Upper Etowah River Site Conservation Planning Strategies Workshop

Upper Etowah River

Site Conservation Planning Strategies Workshop

Sponsored by The Nature Conservancy of Georgia

July 26-27, 2001

Cartersville, GA

"Watershed Protection Strategies"

Prepared by J. Glenn Eugster, Assistant Regional Director, Partnerships Office, National Park Service, National Capital Region, Washington, D.C.

Background:  Developing a river/ watershed conservation planning strategy requires that you know about the place you are interested in and the people who live, work and recreate within that place.   Successful conservation strategies are almost always based on some type of planning--a formula for conservation decision making.   

How do you think decisions are made?  What are the ingredients of 

a good decision?  What is your role in the decision making 

process?  How do you think things work?  These are all questions 

that are important to consider as you design your strategy.

Successful watershed conservation strategies need a way--call it a model or a decision-making formula, for linking public desires, government policies, science and management.  The formula is for understanding how a place, or a culture, works.  It's a way to understand people's relationship with nature.  It's a way to better understand a watershed so that you can help to provide better information to decision-makers.

What formula do you use when you think about a strategy for the Etowah River watershed?  Whether you know it or not, you have one. Whether you've written it down on paper or have it rambling around inside your head, you have a personal strategy or model that you use to do whatever you do.  It's the way you think things work--or should work.  It's the way you make decisions and get things done.  Most of all it's an important part of your involvement in this effort.

Experiences, training or our colleagues often shape our personal approaches to watershed conservation.  Hubert Owens at the University of Georgia's School of Environmental Design where I was trained in landscape architecture, civic design and planning shaped my initial approach.  I also studied with Ian McHarg, author of "Design With Nature" and Jon Berger author, of "Human Ecology and the Regional Plan".  More recently my approach was influenced by a project I did with William McDonough, formerly with the President's Council on Sustainable Development.

The sum total of those influences, and the time I've spent working with communities, shapes the approach I use to help communities with their conservation strategies.

Everyone doing watershed conservation or site planning has their own approach.  Some other more recognized organizational approaches include:

RIVERWORK: National Park Service Rivers, Trails & Conservation 

Assistance Program

Watershed Protection Approach: U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency, Office of Water 

CBEP-Community-Based Environmental Protection Approach: U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Policy 

As a group it's important for you to agree on your approach to the 

Etowah River watershed conservation strategy.  However, agreeing 

on a strategy starts with your own.  What is your approach?  

Sketch it on one page and explain it to someone!  Compare yours 

with the others to get a good idea of how you and your groups

views the watershed.

Principles of Watershed Conservation

A watershed conservation strategy must be based on certain assumptions that you recognize and agree on.  These assumptions form the basis for your strategy and the principles that you adhere to throughout your work.

Based on a variety of conservation experiences in watersheds throughout the U.S. the following are examples of watershed principles.  Sample techniques are listed to help illustrate, or serve as an information source for each principle.

Principle 1: The process must be locally led, open to the public, objective and inclusive. 

Technique: Dialogue is a technique used to meet each other below our opinions.  It relies on story, skill and experience.  The core requirements for Dialogue are: 1) treating the other(s) as equal in every respect; 2) being willing and able to listen and respond empathically; and 3) being willing to bring one's own and others' assumptions into the open without judgement.

Principle 2: All partners are equally important. 

Technique:  Everyone is a designer!  "Listen to everyone in the design process.  No one is a participant only or a designer only: Everyone is a participant-designer.  Honor the special knowledge that each person brings".

Reference:  Cowan, Stuart, and others, Ecological Design, Island Press, Washington, DC, 1996

Principle 3: All environmental, community and economic values must be recognized. 

Technique: Mulitobjective:  "To encourage comprehensive and cooperative planning among all individuals and institutions concerned with rivers and their adjacent lands, to facilitate 

Reference:  Riley, Ann, L., Restoring Streams in Cities: A Guide for Planners, Policymakers, and Citizens, Island Press, Washington, DC, 1998

 Principle 4: The process must be consensus-based and agreement should be secured at the beginning, and at every major decision-making point in the process. Deciding what action to take to conserve a river, a watershed, and specific sites within it requires a process--an equation, to decide what actions should be taken; by who; and how.

