,
North Branch, Shenandoah, Monocacy, Anacostia, and Occoquan Rivers. This
watershed extends through four states (Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland,
Pennsylvania) and the District of Columbia. The basin is predominately forested
(approximately 55 percent), with smaller areas of agriculture and urban
and suburban development. Some five million people live in the basin, with
more than three and one-half million of them in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan
area. Almost all of this metropolitan area is in the Potomac watershed.
Friends of the Potomac
Friends of the Potomac, a nonprofit corporation, submitted the Potomac's
American Heritage River nomination. The Friends helps communities throughout
the watershed in their efforts to conserve natural resources and create
new business opportunities while retaining their distinctive local character
and traditions. The Friends' goals include: (1) protecting and restoring
water quality and living resources; (2) promoting enjoyment of our natural,
recreational and heritage assets; (3) encouraging more citizen involvement
in community decision-making; and (4) fostering sustainable economic development.
The Friends is a membership organization, open to all interested individuals
and organizations in the basin. Governance is by a board of directors, consisting
of 18 elected members, a chair, and a president (the senior staff person).
Potomac AHR Partners
This initiative is coordinated by the National Park Service as the lead
federal agency, the River Navigator as the contact/liaison for all federal
assistance, a Federal Agencies Team, and Friends of the Potomac as the lead
community organization.
River Navigator
Acting River Navigator, Glenn Eugster
National Park Service, National Capital Region
Partnerships Office
1100 Ohio Drive, SW, Room 350
Washington, DC 20242
(202)619-7492 telephone
(202)619-7220 telefax
E-mail: glenn_eugster@nps.gov
Potomac AHR Federal Agencies Team
NPS and the river navigator have assembled a Federal Agencies Team which
includes EPA (Office of Water, Region 3, and Chesapeake Bay Program Office),
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources
Conservation Service, USDA-Forest Service, the Army Corps of Engineers,
the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Office of Surface Mining,
and the Chesapeake Bay Program's Federal Agencies Committee.
A Commitment to the Potomac River
At a July 30, 1999, ceremony on Theodore Roosevelt Island, in Washington,
D.C., public agencies and private organizations announced their commitments
to helping implement the Potomac AHR Initiative. Fourteen members of the
Potomac Congressional delegation joined in proclaiming July 30 as "Potomac
River Day," pledging their continued support for increasing public awareness
and appreciation of the river's value and assets, implementing the "Leadership
Potomac" training initiative to help local leaders to conserve, protect,
restore, and revitalize their communities, and urging citizens, private
organizations, and government agencies to participate in a watershed-wide
forum, scheduled for fall 2000. Friends of the Potomac awarded 1999 "Friend
of the Potomac Awards" to six community-based initiatives, whose leaders
worked with federal agencies to revitalize and conserve their watershed.
These projects exemplify the value of using federal programs in combination
with state and local public and private resources, as envisioned in the
American Heritage Rivers Initiative. Friends of the Potomac committed to
assisting federal agencies to improve delivery of their services and programs
to local governments and community leaders through publicizing agency activities
and making program information available at workshops. Federal agency commitments
include a variety of efforts from a wide range of agencies, including Army
Corps of Engineers, Canaan Valley Institute, Department of Housing and Urban
Development, Environmental Protection Agency, National Park Service, Office
of Surface Mining, The Conservation Fund, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(US-FWS), US-FWS National Conservation Training Center, USDA Forest Service,
USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). The National Park Service-National
Capital Region has agreed to serve as the Potomac AHR's lead federal agency,
to cooperate with the Friends of the Potomac to develop strategies for achieving
the goals of the Potomac initiative, and to identify federal agencies and
existing programs that might contribute to these goals. NPS and the US Fish
and Wildlife Service have agreed to work together to support the Potomac's
river navigator.
Friends of the Potomac's Programs
Leadership Potomac. A watershed-based community leadership
program, was launched in February 2001, and consists of seven two-day sessions
where participants gain leadership skills relating to the issues of the
Potomac River and its surrounding communities. Leadership Potomac's
goal is to foster the growth of a broad-based group of leaders and emerging
leaders who will become connected by the unifying force of the Potomac River
and a common language of leadership. Leadership Potomac helps build
bridges between the Friends of the Potomac and local citizens throughout
the watershed, as well as reinforcing long-standing connections with key
Friends organizations. In the monthly sessions local citizens' willingly
give their time and skills to educate program participants, and these citizens
are in turn impressed by the participant's eagerness to listen, to learn
and to hear about their goals and problems in a supportive and non-judgmental
manner. Leadership Potomac creates a setting where much of the
learning flows from the various backgrounds and perspectives the participants
bring to the sessions. The sessions are lively, informative and action-filled.
Over time, Leadership Potomac will create a new cadre of leaders
who will guide the decisions needed to restore and protect our Nation's
river
Community Partner Workshops. This watershed program is
in its third year and is focusing on local needs. The Workshop program is
designed to assist Potomac communities, specifically local government and
community-based organizations. By assisting local planning teams, Friends
of the Potomac staff and the River Navigator are helping groups to define
and implement local initiatives related to: water quality and living resources;
recreational and heritage assets; citizen involvement in community decision-making;
and sustainable economic development. Specific workshop goals are to identify
community projects and needs; define local vision and set action-oriented
goals; identify sources of assistance with fed/state agencies, companies,
and foundations; and encourage collaboration and decision-making at the
local level.
Nation's River Bass Tournament. The Friends of the Potomac
and the Alexandria Seaport Foundation hosted the 2nd annual Nation's River
Bass Tournament on June 1, 2001 to benefit further restoration of the Potomac
River. The goal of the tournament is to draw attention to the importance
of water quality in the restored Potomac River and to raise funds for community-led
revitalization and youth education projects within the 15,000 square mile
watershed. Highlights in year two, included a launch of 50 bass boats sponsored
by local businesses and corporations; 35 urban youth fishing on the Potomac
for the first time; and an exciting picnic and weigh-in celebration with
live music and great food. The range of organizations and businesses that
supported and participated in this year's event was a great testament to
the power of partnerships and the potential for future Potomac watershed
efforts. Special recognition is made to Waste Management, Fannie Mae, PEPCO,
and Red Hot and Blue and the National Park Service who provided invaluable
support throughout the planning and development of the event
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