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| Rio Grande River
Signs Memorandum of Understanding |
 Photo by John H. McShane |
| Congressman Silvestre Reyes signing the American Heritage Rivers Rio Grande MOU at a ceremony at the White House on January 27, 1999. Looking on is George Frampton, Chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality and Elizabeth Flores, Mayor of Laredo. |
Volume 2 Number 1
February, 1999
[Note: For a list of contacts to obtain further information on any of the items below, click on the river heading at the top of each and click on the river contacts.]
The community has requested the Environmental Protection Agency supply the river navigator, and the agency was scheduled to advertise internally beginning in late January. The National Park Service has offered to provide administrative and other support to the river navigator. A Memorandum of Understanding has been drafted, intended for signature by the regional directors represented in the New England Federal Partners for Natural Resources, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Economic Development Administration.
At a January meeting of the New England Federal Partners for Natural Resources, the Connecticut River community requested and received a river navigator commitment from Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 1. The navigator will report to the New England Federal Partnership. EPA began advertising internally in late January, using the position description developed by the local steering committee. The community and EPA will work closely in the selection process. The US Fish and Wildlife Service will provide administrative and other necessary support to the river navigator. The agreement will be signed by regional directors, administrators, or equivalent representatives of the federal government. The governors of Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Connecticut are being asked to sign, and the document is currently under review in each state.
The Cuyahoga community has chosen the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as the number one agency of choice to sponsor the navigator for their American Heritage River. They also cited National Park Service (NPS) and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) as possibilities. NPS has offered to provide office space and other support to the river navigator that benefits the community. The Interagency Task Force is working with HUD, where support for a river navigator position is under active consideration. A draft Memorandum of Understanding was sent to the Interagency Task Force and was forwarded to NRCS, NPS, and HUD for review and comment.
Next Meetings: American Heritage Rivers Director Loretta Neumann will be meeting with community and agency representatives February 18-19, and will speak at the annual meeting of the Cuyahoga Valley Communities Council the evening of February 19. (Contact: Pete Henderson, CVCC, 440-546-5903).
The Detroit community has requested that the Department of Transportation (DOT) be the sponsoring agency and provide the river navigator. American Heritage Rivers Interagency Task Force members have met with DOT, and the community request is under active consideration, with a decision expected in February. A position description is currently under review. A memorandum of understanding is being drafted and will be available soon for agency comment. The community partner will probably ask for signatures from all the federal agencies named in the President's Executive Order.
Next Meeting(s): A special meeting focused on prioritizing projects will be held March 25, 9:00 a.m. to noon at the Metropolitan Affairs Coalition(MAC) offices. The next regular steering committee will be held April 15, 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
The community has requested that the US Forest Service be the sponsoring federal agency. The local community is considering adding the state as a signatory on the Memorandum of Understanding. An existing secretariat, which facilitates federal interagency communication and coordination, will be employed to review the Memorandum of Understanding. The original draft Memorandum of Understanding was rewritten with eight federal agencies and the University of Hawaii representing the community. A revised version has been distributed for review. The American Planning Association and federal agencies met with the local Hanalei community and university partners in early February.
The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has been chosen as the lead agency and will advertise the position once the Memorandum of Understanding has been signed. A final draft MOU is being prepared by staff of the New York Hudson River Heritage Council. State and federal agency review of the draft MOU should be completed by early March, with a signing shortly thereafter. Federal agencies will sign the MOU at regional or state administrative or director levels or the equivalent. The Hudson River Heritage Council was created by Governor Pataki's Executive Order No 85 on August 5, 1998, to support the Hudson River American Heritage Rivers designation by coordinating state activities and cooperating with federal agencies and the River Navigator.
Recently, the two separate applicants for the American Heritage Rivers designation (New Orleans, Louisiana and Memphis, Tennessee) created the Lower Mississippi American Heritage Rivers Alliance. This alliance has requested, in priority order, the following agencies be considered as sponsoring federal agency and that the sponsoring agency supply the river navigator: Department of Transportation (DOT); Department of the Interior; Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD); and the Army Corps of Engineers. A draft Memorandum of Understanding was submitted in December to the Interagency Task Force and has been forwarded to the above-named agencies for review and subsequent signature at the regional level. Meanwhile, the Louisiana sector is partnering with the Mississippi River Road Commission to provide points of contact for parishes (counties) and seeking a state champion for Initiative. The facilitator in New Orleans continues to work with other federal agencies, such as the HUD-provided community builder and a representative from the Economic Development Administration. In Memphis, the city is evaluating plans for development of its waterfront.
Next Meetings: On February 16, a public "Town Hall" meeting in Memphis is being held to discuss waterfront development. On February 22, an American Heritage Rivers working group will meet to discuss action plans and sites for potential projects.
The New River Community Partners' request for a River Navigator from the Army Corps of Engineers is under active consideration and an announcement is expected soon. The New River Community Partners have developed a one page Memorandum of Understanding to be signed with the Army Corps of Engineers and (possibly) NRCS. The Corps has indicated it can sign the MOU. It is likely that the signing will take place in a Spring ceremony at the Washington headquarters level. Meanwhile, representatives of the New River Community Partners, including Mikki Sager and Patrick Woodie, met in early February with officials at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in Washington DC about a possible Project Impact proposal to help communities with disaster mitigation.
Next Meetings: The next general meeting will be held February 25; location to be determined.
