Congress approves Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed Protection Act
The Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed Association and its partners, The Nature Conservancy, Save the Bay, Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management and the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection announced today that the Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed Protection Act has been approved by Congress.
The bill, sponsored by Rep. Joe Courtney, D-2nd District, and Rep. Jim Langevin, D-R.I., in the House, and Rhode Island senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse in the Senate, was included with a number of other land bills as part of the FY15 National Defense Authorization Act, which was passed by the House last week and the Senate on Friday.
The Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed Protection Act will require that the National Parks Service complete a three-year study to assess whether the Wood, Pawcatuck, Beaver, Chipuxet and Queen rivers meet the standards to be included in the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, the watershed association said in a news release. In anticipation of the passage of this act, Rep. Langevin requested a Reconnaissance Survey of the Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed, which was completed in October 2013.
The survey summary stated, “The NPS reconnaissance survey team has determined, based on readily available information, that segments of the Wood-Pawcatuck River exhibit free-flowing character and noteworthy natural, cultural and recreational resource values likely to meet eligibility criteria for inclusion in the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System,” the association said. A copy of the survey can be found at website www.wpwa.org.
An important part of the upcoming Wild and Scenic Study will be the inclusion of all stakeholders in the development of a management plan for the rivers and a community-based plan to protect those values, the association said.
“Pursuing a Wild & Scenic designation was the catalyst for the creation of the WPWA in the early 1980s,” said Christopher Fox, executive director of the assocation. “I am very pleased that progress toward obtaining this designation has finally been achieved, and I am proud of our staff, partners and the Rhode Island and Connecticut Congressional delegations’ tireless efforts to reach this milestone. I am most thankful to Congressmen Langevin and Courtney for their drafting and sponsorship of the Wood-Pawcatuck Protection Act and to senators Reed and Whitehouse who worked diligently to assure passage in the Senate this year.”
For information about the Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed Protection Act, visit www.wpwa.org or contact Denise Poyer at denisep@wpwa.org.
Comment threads are monitored for 48 hours after publication and then closed.