We've moved our blog

We just finished redesigning our web page, and a blog is now incorporated into our main web page. As a result, we will no longer post information here. To find out about Flint River Conservation Association events, meetings, and outings, please visit www.flintriverconservation.org. Thanks for your interest!

Learn about the Clean Water Partnership, Tuesday August 18

Please join us for our montly membership meeting, 7:00 at Huntsville Public Services Building, 320 Fountain Circle near Big Spring Park. This month's speaker will be Jay Grantland. He'll discuss the Clean Water Partnership, some successful past projects, and current and ongoing projects.

Free Alabama Water Watch Workshop Saturday, August 29

Join us for a FREE citizens' water quality monitoring class Saturday, August 29th, 2009 at the city of Huntsville Public Services Building at 320 Fountain Circle near Big Spring Park. You'll learn all about water resources and how to determine water quality using simple chemical and bacteriological tests. Dr. Bill Deutsch, known around the world for his clean water advocacy, especially in 3rd world countries, will be the primary instructor.

There is no charge for the class but preregistration is required. Register online at www.alabamawaterwatch.org or contact Rita at 1-888-844-4785 toll free, or call Susan Weber at 427-5116.

Be prepared to get your feet wet up to the knees and bring sunscreen, hats, and sunglasses. Snacks and water will be provided. You're encouraged to bring a sack lunch.

The Alabama Water Watch program (AWW) fosters the development of citizen volunteers, water quality monitoring of Alabama's lakes, streams and rivers. AWW’s mission is to improve both water quality and policy through citizen monitoring and action. One of it’s goals is to have at least one citizen monitoring every steam and lake in the state.

AWW is coordinated from the Auburn University Fisheries Department with primary funding from ADEM and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Since the program began in 1992, about 250 citizen groups have participated and have cumulatively sampled more than 1,880 sites on 700 water bodies. For many streams in Alabama, citizen data is the primary or only source of water quality information.

After completing the class, participants will be certified through Alabama Water Watch to submit monthly and quarterly monitoring results that will available for all to see on the Alabama Water Watch website. This data is sent to AWW at Auburn University for quality assurance, then entered into databases that are shared with ADEM and EPA. Monitoring groups frequently use the information to propose water quality solutions to responsible agencies, elected officials, citizens' groups and developers.

See you there!

Article about Beth Maynor Young -- join us July 16 to meet her!

The Birmingham News just published a great article about Beth Maynor Young and her work documenting the scenic rivers of Alabama. Be sure to join us on Thursday, July 16 at the Monte Sano State Park Lodge to meet Beth, enjoy her work, and learn more about Alabama rivers and why we need to protect them!

Beth Maynor Young's now famed photos have come to symbolize Cahaba River's vulnerability, diversity

For Young, that lily trip was a transition from a job photographing gardens, food and architecture toward a calling as a conservation photographer. Since that assignment, she's gone on to shoot rivers and wilderness throughout the state and Southeast: Little River Canyon, the Locust Fork River, The Walls of Jericho, the swamps and wetlands of the Mobile Tensaw Delta.

"I tend to photograph unprotected places as opposed to just nature photography in national wildlife refuges or national parks," she said. "There are a lot of wonderful unprotected places in Alabama."

A recently published book, "Headwaters: A Journey on Alabama Rivers," features work from throughout her career, and the most gratifying part of the book is that many of the unprotected places she photographed are now protected.

"I think of her as the Ansel Adams of Alabama," Byington said of Young. "She truly has shown how to be an advocate for conservation through conservation photography."

Join us for a book signing with nature photographer Beth Maynor Young

We're excited to announce a book signing with one of Alabama's most accomplished nature photographers Beth Maynor Young for her new book "Headwaters: A Journey on Alabama's Rivers." Join us on Thursday, July 16 at 7:00 at the Monte Sano Lodge for an evening celebrating the beauty of Alabama's rivers. Beth will give a short lecture about Alabama's rivers and streams, then we can all mingle to enjoy a small photo exhibit, snacks, and drinks... and of course, wonderful company! Prints, notecards, a limited edition portfolio, and of course books will be for sale and for Beth to sign.

