News

1. Antidegradation Rule Public Noticed

2. American Rivers Announces 2005 Most Endangered Rivers

3. Hiwassee Watershed Coalition Seeks Assistant Director

4. EPA Water Efficiency Website

Workshops/Conferences/Calendar Items

5. 2005 Paddle Georgia – Registration Open

6. Shop at Harry’s Farmer’s Market May 17 – Alpharetta

7. Back to the Chattahoochee Race June 4 – Roswell

8. River Lobby Day on September 12-13 – Washington DC

9. May DNR Board Meeting

10. Worry Free Advocacy Online Class

11. Soil and Water Conservation Society Annual Meeting – New York

12. Dekalb Erosion and Sediment Control Seminar and Exposition – Atlanta

13. Workshops for Educators

14. Conserving Private Forestlands in the Southeast- Atlanta

15. ICL Board University - Atlanta

Resources

16. Corps Reform Guide – Chapters On Web

17. Can-Spam Act – Your Emails May Be Affected

18. Google Offers Free Search Tools to Nonprofits: Google Public Service Search

19. Toms of Maine Offers Prize for River Volunteers

Fundraising

20. Marketing Grant Offered by Rooks Communications

21. Fundraising Deadlines

********************************************************************

1. Antidegradation Rule Public Noticed

The EPD has put out the following notice for public comment on the proposed changes to the Anti-Degradation Rules of Georgia:

The Environmental Protection Division is requesting comments on a draft amendment to the rules for Water Quality Control, 391-3-6-.03(2)

entitled "Water Quality Enhancement." This announcement, together with the rationale for the draft rule amendment and a copy of the draft amendment, is being provided to all persons who have requested notification of proposed rulemaking. The documents are also available online at http://environet.dnr.state.ga.us/6. EPD will mail a copy of these documents upon request. Please call toll-free 1-888-373-5947 (in Atlanta, 404-656-4713) to request a copy. The rulemaking process is in the early stages. Therefore, EPD has not scheduled a public hearing on these draft revisions and has not scheduled a date to present these rules to the Board of Natural Resources for adoption. EPD will consider written comments on the draft revisions through June 6, 2005. After review of all the comments, EPD will brief the Board of Natural Resources, make appropriate revisions to the draft rule, and issue a second public notice, probably in July. The second public notice will provide another opportunity for public comment, announce the date for a public hearing and announce the date the proposed rule will be considered for action by the Board. Comments on the draft rule amendment should be mailed by June 6, 2005 to Ms. Louise Mathis; Environmental Protection Division; 2 Martin Luther King Jr. Dr., Suite 1152 East; Atlanta, GA 30334.

From the Lake Lanier Association: For over 30 years, Georgia’s antidegradation rule has served to protect and preserve the quality of Georgia’s waters. This proposed rule change threatens high quality waters throughout the state, including trout streams, coastal rivers, and mountain lakes and would adversely impact the millions of individuals that utilize high quality waters for recreation as well as the local economies that depend on high quality waters. (A recent study found that Lake Lanier supports a $5 billion a year recreational economy). Georgia’s current antidegradation rule provides that new discharges into high quality waters are prohibited unless “the level of treatment required (by the permit) is the highest and best practicable under existing technology”. In addition, the Georgia rule specifically references and incorporates the federal antidegradation rule which requires that “all federal requirements must be achieved before lowering of water quality is allowed for high quality water”. Georgia EPD proposes to delete the “highest and best practicable under existing technology” requirement from the Georgia rule and replace it with the language from the federal rule that “there shall be achieved the highest statutory and regulatory requirements for all new and existing point sources…” EPD proposes to re-define the term “highest statutory and regulatory requirements” with its own definition which is inconsistent with the federal antidegradation rule, the Clean Water Act and the Georgia Water Quality Control Act, because under Georgia EPD’s proposed definition, discharges into high quality waters would be subject to the same technology requirements as all other discharges.

2. American Rivers Announces 2005 Most Endangered Rivers
Visit www.americanrivers.org for more information.

1. Susquehanna River (NY, PA, MD)
2. McCrystal Creek (NM)
3. Fraser River (CO)
4. Skykomish River (WA)
5. Roan Creek (TN)
6. Santee River (SC)
7. Little Miami River (OH)
8. Tuolumne River (CA)
9. Price River (UT)
10. Santa Clara River (CA)

3. Hiwassee River Watershed Coalition Seeks Assistant Director

Hiwassee River Watershed Coalition, Inc. is a community-based conservation nonprofit organization that facilitates water quality improvements in the upper half of the Hiwassee River basin. For the past ten years the Coalition has provided service in four major program areas: Ecological Assessment, Restoration, Volunteer Monitoring and Education within Clay and Cherokee counties in southwestern NC and Towns and Union counties in north Georgia. They recently expanded their coverage area to include the Toccoa River watershed (Fannin County) in north Georgia, and are seeking qualified candidates for Assistant Director. Part-time (20 hours per week to include some evening and Saturday work) $15,000 annual salary; mileage; stipend for medical insurance, if needed. Please visit http://www.hrwc.net for the full job description and requirements.

