Watershed Update

Buzz Williams

I-3 Revisited in South Carolina

In the spring of 2008, local conservation groups petitioned the Oconee County Council to pass a resolution against a proposed interstate highway known as I-3 coming through this upstate South Carolina county. The original proposal by Georgia politicians to build an interstate highway from Savannah, Georgia, to Knoxville, Tennessee, promoted a route for the highway through the north Georgia mountains. But heavy opposition in north Georgia counties allied with numerous local resolutions opposing this route caused proponents of I-3 to seek other options, including a route through South Carolina. The issue died down in the excitement over the November elections, and the request for an Oconee County resolution languished in committee.

Early this spring, the Chattooga Conservancy sent a letter to Oconee County Council restating the urgency of following through with the resolution. Oconee County Council granted time for a presentation by the Chattooga Conservancy, where we argued that a significant portion of the Obama Administration's "stimulus" money would go to agencies such as the state departments of transportation, thus rekindling the push for I-3. We pointed out that with opposing resolutions in place in north Georgia counties and one obvious route up Highway 11 for building the interstate, Oconee County was a "sitting duck" for a superhighway we do not want or need. The Chattooga Conservancy drafted the Oconee Resolution, which passed unanimously in stating the county's opposition to "a federally-funded interstate corridor called Interstate 3 [or any other name for such a corridor] going in, through, or near Oconee County, South Carolina."

Forest Service to Re-route Horse Trail

A view from horseback of a section of rutted and eroding horse trail that should be rerouted, near Earls Ford on the GA side of the Chattooga River. The Chattooga River District of the Chattahoochee National Forest has finally decided to address the erosion problems on a particularly bad section of the Willis Knob Horse Trail near Earls Ford at the Chattooga River. For several years the Chattooga Conservancy and concerned riders have urged the Forest Service to re-route a section of heavily used trail that runs from Earls Ford on the Georgia side of the Chattooga River, upstream to an intersection with the trail coming down from the Willis Knob Horse Camp. The Forest Service's proposal is for a re-route up to the Willis Knob Trail via a gentler slope that follows the contour. However, the Chattooga Conservancy has proposed a better route that is based on an on-the-ground survey of the area. In the coming weeks, we will be working with the Forest Service to fine tune the proposed trail in order to alleviate much ongoing erosion, and to establish a route that will not require nearly as much work to maintain at acceptable standards.

Chattooga Conservancy Lands a Big Deal for New City Park in Clayton

On May 12th, the Chattooga Conservancy signed a "consent agreement" with the United Community Bank of Clayton, and the City of Clayton, Georgia, that paves the way for a series of events leading towards establishing a new city park on State Highway 441 adjacent to Stekoa Creek. The agreement calls for the United Community Bank to donate a 2.9 acre tract to the Chattooga Conservancy, for which the bank will receive a tax credit. The Chattooga Conservancy will then hold the property for a short time while we craft a conservation easement that will protect the land in the future, and draw up a conservation plan and site design for the park. Then, the Chattooga Conservancy will transfer the property to the City of Clayton, who will use its value as the required match for a "319" grant already secured by the city. The 319 grant funds are anticipated to help pay for eradicating all of the invasive, non-native plants growing in the 50-foot buffer zone next to Stekoa Creek, and to reestablish native plants in this riparian area. The 319 grant will also be used to restore the stream bank in the area, where needed.

The city park project will serve to demonstrate how using a buffer zone of native plants can control erosion, because the restored riparian area vegetation will serve as a filter strip for preventing erosion and sediment from entering Stekoa Creek. The native vegetation in the buffer zone will also feature drought-tolerant plants that are attractive, and possess the additional benefit of requiring little or no irrigation.

While serving as a demonstration project for restoring the riparian area and beautifying Stekoa Creek, the city park is also planned to have a small picnic area, a short nature trail with educational signs, some playground equipment, an interpretive kiosk, and a small parking lot. Donations from the community are welcome and needed for the city park; please contact the Chattooga Conservancy for details, and to get involved.

