Brochure

Background

"Today we are going to rededicate our country to restoring our river heritage, and to reaffirm one of our oldest values, the importance of safeguarding our national treasures for all generations to come."

- President Clinton
Announcing the Implementation of the American Heritage Rivers Initiative

Throughout our nation, rivers and streams flow over more than three million miles: like threads, they tie communities together and play an integral part in our geography. But the picture has not always been perfect. Over the years, some of our greatest American cities faced serious challenges--traditional manufacturing jobs moved elsewhere; local companies were sold or laid off workers; polluted rivers wound through these cities, and abandoned factories lined their banks. In rural areas, valuable farmland was converted to more intensive uses; young men and women left their hometowns behind in search of jobs; cultural treasures suffered neglect; and river banks often served as dumping grounds.

Yet, in several places, caring citizens came together and designed long term goals and innovative solutions to clean up their rivers, rejuvenate the areas that surrounded them, and stimulate economic growth. The partnerships they formed are hailed as models of how an active public, local businesses, and government agencies can make dramatic improvements. The American Heritage Rivers Initiative is founded upon the belief that people and nature can exist in productive harmony. It embodies the vision of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 to meet the social and economic needs of Americans, today and in the future.

Consider your community. With resources from state, tribal, and local governments and the community, American Heritage Rivers could help you achieve goals like these:

• A rural community's goal could be to support the local ranching economy and attract family-oriented tourism by providing an overnight destination for people en route to nearby national parks. With help from American Heritage Rivers, the community can enhance drinking water for domestic and livestock use; construct a riverfront park with vehicle access, picnic area, campground, and playground facilites in a greenway between the river and a highway paralleling the river; plant native species of trees to provide riverfront shade and enhance fish habitats; rehabilitate an old livery and feedstore for use as a community museum; and assist with the conversion of an old hacienda into lodging, stables, and meeting rooms.
• An urban community's goal could be to provide jobs, attract commercial enterprises, and enhance the local tax base. American Heritage Rivers facilitates the community's efforts to design an urban riverfront plaza; renovate an abandoned warehouse into a restaurant and microbrewery; improve flood protection for low-lying commercial areas; construct a bicycle and pedestrian trail along a five-mile greenway that links the downtown with an outlying county park, and adds bicycle commuter parking at the park; install benches, new lighting, and other street improvements in the riverfront commercial enterprise area; and rehabilitate the commercial properties through tax credits and low-interest loans.

American Heritage Rivers Initiative

"Our waterways connect our cities together ... rivers are not only the arteries of commerce, they carry the lifeblood of the American story."

Vice President Gore

In his 1997 State of the Union Address, President Clinton announced the American Heritage Rivers initiative to help communities revitalize their rivers and the banks along them--the streets, the historic buildings, the natural habitats, the parks--to help celebrate their history and their heritage. In early 1998, the President will select ten American Heritage Rivers. According to the needs they identify, communities along these rivers will receive special assistance. American Heritage Rivers is an umbrella initiative designed to more effectively use the federal government's many resources. Environmental, economic, and social concerns will be addressed through a plan that is designed and driven by the local community. The initiative creates no new regulatory requirements for private property owners, or for state, tribal, or local governments. Participation in the nomination process is voluntary; a community can decide to withdraw at any time.Focused Support for American Heritage Rivers

There are three objectives of American Heritage Rivers:

• economic revitalization, natural resource and environmental protection, and historic and cultural preservation. Once a community is chosen, a single contact, called a "River Navigator," will be available to help citizens facilitate federal assistance to complement existing project resources, helping them achieve the goals of their self-designed plan.
• In addition to providing the River Navigator, federal agencies will make existing field staff available to each American Heritage River to help match community needs with available resources from current programs. For example, the River Navigator could work with the community to address pollution problems, attract local entrepreneurs and small businesses, improve flood protection, protect agricultural land, and watersheds, rebuild historic docks and buildings, restore eroded stream banks, and seek out economic opportunities.
• Communities along American Heritage Rivers will receive improved access to technical and financial assistance from federal agencies. These agencies will work with community members and act as "good neighbors" by making the community aware of federal actions in the area and striving to complement these activities with community goals. This initiative, based on Vice President Gore's efforts to reinvent government, directs federal agencies to do more with less, to serve the citizens and cut red tape. It is not an attempt to take on new authorities and responsibilities, and River Navigators will not make the decisions; communities will. Improved Services and Information for all Communities

Tracking down relevant information and expertise can be complicated and time consuming. American Heritage Rivers Services coordinates and streamlines information on those programs relevant to life on our country's rivers. Now, instead of making scores of phone calls, you can visit American Heritage Rivers Services, an easy-to-use World Wide Web site. Those who do not have Internet access can call 1-888-40RIVER to request information.

