American Whitewater is a not-for-profit 501(c)3 membership organization with the declared mission "to conserve and restore America's

whitewater Whitewater forms in a rapid context, in particular, when a river's gradient changes enough to generate so much turbulence that air is trapped within the water. This forms an unstable current that froths, making the water appear opaque and ...

resources and to enhance opportunities to enjoy them safely". The organization can broadly be classified as an

advocacy group Advocacy groups, also known as interest groups, special interest groups, lobbying groups or pressure groups use various forms of advocacy in order to influence public opinion and ultimately policy. They play an important role in the developm ...

that engages in a variety of tactics to ensure rivers are accessible to those who wish to use them. This includes working on

lobbying In politics, lobbying, persuasion or interest representation is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agency, regulatory agencie ...

efforts at local and national levels as well as maintaining and publishing information about river

conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...

, statistics on river use, accident reports, and river sports safety.

History

The organization was founded in 1954 as the American White Water Affiliation incorporated in 1961. Upon its founding, the organizational members set to advance four principal objectives. (1) Encourage the exploration, enjoyment, and preservation of America's recreational waterways for human-powered craft. (2) Protect the wilderness character of waterways through conservation of water, forests, parks, wildlife, and related resources. (3) Promote and celebrate safety, proficiency and responsibility in all aspects of whitewater activities such as the navigation of moving water, teaching, teamwork, leadership, and equipment design, by publishing and demonstrating our support for instructional development in these and related fields. (4) Promote appreciation and respect for the value of wilderness activity and whitewater sports. In 1997, the name was shortened to American Whitewater (AW). The American Whitewater started publishing a journal in 1955. The ''American Whitewater Journal'' was considered the first whitewater magazine in the United States. Traditionally it consisted of stories, safety information, equipment information, and paddling technique instruction. In 2004 the association created a digital archive making the previous 50 years of journals available for online access.

Major achievements

Wild and Scenic Rivers Act The National Wild and Scenic Rivers System was created by the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968 (Public Law 90-542), enacted by the U.S. Congress to preserve certain rivers with outstanding natural, cultural, and recreational values in a free- ...

: American Whitewater contributed many of the initial concepts for protection of Wisconsin's waterways that Senator

Gaylord Nelson Gaylord Anton Nelson (June 4, 1916July 3, 2005) was an American politician and environmentalist from Wisconsin who served as a United States senator and governor. He was a member of the Democratic Party and the founder of Earth Day, which launch ...

incorporated into the

that was passed into law in 1968. *

Dam removal Dam removal is the process of demolishing a dam, returning water flow to the river. Arguments for dam removal consider whether their negative effects outweigh their benefits. The benefits of dams include hydropower production, flood control, irri ...

: American Whitewater has worked with a variety of organizations to further the cause of removing dams and restoring natural flows to riverways. * Hydropower relicensing: American Whitewater was a founding member of the Hydropower Reform Coalition, an organization that represents public interests in hydropower relicensing. * Access: In collaboration with

The Access Fund {{Infobox organization , name = The Access Fund , image = The Access Fund Logo.jpg , image_size = 200px , caption = , map = , map_size = , map_alt = , map_caption = , type ...

, The American Canoe Association, The International Mountain Bicycling Association, and The Winter Wildlands Alliance, American Whitewater helped found the Outdoor Alliance, an advocacy organization that promotes public access to natural resources.

Advocacy

American Whitewater opposed the Water Rights Protection Act, a bill that would prevent federal agencies from requiring certain entities to relinquish their water rights to the United States in order to use

public lands In all modern states, a portion of land is held by central or local governments. This is called public land, state land, or Crown land (Australia, and Canada). The system of tenure of public land, and the terminology used, varies between countrie ...

. According to opponents, the bill is too broad. They believe the bill "could also block federal fisheries agencies like the

United States Fish and Wildlife Service The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. The mission of the agency is "working with othe ...

from requiring flows that help

salmon Salmon () is the common name for several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the family (biology), family Salmonidae, which are native to tributary, tributaries of the ...

find

fish ladders A fish ladder, also known as a fishway, fish pass, fish steps, or fish cannon is a structure on or around artificial and natural barriers (such as dams, Lock (water transport), locks and waterfalls) to facilitate Fish migration#Classification, ...

and safely pass over

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use ...

s." American Whitewater called the bill a "sneak attack designed to force federal agencies to put private uses of river water ahead of other beneficial public uses like fish, wildlife, and recreation."

References

External links

* {{Authority control Nature conservation organizations based in the United States Canoe organizations Canoeing in the United States