Technique: RIVERWORK BOOK: A reference manual for local watershed planning efforts.  It presents a process that emphasizes citizen participation, networking and constituency building to develop grassroots river conservation efforts.  The process encourages communities to consider a variety of factors and alternatives before choosing the best way to protect their river and watershed.  

Reference:  Eugster, J. Glenn, others, RIVERWORK Book, U.S. National Park Service, Philadelphia, PA, 1988 

Arnold, Matthew, B., and others, The Power of Environmental Partnerships, Management Institute for Environment & Business, The Dryden Press, Austin, Texas, 1995

• Principle 5: Recognize and build upon existing traditions of 

stewardship, partnerships, consensus building and community initiative. 

Technique: Discovery: Refers to efforts to identify and support conservation activities initiated by communities themselves.  Project discoverers assume that appropriate local resource management regimes already exist and that the role of external actors is to assist in legitimizing them

Reference:  Seymour, Frances, J., Are Successful Community-based Conservation Projects Designed or Discovered? Natural Connections, Island Press, Washington, DC, 1994

 Principle 6: Ultimately local governments make local decisions. All watersheds are local. 

Home rule is a fundamental part of any watershed conservation strategy.  Local officials are elected to represent different parts of the watershed and they have been empowered to make decisions about the future of the area.  They must be involved in all aspects of the strategy for it to be successful.

• Principle 7: Private property must be respected and recognized as a legitimate watershed value.

Technique: Private landowners value land in many different ways.  In addition to using their land as a place to live, many landowners enjoy the natural and cultural resource values of their property for recreation purposes or to enhance the quality of their lives.  Private landowners also value their land as an economic investment and source of income.  Various conservation guides provide landowners with information on government and private sector programs and assistance they may be eligible for should their land possess certain values. 

Reference:  Wesley-Copeland, Jorie, Private Landowner's Wetlands Assistance Guide: Voluntary Options for Wetlands Stewardship in Maryland, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC 1992.

Johnson, Andrew, A Handbook for the Landowner: The Use and Protection of Privately Held Natural Lands, The Natural Lands Trust, Inc. Media, PA, 1982

Elements of Watershed Conservation Strategies 

Although each watershed conservation strategy should be tailored to the ecological, sociological, political environment of a particular place the typical elements to be considered are:

1.  Develop a Pre-Planning Strategy

It's important to hold initial discussions with key leaders in order to introduce the idea, assess the amount of interest there is in pursuing the conservation effort, and if support exists, outline the approach to be used.  Always summarize the understanding in writing.

Technique:  Memorandum of Agreement are regularly used to agree on key parties; role and function of each party; project goals; reason for the effort; public involvement opportunities; products; individual partner assignments; a conceptual description of how decision making will be handled; and a schedule.

2. Select a Leadership-Style

Typically there is a small core group of sponsoring organizations that organize the effort.  Eventually a locally appointed Steering Committee will lead the effort and local coordinators and State government assistance will be required. The group will work best if there is a balance of private sector and government involvement.

Technique:  In South Carolina a statewide watershed effort selected steering committee representatives to reflect all of the major values (i.e. farms, timber management areas; natural areas; etc.)

1. Identify, Understand and Characterize Resource Values 

What are the natural, historic, cultural, recreational, tourism, economic, and other values which are important to the area, people, and living resources?   How do they function?  Where are they?  What opportunities and constraints do they offer for future uses of the watershed?

Technique:  There are many ways to identify important watershed values and functions.  Successful efforts typically rely on good science and good civics.  What areas do the scientists believe to be important to the health of the watershed and what are the opportunities and constraints for the use of these values?  What areas do the different groups and interests, who care most about certain values (i.e. fish, forests, farms, etc.), believe are most important?

Reference: Thompson, George, E., Steiner, R. Frederick, Ecological Design and Planning, John Wiley & Sons, Inc. New York, NY 1997

Eugster, Glenn, J.  Statewide River Assessments, U.S. National Park Service, Philadelphia, PA 1986  

4. Identify who are the groups, agencies and organizations interested in these values and functions.

Technique:  River Gods Analysis.  Describe, by major river/ watershed value, the key private groups and government watershed-based organizations with representatives who speak for the river, its watershed, and the people and living resources that own, govern, use and enjoy it.