4. EPA Water Efficiency Website

Did you know that a typical household uses approximately 260 gallons of water per day. In the summer, the amount of water used outdoors by a household can exceed the amount used for all other purposes in the entire year? According to the U.S. Geological Survey, 30 percent of the daily water consumption in the U.S. is devoted to outdoor uses. The majority of this is used for landscaping, given that the typical suburban lawn consumes 10,000 gallons of water above and beyond rainwater each year. In order to address this pressing environmental problem, EPA is increasing its attention on water efficiency. A key area of focus is landscaping and irrigation, where using existing technologies and practices can reduce water use while maintaining healthy and beautiful landscapes, and saving money for consumers. They are also investigating ways to promote water-efficiency in landscape design and maintenance, and are also seeking to promote water-efficient products and practices in other areas, such as indoor water use in residences and commercial buildings. More information is available on EPA’s Water Efficiency website; www.epa.gov/owm/water-efficiency.

5. 2005 Paddle Georgia - Register By May 21
Note: Day Paddle spots are currently sold out for June 25/26. Wait list only for these dates. Registration is now open for the 1st Annual Paddle Georgia Event to be held on the Chattahoochee River from June 25 – July 1. Participants will paddle 110 miles from Buford Dam to Franklin experiencing the Chattahoochee River as never before. Along the way, participants will have the opportunity to visit everything from nature centers to electric-generating facilities. Nightly activities at campsites will include entertainment, games, and programs highlighting the river’s cultural and natural history. You can sign up for one day or the whole trip. Registration for the entire event ranges from $125-$165 and includes a t-shirt, boat decal, ticket to the kick off feast, party at journey’s end, camping with bath facilities, shuttles to campsites, maps and river descriptions, entertainment, activities, educational programs and safety services. Registration fees will be reimbursed for anyone soliciting canoe-a-thon pledges to benefit Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper and Georgia River Network and raising at least $350. This trip is lead by Joe Cook, who has traveled the length of the Chattahoochee from headwaters to the sea. For trip questions, call Joe at 706-235-1170 or email joe@joecook.net. For more information and registration, visit http://www.garivers.org.
Paddle Georgia Sponsors:
Georgia Power
Earth Fare, Wildwood Outfitters, Appalachian Outfitters,
Patagonia, High Country, Wenonah and REI

6. Shop Harry’s Farmers Market May 17
Mountain Park Watershed Preservation Society, Inc. will be the beneficiary of 5% of net sales that occur at Harry's Farmers Market in Alpharetta on May 17, 2005. Store hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and all sales are included in the benefit. MPWPS will use the proceeds to assist with its mission to restore, preserve and protect the Mountain Park Watershed, its campaign to reduce water pollution in the headwaters of the Coosa River and its effort to increase public awareness of the need for state wide water resource management.

7. Back to the Chattahoochee Race – June 4 in Roswell

Race: 9 AM – Noon; Festival: 10 AM – 2 PM

Location: Race is Garrard Landing Park to Riverside Park (Roswell);

Festival is at Riverside Park (Riverside Drive at Roswell Bridge)

Details: Competitive canoe & kayak events as part of the Georgia Flatwater Series and recreational events for families and casual paddlers. Environmental festival at the end features Nashville music, BBQ & Veggies by Swallows in the Hallow and exhibits by environmental groups working to protect and preserve Georgia’s natural places. Register: On line at www.chattahoochee.org or call 404-352-9828, ext 14. Volunteers contact Ranger John Huth at 678-538-1200.

8. River Lobby Day 2005- September 12-13
Join American Rivers for River Lobby Day when activists from across the country will descend on Capitol Hill to tell their elected officials the story of a broad movement of people who care deeply about the health of rivers in their communities. This is your chance to keep your elected officials accountable for protecting river health. Never lobbied before? Not a problem. American Rivers will provide lobby training on Monday, September 12. Registration will begin in May. There's no charge to participate. Scholarships will be available to help offset the cost of travel and accommodations in D.C. For more information contact Jamie Mierau at (202) 347-7550 or jmierau@americanrivers.org or visit the River Lobby Day website at http://www.riverlobbyday.org.