The Road Less Traveled

When Barak Obama was campaigning for president, he courted the conservation community by pledging to reinstate the infamous Roadless Rule. The Roadless Rule was put in place by the Clinton Administration during 2001 to protect about 58 million acres of roadless areas on our national forests, which are known to provide critical habitat for plants and animals as well as a host of threatened and endangered species. However, during the summer of 2004, the Clinton-era rule was effectively nullified by the Bush Administration. The Bush option for protecting roadless areas mandated that each state design their own plan for protecting these valuable areas. Several states moved forward with establishing their roadless area plans, with Colorado and Idaho leading the way. Meanwhile, litigation ensued about the Bush and Clinton Administrations' different roadless area rules.

Conflicting court opinions resulted from the ongoing litigation, and citing this, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack (who oversees the Forest Service) recently issued an interim directive that has been billed as a 1-year "time out" for the roadless area controversies. Further, Secretary Vilsack has reserved the final say about building new roads in roadless areas for himself. Unfortunately, the new directive does not stop the state-level roadless area plans already underway in states such as Idaho and Colorado. Here, groups are battling about critical flaws in the state plans, such as removing thousands of acres from protection, and the expansion of existing coal mining and utility infrastructure in the roadless areas. This puts the Obama Administration's campaign promise in serious jeopardy because all roadless areas deserve protection, due to the critical habitat they provide for so many threatened and endangered species of plants and animals.

Ephemeral Stream Protections Lost in Georgia

It was another active session for water issues in the recently completed legislative session for the Georgia Statehouse, with only a few among many bills favorable to water protection measures passing. One bitter defeat particularly important for the north Georgia area was SB 155, known to many as the "Stream Buffer Destruction Bill." The bill passed, and removes requirements for a vegetative buffer strip to protect ephemeral streams.

What exactly is an ephemeral stream, and why do they deserve protection? Ephemeral streams are those water ways that flow only after a storm or heavy rain event, and are very important elements of the larger stream ecosystem. (These streams are not human made ditches, as claimed by some SB 155 proponents.) One of the landmark studies about the importance of buffers on ephemeral streams was done by a Forest Service hydrologist right here in the Chattooga River watershed. This study, and others, clearly show that because ephemeral streams flow during storm events, they can potentially deliver tremendous sediment and pollutant loads to downstream areas unless they are protected by vegetative buffers. One study on a small 1/4 acre tract with no ephemeral stream protections showed 50 tons of sediment were delivered downstream in a single decade. Now, with no protective buffer strips required, ephemeral streams can be completely denuded during development activities, which will certainly lead to more erosion and sediment into our mountain streams, which are already suffering from too much pollutants. For more info about GA water issues and the state water plan, see also www.garivers.org (GA River Network).

Chattooga Conservancy Receives "Watershed Group of the Year" Award

Chattooga Conservancy staff graciously accepted the 2009 "Watershed Group of the Year" award from the Georgia River Network. Pictured (l to r) in front of our office are Nicole Hayler, Buzz Williams, and Melinda Fischer. Melinda recently departed for a full-time job, and our new assistant and bookkeeper is Lisa McAdams. Welcome Lisa, and thank you Melinda-we'll miss you! Early this spring, the Chattooga Conservancy was recognized as the "Watershed Group of the Year" by the Georgia River Network (GRN). The awards ceremony took place at the Classic Center in Athens, Georgia, in conjunction with the GRN's 2009 Annual Conference. April Ingle, GRN Executive Director, said "It's great to acknowledge the efforts of citizens and organizations who work tirelessly to protect the rivers they love. It's so nice to be able to give these folks a pat on the back and say 'thank you!' to them."

The GRN also noted that "Throughout their history and today, the Chattooga Conservancy can be credited with major accomplishments and actions that have effectively served to protect the Chattooga River watershed and nearby areas."