For more information about Beth and her amazing photographs, visit her web page at www.bethyoung.net.

Record turnout for Flint River Cleanup!

Saturday, June 6, was the first Flint River cleanup of 2009. We had a record turnout! Final numbers aren't in yet, but a good guess is at least 90 people! FRCA teams had about 25 boats on the water, while Scott Ammons of North Alabama Canoe and Kayak provided 40 canoes for the event. Operation Green Team provided trash bags and other supplies. We had so many volunteers we were able to have groups clean five different sections of the river. Wow! Here are some pictures from a successful trip to keep our river clean! If you have additional pictures you'd like us to post, send them to flintriverconservation@gmail.com!

We basically took over a portion of the Publix parking lot as we got ready to go. Here are some of Scott's canoes:


Getting ready to put-in at the Hayes Nature Preserve:


Getting started. A few paddlers work on extracting trash from low-hanging vegetation. Notice how muddy the water is! That shows how much work still needs to be done to prevent excessive sedimentation in our waterways.


The Flint really is a lovely river.


The aftermath... here's the trash one group pulled out of the river:


And a nice group shot of some of our fabulous volunteers!

After a long day paddling and bagging trash, we were starving! Our friends at Artisan's Cove kindly provided a wonderful cookout for us in the afternoon. We all thoroughly enjoyed the food, the company, and looking around the Cove's gardens and chicken coops! Thanks!


Enjoying good food and company at Artisan's Cove:


Thank you to all of the volunteers who turned out to spend a productive day on the Flint River! An additional thanks to North Alabama Canoe and Kayak for providing so many canoes, Artisan's Cove for the wonderful food, the Huntsville Canoe Club for spreading the word and recruiting volunteers, and Operation Green Team for ongoing support of Flint River cleanups! Join us for our next river cleanup in September!

Flint River Cleanup June 6--mark your calendar!

Our annual spring cleaning of the Flint River is held in honor of the National American Rivers Week. On Saturday, June 6th, 2009, volunteers will meet at either the Publix parking lot in Hampton Cove or the Publix parking lot on Winchester Road. Our meeting place will depend on which part of the river we will clean. Please check back in mid May for final details! If you wish to join us, you can do so as a canoeist, a kayaker, or a landlubber. Our landlubbers like to keep their feet on terra firma, so they will clean up at the bridge crossings in groups. FRCA will have light snacks for all of our volunteers and we will have a BBQ cook out after the paddle! Please bring your own water. This is the first time in many years we have held a cook-out after a river cleanup, so come out to make this a splash to remember! If you'd like to join us, please call Soos Weber at 427-5116 or send an email to flintriverconservation@gmail.com by Wednesday, June 3rd so we can make sure we have enough canoes and food!

If you have any questions, just send an email to flintriverconservation@gmail.com.

Hope to see you on June 6!

A Great Day at the Hays Preserve's Earth Day event!

We had a great time at this year’s Earth Day event on April 18th! The weather was perfect which made for great public turn out. The participating organizations’ tables were set up in an area right next to the Flint River and Cove Creek. Birds sang from the canopies throughout the day, caterpillars repelled from the trees and were seen everywhere, and a gentle breeze kept the flying bugs away.

Our ambassadors- Lance Brecht, Colleen Gipson and Jennifer Schade stayed busy all day talking with folks, playing “Feed the Fish” beanbag toss with the kids, and meeting numerous other local groups attending the festival. The kids had a great time playing the game and many returned again and again for more fun. We even got a new family membership signed up and we look forward to seeing them at future events and meetings.




There were also special guest speakers- Bill Cruger showed the kids all kinds of snakes & lizards and the Lookout Mountain Wild Animal Zoo that had black bears, a rescued monkey and other interesting creatures.



Overall, it was a great day! We look forward to participating at Hay’s Earth Day event next year as well. A job well done(!) to Soos Weber (Huntsville ecologist) and Operation Green Team for all of your hard work on organizing this event!!

