Expanded Vision for the Superior Rivers Watershed Association

The next step in the Penokee Range – Wild and Scenic Rivers Since its inception, the Superior Rivers Watershed Association has worked to monitor and protect the Penokee Range and the waters that run through it. Over the last four years, as the Penokee Range received statewide, and even national attention, other organizations and the larger northern Wisconsin community began to engage wholeheartedly in learning about this area and educating others about its beauty and importance. During this time our Association coordinated efforts with many different organizations and in doing so raised our organization’s profile and strengthened our statewide partnerships. Growing knowledge of the region has made it clear that the Bad River, the Tyler Forks River and the land that they run through possess remarkable scenic value as well as providing critical habitat for fish and wildlife. Their current relatively pristine and free flowing condition makes them excellent candidates to be named by Congress as National Wild and Scenic Rivers. The Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, passed by Congress in 1968 is in place to protect such places “for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations.” The Superior Rivers Watershed Association will work with our partners and the community at large to continue studies of this crucial region and assess the feasibility of having these rivers designated by Congress. It will take the collaboration of all these organizations and the compilation of the knowledge we continue to gain about the region to make this designation happen. It may well be a long and perhaps difficult process, but it is clear that these rivers are worthy of the recognition and protection accorded by the Wild and Scenic Rivers designation. Building our citizen science water quality monitoring program- Increased cooperation with schools The strength of the SRWA comes from our method of involving citizens in monitoring and protecting the waters they care about. When citizens dip their own feet in a river and are active in gathering data about the water they depend on, they are likely to become more engaged when land use issues threaten to put those waters at risk. Expansion of the Association will require increased numbers of volunteers to help with resource assessments and water quality monitoring. As the Watershed Association grows, we will provide the support and coordination required to safely engage citizens throughout the region in assessing, maintaining and improving watershed quality for future generations. As an organization working within the bounds of the Bad River watershed, the SRWA has found many opportunities to work with youth such as assisting with the Indigenous Arts and Sciences Program and Bad River Youth Outdoors Program and leading educational outings for school environmental clubs. With the expanding reach of the organization, many schools will be added to our working area. We will partner with these schools to provide hands-on educational opportunities to school aged youth in the region. Through this collaboration we will begin to build young stewards of the land and water while providing youth with the chance to apply the science of their classrooms to real world issues. Building on our strong restoration work The Superior Rivers Watershed Association is well known for our restoration work. We have proven our ability to prioritize restoration work and partner with cooperators to successfully improve watershed quality by replacing problem culverts, educating landowners about restoration opportunities, coordinating volunteers for shoreline planting days and leading major bank stabilization projects such as one we are currently working on along the Marengo River. As we expand our working territory, we will begin by assessing and prioritizing areas in need of attention and be prepared to lead restoration projects as funding becomes available. Healthy Organization In order to be successful in fulfilling our mission we must continue to maintain a healthy organization with strong finances, a satisfied and highly skilled staff and a Board of Directors with the energy, knowledge and motivation to fulfill its role. The Board of Directors and staff will work to increase and diversify funding sources and follow through with clearly defined annual budgets and fundraising plans. As we value the program work of the Association, we also value stable working conditions with living wages paid to our staff, and will work to plan our finances and staffing levels accordingly. We will strive to provide funding for employee and Board education in order to strengthen and sustain the organization. We will work to build our Board to include citizens from throughout our expanding work area who can contribute needed skills to the organization and we will establish a method of smooth transitions as Board member roles change over time.