Visitors to American Heritage Rivers Services may choose from categories such as:

• Information Centers, Publications, Maps and Databases
• Calendars, Discussion Groups, and Contacts
• Hands On Assistance and Talent Banks
• Laws and Regulations
• Financial Assistance
• Community Outreach Tools, Curricula, and Professional Training
• Data Collection and Evaluation Techniques
• Planning and Management Tools
• Research and Development

Each entry describes the services and provides contacts for further information, including Internet links (where possible). Using familiar prompts, such as a river or city name, users can locate information on flood events, population change, road networks, the condition of the water resources, and the partnerships already at work in their area. They can make customized maps and download them, find information on relevant educational programs, link their own information, or enter into a dialogue with others.Special Benefits for Qualified Applicants

In recognition of the substantial effort undertaken by those communities who complete and submit the American Heritage Rivers nomination packet, qualified applicants will receive:

• An invitation to a national or regional symposium on partnering and sharing information about the tools and resources available from federal, state, and local agencies, non-governmental and other community organizations. These symposia will also provide community members an opportunity to give important feedback to federal program managers.
• Relevant site-specific data and computer software, including environmental information, maps, community planning software and economic modeling tools. The information packet will be tailored to meet the community's needs as identified in its application.

Additional Considerations for Designating American Heritage Rivers

Applications will be judged by a diverse group of experts. After evaluating individual nominations, the following considerations will be taken into account by panel members when making their recommendations to the President:

• The ten rivers, individually and as a group, represent the natural, historic, cultural, social, and economic diversity of American waterways.
• The ten designated rivers showcase a variety of stream sizes and an assortment of urban, rural, and mixed settings from around the country. The panel may recommend both relatively pristine and degraded rivers.
• The rivers highlight a variety of innovative programs such as historic preservation, arts development, wildlife management, fisheries restoration, recreation, community revitalization, agricultural practices, public health and drinking water source protection, and flood plain and watershed management.
• The rivers include community partnerships in an early stage of development as well as those that are more well established.
• The rivers stand to benefit from requested federal assistance.

For more information on American Heritage Rivers, see the web site at http://www.epa.gov/rivers/ or call 1-888-40RIVER. A Federal Register Notice, published on September 17, 1997, provides more details on the nomination process.

How Do Communities Nominate A River?

The nomination packet must include a completed American Heritage Rivers Cover Sheet and responses to items 1 to 4, listed below. Responses to items 3 and 4 constitute the primary basis for evaluating nominations. For more specifics on format and methods to submit a nomination, please refer to the cover sheet found on the enclosed insert.

1. Describe the proposed American Heritage River area.
   Define the proposed area and describe its natural qualities and current uses--for example, economic activities, population patterns and topography. The size may vary from a short stretch to the whole length of the river. It can cover land immediately adjacent to the river, such as the waterfront and streamside areas, or span the entire watershed. The scope of the area, however, should be sufficient to achieve the community's goals.
2. Describe the notable resource qualities in the area.
   Explain how the natural, economic (including agricultural), scenic, historic, cultural, and/or recreational resources are distinctive or unique.
3. Describe the community's plan of action.
   Demonstrate that the community has in hand, or is developing, a clearly defined plan of action to achieve its vision for the river area. Applicants are expected to address all three American Heritage Rivers objectives--economic revitalization, natural resource and environmental protection, and historic and cultural preservation--either through planned actions or past accomplishments. Any actions planned on the designated river area should not adversely impact neighboring communities. The community may describe both long-term plans and short-term actions. It should also describe how private property rights will be respected.

At a minimum, the plan of action should address:

• Community vision
• Products and projects, including project maintenance
• Resources, both committed and anticipated, including means of generating additional support from both private and public sources
• Expected federal role
• Schedule or timeline
• Citizen involvement
• Public education
• Logistical support, operating procedures and policies
• Prior accomplishments, if relevant, and relationship to existing plans and projects in the area
• Challenges to community action
• Measures of performance
4. Illustrate who supports the nomination and plan of action.

Demonstrate that a range of citizens and organizations support the nomination and plan of action. Provide evidence that all members of the community have had an opportunity to comment on and discuss the nomination and plan of action. Supporters should reflect the diversity of the community. As appropriate, they should include farmers, ranchers, landowners, businesses and industries, educational and arts organizations, youth groups, community leaders, developers and community development organizations, historical societies, environmental groups and other nonprofit organizations, elected officials, and state, tribal, and local governments. Those who rely on the resources but live outside the area should also be included in discussions about the plan of action, but may not submit a nomination.

Describe the nature and scope of the supporters' roles. Demonstrate that they come from all affected jurisdictions. As appropriate, describe how past and continuing partnerships or agreements support the nomination proposal. If relevant, describe partnerships or agreements that were forged and commitments that were made specifically to support the American Heritage Rivers nomination proposal.

Letters of endorsement and support are highly recommended, especially those from elected officials and appropriate state, tribal, and local governments. Letters from federal agencies will not be accepted.

 

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