FRCA Meeting on April 21st- Guest Speaker: Adam Snyder of Conservation Alabama

Join us for our April meeting and potluck on Tuesday, April 21 at 6:30pm, in the Public Works Building at 320 Fountain Circle S.W. Huntsville, AL 35801.

On Tuesday April 21 FRCA’s guest speaker will be Adam Snyder, former Executive Director of the Alabama Rivers Alliance, and now the Executive Director of Alabama’s only environmental lobbying organization, Conservation Alabama.

Originally, founded in 1999 as the Alabama League of Environmental Action Voters, they are able to proudly state on their website, www.conservationalabama.org: “No bad environmental legislation has passed in the Alabama State Legislature” since they began working in Montgomery.

Conservation Alabama describes themselves as an organization that “believes someone should do something about the critical environmental issues we face, and that someone is our elected and appointed government officials.”

As Alabama’s only environmental lobby, Conservation Alabama maintains a full-time presence in Montgomery to make sound environmental policy. They are non-partisan and seek out legislators of all political parties that share similar views on the conservation and protection of Alabama’s natural resources.

Join FRCA for Earth Day, April 18

It's almost Earth Day!! Stop by the Flint River Conservation Association's booth on April 18 at the Hayes Nature Preserve. Here's info about the preserve and how to find it. Here's an agenda of the great activities that will be going on during the day (suitable for your entire family!):

7:30: Birding Hike (bring binocs) with John Ehinger
10:00: 10:15 Boeing Corp. and Mayor Battle.
10:15: Reptile Show with Bill Cruger (you can hold them too!)
11:45: Rare and endangered mammals with Dr. Bloome (who brings new critters every year—2 very small baby black bears this year.
1:00: Ecohike with Forestry Professionals from the Society of American Foresters—Mountain Lakes Chapter
2:00: Release of rehabilitated hawks or owls
2:30: Second Ecohike with Forestry Professionals at Hays Preserve. Exploratory ecohike to Goldsmith Schiffman Wildlife Sanctuary.
3:00: Exhibitors break down
4:00: Return from all ecohikes.

All Forestry hikes will begin at the SAF exhibit. Exploratory ecohike at Goldsmith Schiffman Wildlife Sanctuary with Ecologist Soos Weber will begin at the big tent near the parking lot. Earth friendly exhibitors, vendors and conservation groups are set up in the Exhibit Area, as well as Earth Scope Teachers with games for young children. The Climbing Wall is in the parking lot. Food is available courtesy of the Boy Scouts of America.

Hope to see you there! Let us know if you have any questions!

Hayes Nature Preserve boardwalk

The Alabama Water Agenda

The Alabama Water Agenda is a proactive, citizen-driven campaign for improving water policy in Alabama. The Agenda targets the biggest threats to our waters by ensuring lasting protections through improved state policy. This 10 minute video highlights the numerous values of our waterways, the major threats to our waters, and the steps we can take to ensure healthy waters for generations to come. Check it out!

FRCA is on Facebook!

FRCA now has a page on Facebook to help members meet and to easily communicate news about the river, FRCA events, and how you can get involved. Go to the FRCA Cause page and click Join.

Next meeting Tuesday, Feb. 17

Please join us for our next meeting on February 17! Our guest speaker will be Nelson Brooke from Black Warrior Riverkeeper. Nelson has been the staff Riverkeeper since January of 2004. As Riverkeeper, Nelson patrols and photographs the Black Warrior River and its tributaries, researches and analyzes polluters' permits, responds to citizen complaints, educates the public about the beauty of the river and threats to it, and is a spokesman for the Black Warrior River watershed. In addition to his duties as Riverkeeper, Nelson became the Executive Director in August of 2007.

Join us for a potluck dinner starting at 6:30. Just bring a dish to share! The meeting starts at 7:00 pm. Please join us! The meeting is at 320 Fountain Circle S.W. Huntsville, Alabama 35801.