The Friends of the Potomac is a new private non-profit, watershed-wide organization formally created to help local governments, private groups, communities, and businesses to conserve, protect, restore, revitalize, interpret, and enjoy the Potomac River watershed.
The following activities and projects were selected to highlight the major achievements of 1999. By no means are these all of the significant accomplishments of the Friends or their partner organizations.
National Park Service & River Navigator: A formal partnership has been created between the Friends of the Potomac and NPS-the lead federal agency for the American Heritage River Initiative (AHR), to help States, Regional and local governments, and the private sector implement a vision for the watershed. The Department of Interior’s Fish and Wildlife Service has agreed to fund the River Navigator’s salary in 2000.
Federal Agency Team: A team of Federal Agency representatives has been organized and eleven agencies are assisting, and willing continue to help, the Friends and their partner organizations. The initial commitments made by the agencies are described in the 23 actions identified in A Commitment to the Potomac.
Potomac Caucus: A Potomac River Watershed Congressional Caucus has been formed to assist the Friends and other watershed leaders to implement their vision for the Potomac. The Caucus has demonstrated its commitment to this effort by supporting funding for 2000, recognizing July 30 as Potomac River Day, and supporting the Congress for the Potomac and Leadership Potomac projects.
Strategic Business Plan: The Friends have completed a plan for 2000 including project, budget, and staffing priorities and commitments, and plans for creation of the Councils, Board elections and membership-drive.
Action: Federal and private sector funding and technical assistance has been secured to continue work on the following locally led priority projects:
Leadership Potomac
Regional Heritage Tourism Initiative
Congress for the Potomac
Community Partner Workshops
The Nation’s River Bass Tournament
Shad Restoration Project
Integrated Science and Humanities Educational Curriculum
Pendleton County, WV Poultry Waste Digester Evaluation
Overall, $ 393,000 in public and private funding has been secured, since January
1999, to help the Friends and their community partners implement the Potomac
AHR.
Potomac Celebration: The first annual Potomac River Day celebration was held, on Roosevelt Island with close to 200 Congressional, federal government and watershed leaders, to: recognize the anniversary of the Potomac AHR designation; honor six locally-led, and federally assisted, Potomac projects; and, announce the initial Federal support for community-based activities in the watershed.
Land Trust Workshop: The Potomac AHR effort assisted the Potomac Conservancy and others, with the first Potomac Land Trust Workshop. The purpose of the dialogue, which was attended by 45 watershed leaders, was to find ways to strengthen the collective efforts of the land trust community to work with private landowners and public officials on voluntary land conservation and restoration efforts.
Anacostia Community Summit: The Friends of the Potomac co-sponsored and provided financial and technical assistance for the December 1999 Anacostia River Community Summit. The purpose of the summit, which was attended by over 200 community, District, and federal leaders, was to create an opportunity for community dialogue and begin to develop a community vision for lands along the Anacostia River.
African American Heritage: The Potomac River: A Guide to African American
Heritage was completed with help from the National Park Service. The guide sought to begin a partnership with the International Network to Freedom Association to give more attention to the African American experience within the Potomac watershed. The guide uses narrative and geographic information system data to develop, and celebrate a network of sites directly related to African American heritage.
Chesapeake Bay Agreement: The Friends established The Potomac American
Heritage River Watershed Agreement with the Chesapeake Bay Program. The agreement, reached with the Federal Agencies Committee, intends to support community-based efforts and commitments the Bay Program to support AHR projects, assist the Navigator, complete an inventory of federal programs, and provide geographic information.
National Tournament: A Nation’s River Bass Tournament is scheduled for
June 8-9,2000 to recognize the importance of clean water, the value of the Lower
Potomac bass fishery, and the role American sportsmen have played in the conservation and clean up of the Potomac. The event, which is being led by the Friends, the Alexandria Seaport Foundation and the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency, will be used to generate funds to support local fishery-related projects.
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