Reference: Eugster, Glenn, J., The River Gods, National Park Service, National Capital Region, Washington, D.C. October 2000

5.  Involve a broad cross-section of interested individuals and organizations in all aspects of your planning and decision making

Technique: Public involvement is a primary means of building support and developing a constituency for the watershed conservation effort.  The value of public involvement lies in the sponsor of the effort sharing responsibility with the communities, residents and interests who will influence the success or failure of the effort.

Reference:  Eugster, Glenn, J. Steps in State & Local Greenway Conservation Plans: Public Involvement Plan Guidelines, U.S. National Park Service, Philadelphia, PA 1988.

6. Describe the General Goals & Objectives 

Technique:  Goals are a means of guiding you toward specific accomplishments and of keeping you on track as you proceed.  What does success look like to you and others?  Start by asking key leaders, and others, what they think success will look like after one or two years of your effort?

Reference:  RIVERWORK Book (see Principle #4)

7. Identify and Assess the Needs, Concerns and Issues 

Technique:  Normally different interests have different values and ideas about the future of the watershed. These local interests or issues are at the heart of watershed conservation and need to be recognized, described and briefly analyzed during the project.

Reference:  RIVERWORK Book (see Principle #4)

8. Refine Goals & Objectives and Establish Measures of Success

Technique:  Goals are based on resources values and functions and issues or matters of concern.  Goals should be refined now to build on what you did in task #6 and to incorporate what you've learned from task #3 (values and functions) and #7. (needs, concerns and issues).  This task helps to create consensus out of contrasting opinions, and to involve all the interests in the decision-making process.

Once the goals have been refined it is helpful to identify the specific environmental and organizational measures of success for each goal.  This will enable you to measure your progress.

References:  _______________, Measures of Success-Unpublished Discussion Paper, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, undated.

9. Consider All Alternatives 

How can values be protected or promoted, issues resolved, and goals be achieved?  What ideas do people have?  What programs, tools, techniques, laws, and approaches are available?  Where do you start looking?

Technique: Eugster, Glenn, J., Conservation Programs, Tools, Techniques & Resources, Prepared for The Conservation Fund's Land Conservation Training Course, Duke University, 1998.

1. Select Actions 

Most people get involved with watershed conservation because they either want to keep things the same or get something accomplished. Action is key to watershed conservation!  

Technique:  What actions need to be taken?  Who will take the action? How will the action be taken?  When will the action be taken?  The actions selected should:

 Conserve values 

 Achieve goals 

 Resolve issues 

 Consider appropriate alternatives 

 Reflect public attitudes 

 Identify short and long-term actions

 Achieve desired results

1. Take Action 

Select both short and long-term actions to carryout your strategy. Starting small and building incrementally creates momentum toward larger goals and visions.

Technique:  The Pocomoke River Alliance in Maryland decided that they need to do something real to help get their new watershed group off the ground.  They decided to create a Nature & Exercise Trail on some City land adjacent to the Pocomoke River.  The project helped establish the group, raise funds, provide important public access to the river and increase regional awareness about the Alliance's work.

1. Document, Publicize & Celebrate Results 

The success of any watershed conservation effort rests in its ability to demonstrate results.  Measuring and publicizing tangible results is key to sustaining leadership commitment and public support. Track your progress and publicize results!

Technique:  How is the river doing?  Each year Maryland Representative Bernie Fowler uses his "Sneaker Index" to measure water quality on the Patuxent River.  Other private organizations often hold a "River Day" celebration each year to go over results, and commitments, and recognize success.  The Friends of the Potomac, for example, give six awards each year to recognize results.

1. Evaluate Progress and Refine Strategy 

Periodically refine the strategy based on what you learn and current conditions.

For further Information: For information on this paper or the techniques and references contact: J. Glenn Eugster, Assistant Regional Director, Partnerships Office, National Park Service, National Capital Region, 1100 Ohio Drive, SW, Washington, DC 20242.  By telephone call (202) 619-7492.  By e-mail: glenn_eugster@nps.gov