The Friends of the Potomac (the sponsoring organization for the American Heritage River designation) and the National Park Service (the lead Federal agency) have selected Glenn Eugster of the Environmental Protection Agency as the River Navigator. Glenn, formerly employed by the National Park Service, the Chesapeake Bay Program and EPA's Office of Water, began work January 19. He will be housed in the Park Service's National Capital Regional Office within Potomac Park in Washington, DC. The Friends and the NPS have jointly prepared a draft Memorandum of Understanding which is being circulated to other federal agencies for their input and approval at a March signing ceremony.
Next Meetings: Plans are underway for a meeting of the Potomac American Heritage River Federal Agency Team to be held February 22 or 23 in Washington, DC. Representatives from at least twelve federal agencies are expected to attend to discuss the Memorandum of Understanding and signing ceremony, identify ways to help the Friends of the Potomac carry out their Action Plan and establish lines of communication. Individual meetings, with Friends of the Potomac board members, member organizations and federal agencies, are being held throughout the watershed to help describe "what Potomac American Heritage River success looks like" for the first year and discuss specific Action Plan tasks.
The search for a river navigator is proceeding. The Consortium of the Rio Grande (CoRio) has requested the Environmental Protection Agency to provide funding and General Services Administration to provide office space. An MOA with federal agencies was signed January 27 in the Indian Treaty Room of the Old Executive Office Building. Mickey Ibarra, assistant to the President and Director of Intergovernmental Affairs, and George Frampton, Acting CEQ Chairman, co-hosted the ceremony attended by local mayors and Congressman Silvestre Reyes. The CoRio staff and community representatives hosted a strategic retreat January 22-24 to review and amplify the action plan. Visits to jurisdictions recently enrolled in the consortium are being scheduled for February.
Next Meetings: Twelve workshops are being scheduled over the course of this year. On February 24, an education workshop addressing workforce development needs along the Rio Grande will be held at University of Texas Pan American at Edinburg, TX in the lower Rio Grande valley. The U.S. Department of Education is participating along with Deans of Engineering and other officials of border universities.
The St. John's River Partnership Agreement is very close to being final. The federal agencies have reviewed the draft, their comments have been incorporated and the community is reviewing the latest draft. They hope to finalize the agreement within the next couple of weeks. The River Navigator position for the St. John's has been advertised. At the community's request, the River Navigators' home base will beat the Environmental Protection Agency in Washington, DC. EPA aims to have the Navigator in place by mid-late March. Plans are also underway to establish advisory committees for each of the three basins along the river. In late January, Ray Clark, associate director of the Council on Environmental Quality and representatives of the Environmental Protection Agency met with Jacksonville Mayor John Delaney to discuss environmental concerns along the St. Johns River. They toured the river by boat and saw first hand some of the pollution issues that need to be addressed.
Loretta Neumann and Roger Stephenson from the American Heritage Rivers Interagency Task Force met with about 25 representatives of 15 federal and state agencies working along the Upper Mississippi River on January 20 in Chicago. They discussed ways to work together in assisting the river communities on projects and agreed to return to their offices and seek out contacts who can serve as the "gateway" to agencies on behalf of the Upper Mississippi American Heritage River. Once identified, these agency representatives will form a team to work with the river navigator and the river communities. Team members will identify opportunities and provide information about specific agency grants and programs that could be available to implement the action plan for the Upper Mississippi. Meanwhile, a steering committee has been formed among the mayors who participated in the nomination of the Upper Mississippi American Heritage River. Local mayors are expected soon to unveil their regional marketing tool - a brochure highlighting heritage river projects along the river.
Next Meetings: The annual Upper Mississippi River Summit will be held February 24-25, 1999 at the Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport Hilton, Bloomington, MN. Issues relating to sediment and nutrient reduction will be discussed, also navigation needs and the environmental impact of barge movements on the Mississippi River. Also, February 25-26, the "Bridging the River" conference will be held at the Sheraton Plaza One Hotel, Rock Island, Ill. The conference is sponsored by the University of Minnesota. (Contact: Patrick Nunnally, 612- 625-0347.) Roger Stephenson from the American Heritage Rivers Interagency Task Force will be participating in the conference. UPPER SUSQUEHANNA- LACKAWANNA The community has requested that the Army Corps of Engineers and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in the Department of Agriculture both help sponsor the federal effort. The NRCS has agreed to provide the river navigator. A position description is under review by the community and federal participants. A draft Memorandum of Understanding is completed and is being circulated for review. It is anticipated that all agencies named in the President's Executive Order will be asked to sign the MOU. The community groups involved in the Upper Susquehanna-Lackawanna have developed a priority action plan for fiscal year 2000. Two high priority initiatives include a comprehensive geographic information system (GIS) study of the watershed's ecosystem and the creation of a revolving fund to support abandoned min land reclamation. Other projects are aimed at environmental restoration, flood protection, economic development and historic preservation.
Both the Bureau of Land Management in the Department of the Interior and the Forest Service in the Department of Agriculture have expressed an interest in being the Sponsoring Agency and supplying the River Navigator. However, the community has not yet made a request. The most recent meeting of the Willamette Restoration Initiative (the organization charged with implementing the American Heritage River designation) was on February 5, 1999, at which time the draft Memorandum of Understanding and River Navigator position descriptions were discussed. A draft Memorandum of Understanding may be ready for federal agency review by mid February.
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American Heritage Rivers Updates