9. May DNR Board Meeting
The next regularly scheduled DNR Board meetings are expected on Tuesday, May 24, beginning at 1 p.m., and Wednesday, May 25, beginning at 10 a.m., in the DNR Boardroom, Suite 1252, East Tower, 2 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Atlanta (Sloppy Floyd Building).

10. Worry Free Advocacy Online Course

Join the Alliance for Justice in its continuing series of online trainings for nonprofits as they explore the rules for lobbying by 501(c)(3)public charities. Want to know what your 501(c)(3) organizations can accomplish but don't have time to attend a training outside of the office? Sit at your desktop in your office or home and join the Alliance for Justice for a virtual lobbying training. This one-hour web-based training will cover the rules for 501(c)(3)lobbying activity, including lobbying limits, definitions of lobbying, and some notable lobbying exceptions. The next workshop will take place Thursday May 26th at 2:00 Eastern Time, You will need a computer with internet access and working computer speakers in order to participate. Questions will be taken through an online chat mechanism, but not through voice, so you do not need a microphone. Once you've registered, you will receive two e-mails: the first will be automatically generated letting you know your registration is complete, the second will be sent two days before the training and will include instructions on how to log in to the training (if you do not receive the instructions please e-mail rpowers@afj.org). Cost: $30, Visit: http://www.allianceforjustice.org/events/index.html.

11. Soil and Water Conservation Society Annual Meeting, July 30-Aug 4 – New York
The Soil and Water Conservation Society conference focuses on four topics:

1) Managing Landscapes for Environmental Quality
2) Assessing and Communicating the Effectiveness of Conservation and Environmental Programs
3) The Growing Debate Around Water Use
4) Consumer Demand and Policy Effects on Agricultural Resources
For updates about the conference, visit: http://www.swcs.org/en/conferences/2005_annual_conference/

12. Dekalb County Soil and Water Conservation District 18th Annual

Erosion and Sediment Control Seminar and Exposition - Atlanta

June 3, 2005 at Callanwolde Fine Arts Center

Cost: Prior to May 24 - $30.00 per person, at door - $35 per person. Includes light breakfast & luncheon. For additional information call Diane Clark 770-761-3020. To download the program and registration form, visit www.garivers.org and click on calendar.

13. Workshops for Educators

The Georgia Water & Pollution Control Association invites Georgia K-12 teachers to attend Cool Waters, a fun-filled, three-day water workshop being held June 7-9, at the Cobb County Water System’s Water Quality Laboratory. Designed to enhance water environment education for years to come, Cool Waters offers educators the opportunity to learn water resource curricula directly from water professionals and to receive information and practical hands-on applications for classroom use about important water quality and water resource issues facing Georgia today. Each day of the workshop will feature a different theme and begin with a field trip. Day one, Drink, begins with a tour of drinking water treatment facility. On day two, Use, teachers will visit a wastewater treatment plant. And on day three, Protect, there will be a special field trip to the Chattahoochee River. The river visit will include Adopt-A-Stream (AAS) training in stream monitoring protocols. The afternoons will focus on classroom activities that reinforce the lessons learned on the field trips. Register online at www.gwpca.org or call 770-794-5227 for more information.

Join Georgia Project WET at the Newman Wetlands Center June 24-25 for WOW! The Wonders of Wetlands curriculum facilitator training. Participants will receive hands-on training on wetland activities and will become certified WOW! facilitators, able to hold educator workshops on the curriculum. Benefits include workshop materials, a WOW! The Wonders of Wetlands Curriculum Guide, facilitator manual, a “wetland-in-a-pan” model, PLU credit, and great networking opportunities. Please contact Jessica at Jessica_Stelzner@dnr.state.ga.us or (404) 362-6536 for information and to register. Registration closes June 8.

Georgia Adopt-A-Stream and Georgia Project WET are teaming up to present this exciting workshop opportunity to all volunteers and environmental educators! During this combined workshop at Charlie Elliot Wildlife Center August 5-7, participants will become AAS Trainers and Healthy Water, Healthy People facilitators. Participants will receive the Healthy Water, Healthy People Educators Guide and Testing Kit Manual, a facilitator handbook, the Adopt-A-Stream Train-the-Trainer handbook, all AAS publications, plenty of networking opportunities, as well as PLU credit. Registration for this workshop closes on July 20, but there are financial incentives for early birds! Please contact Jessica at Jessica_Stelzner@dnr.state.ga.us or (404) 362-6536 for information and to register.

