by Caroline Pufalt
Cleaner, quieter, wilder and safer rivers? ….or ….More ATVs, motorized watercraft, damaged stream banks, noise, contaminated water and loss of wildlife. You help choose! The National Park Service is developing a new management plan for the Ozark National Scenic Riverways. That plan will cover the next 20 years and will determine what kind of experience visitors will have on the Current and Jacks Fork Rivers. The Park Service is seeking input from the public.
The Sierra Club and other concerned citizens have identified four major problems which need to be address in the plan:
- Overdevelopment and motorized intrusion: too many unauthorized access points for motorized access along the river resulting in damaged and unsightly river banks, wildlife habitat loss, degraded recreational opportunities for those seeking a quiet river journey.
- Commercial horse over-use: horseback riding is permitted in the park but the numbers have been out of control - so much so that horse waste has at times contaminated the river so that it is unsafe for whole body contact.
- Scenic easements: these are voluntary agreements which permit controlled development in private lands along the river. Unfortunately these agreements are not always honored.
- Over-crowding: The Ozark National Scenic Riverways was established in 1964. Since then the rivers have become more motorized, more crowded and more polluted.
Wilderness opportunity - the plan offers the chance to consider Wilderness protection for a 3536 acre area along the river near, but not including, Big Springs. This wild and undeveloped land can gain protection if it is eventually designated as a federal Wilderness area. The Ozark National Scenic Riverways plan can recommend Wilderness status for the area called Big Spring Wilderness.
What you can do: Ask the Park Service to send you information about the developing management plan. See: www.nps.gov/ozar. Click on links for management plan and public input. Email or write the Park Service about your concerns for the Ozark National Scenic Riverways.
For more information, contact the
Missouri Chapter of the Sierra Club
7164 Manchester Ave
Maplewood, MO 63143
Email: missouri.chapter@sierraclub.org
Also see www.friendsofozarkriverways.org