14. Conserving Private Forestlands in the Southeast: Opportunities for Regional Collaboration - Atlanta
The Eastern Forest Partnership and its member groups* cordially invite you to a forum on "Conserving Private Forestlands in the Southeast: Opportunities for Regional Collaboration" on May 16th, 9 AM to 4:30 PM at Morehouse College, Atlanta, Georgia. To access the agenda and registration information go to http://www.bamanews.com/efp. For additional information, contact Pat Byington of The Wilderness Society at pat_byington@tws.org or call 205-226-7739/999-4390. Register by 2:00 on May 13 if possible. * Eastern Forest Partnership members include: The Southern Environmental Law Center, The Southern Appalachian Forest Coalition, The Wilderness Society, the Appalachian Mountain Club, the Highlands Coalition and the Northern Forest Alliance.

15. ICL Board University – Atlanta
The Institute for Conservation Leadership is offering a one-day Board University Workshop on Saturday, June 11, 2005 from 8:30am-5:00pm. The workshop is co-sponsored by the Georgia Center for Nonprofits and will be held at their office. You'll find a more complete description of the Board University Workshop on ICL's website at www.icl.org. Registration and payment are due May 31, 2005. Once you register, you'll be asked to complete a brief survey to share the topics you'd like to see covered during the workshop. What's a "Board University?" It's a workshop in which board members review the basics of board responsibility, and also dig into some specific topics -- last time the workshop covered Financial Management, Fundraising, Ensuring You Have a Sustainable Mix of Programs or Issues, and Planning. There are break-out spaces so that boards can skip some of the sessions and instead meet to carry out their business and make decisions right there. For environmental groups, the fee for all training, materials and lunch is $70 per person, with a $15 discount per person when a quorum of your board attends, and a $15 discount for member organizations of GCN. For non-environmental groups, the fee will be $95/person, with a $15 discount per person when a quorum of your board attends, and a $15 discount for member organizations of GCN. Go to www.icl.org/register to register online. If you have any questions, please email or call Courtney Carlson (courtney@icl.org) at the Institute, (301) 270-2900 x7.

16. Corps Reform Manual

American Rivers and National Wildlife Federation have been working on A Citizen's Guide to the Corps of Engineers. They are very excited to be able to share the first portion of the Guide on The Regulatory Program: Clean Water Act Section 404 Permits and The Corps And Congress: Project Politics And Funding. Visit www.garivers.org and click on advocacy to view these chapters.

17. Can-Spam Act – Your Emails May Be Affected

Although intended to fight unsolicited commercial email, the "Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003" (the "CAN-SPAM Act") may catch nonprofits unaware, since their email messages may also be subject to the Act's requirements. Any organization that uses email to sell goods or services - including conferences, publications, and even certain large gifts in return for charitable contributions - will either want to be certain that the message is not subject to CAN-SPAM's provision, or comply with the Acts requirements for "commercial" email communications. For more information, visit http://www.harmoncurran.com/navigator/current.html#spam.

18. Google Offers Free Search Tools to Nonprofits: Google Public Service Search
Google, through its new Public Service Search section, is offering nonprofit organizations two free search tools for use on their websites: SiteSearch, for searching within sites, and WebSearch, enabling users to search the Internet by keyword. The new, cost-free service also offers traffic reports, unlimited queries, and allows for customization, and no banner ads or other paid advertising will show on search result pages. For http://services.google.com/publicservice/login for additional information and answers to FAQs, visit the website listed above.

19. Tom’s of Maine Offers Prize for River Volunteers

Volunteer to protect or clean a waterway in your community between April 1, 2005 and December 31, 2005, and you will be eligible to win a guided paddling trip organized by All Outdoors Wilderness Expeditions on the St. John River. Located in remote northern Maine, the St. John is one of our nation’s wildest, most natural waterways. Prize includes: 7 night/6 day trip, including 2 nights hotel accommodations (single room) and 5 days paddling and camping on the St. John River in Maine and roundtrip coach class airfare for 2 from gateway U.S. or Canadian airport nearest recipient's residence to Bangor, Maine. To register for this contest, visit http://www.tomsofmaine.com/toms/community/rivers2005.

20. Marketing Grant Offered By Rooks Communications

Environmental non-profits looking for marketing/outreach strategy and design are encouraged to apply for a service grant offered by Rooks Communications. Rooks Communications, a marketing and advertising agency located in Portland, Maine is now accepting nominations and applications for the second annual Marketing Environmental Grant (MEG05). The service grant is extended to non-profits, start-up companies, farms and educational institutions in need of marketing strategy and design. Last year's (MEG04) recipient was Wildfire HPV - a company looking to manufacture and sell velomobiles in the US. Interested organizations are encouraged to visit www.rookscommunications.com to learn more and apply for the grant. Or, call John Rooks at 207-772-0066.

21. Fundraising Deadlines
The following foundations are either new to our list of grants or have upcoming deadlines to submit proposals. To view grant makers that give throughout the year, visit our website at www.garivers.org and click on “Grants”.

National Forest Foundation is announcing a new Centennial Year Challenge funding opportunity, available to nonprofit partners working with the USDA Forest Service across the country. Full proposals are due on May 27, 2005. During the 2005 Centennial Year Challenge, the NFF will concentrate its efforts on the four natural resource issues the Forest Service Chief identified as threats to the National Forest System: fire and fuels, invasive species, unmanaged recreation, and habitat fragmentation. Applications will be accepted from non-federal partners, community-based organizations, Native American tribes, and other nonprofit 501C(3) organizations. All grants awarded by the NFF require a cash match through non-federal donations. See the NFFs website for more information: http://www.natlforests.org/centennial_year_challenge.html.

Fund for Wild Nature supports projects premised on effective and intelligent biocentric strategies, that focus on issues not receiving adequate (national) attention, and that may not be fundable through mainstream sources. They seek proposals with visionary, radical, and realistic goals to create tangible change. They always look for opportunities to foster cross-movement alliances and generate ‘ripple effects’ which may lead to other campaigns for long-term, systemic change. All proposals must be highly cost-effective. They rarely fund proposals from organizations with annual budgets greater than US $250,000. The Fund prioritizes efforts to save native species and wild ecosystems. Broader areas of support include: wilderness defense; protecting biodiversity and ecosystem integrity; teaching the action-based ethics of biocentrism; efforts to reduce human population growth and commodity consumption; cultural arts that transform awareness and encourage action; exposing and opposing the anti-ecological, anti-wilderness ‘wise use’ agenda; and indigenous peoples’ activism. Deadlines June 10, 2005 and November 4, 2005. Visit http://www.fundwildnature.org. .

NFWF - The Nature of Learning Grants Program
The Nature of Learning Grants Program, administered by The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, will provide support to organizations interested in initiating or expanding The Nature of Learning initiative in their communities. This environmental education initiative promotes awareness, appreciation, and understanding of the role that the National Refuge System plays in the conservation of wildlife. Grants of up to $5,000 will be awarded to support start-up expenses associated with new programs. In addition, grants of up to $3,000 will be awarded to provide continued support to existing Nature of Learning programs. Schools or nonprofit organizations, including "Friends" groups, Audubon chapters, conservation organizations, and nature centers, etc. are eligible to apply for funding. Applications must be postmarked by June 15, 2005. Visit http://www.nfwf.org/programs/tnol.htm.

Support for Land Conservation Efforts
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation/Wal-Mart: Acres for America
Acres for America, a partnership between Wal-Mart Stores and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, was established to provide funding for projects that conserve important habitat for fish, wildlife, and plants through acquisition of interest in real property. The goal of the Acres for America program is to offset the footprint of Wal-Mart's domestic facilities on at least an acre by acre basis through these acquisitions. Acquisitions that contribute to "landscape level" conservation efforts that help reduce fragmentation are preferred over isolated acquisitions. All grant awards require a minimum 1:1 match of cash or contributed goods and services. The pre-proposal deadlines for 2005 are May 13 and September 17. Application guidelines are available on the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation website at http://www.nfwf.org/programs/walmart/index.htm.

Town Creek Foundation
The Foundation supports programs that engage citizens in challenging the unsustainable use of natural resources and in protecting biological diversity. Strategies supported are grassroots activism, monitoring the enforcement of environmental laws, public policy advocacy, collaborative opportunities, media outreach, and model or demonstration projects fostering sustainable policies and practices. Deadlines are January 15, May 15, and September 15. Visit www.towncreekfdn.org.

Join Georgia River Network
If you find news stream and other information and services provided by Georgia River Network useful, we would appreciate your financial support! Visit www.garivers.org and join today!

Register now for Paddle Georgia 2005 on the Chattahoochee, June 25 - July 1. Visit www.garivers.org for details.

Dana Skelton
Director of Administration and Outreach
Georgia River Network
126 S Milledge Avenue
Athens, GA 30605
706/549-4508
706/549-7791 fax
http://www.garivers.org

Please Support Georgia's Rivers...Join Today!