Los Angeles River Chosen for New Urban Waters Federal Partnership

The Los Angeles River has been chosen as one of seven river watersheds nationwide to participate in the new pilot program of the Urban Waters Federal Partnership. This pilot program aims to revitalize growing American cities and the natural resources that surround them.

This new national partnership aligns the programmatic goals of the White House's Great Outdoors Initiative and the Partnership for Sustainable Communities to link economic revitalization with environmental sustainability.

Designed to break down federal government agency 'silos,' while promoting collaboration among federal, state, local agencies and non-profit and community-based environmental organizations, the Urban Waters Federal Partnership selected the Los Angeles River Watershed in part because more than 70% of its residents live more than a quarter mile from a park or open space, resulting in a lack of access to such environmental resources as clean air and potable water. The LA River was also cited for its success record in current federal colloboration efforts along the river corridor, especially in working with disadvantaged communities.

The focus of this new partnership is on revitalizing local watershed efforts, including enhancing flood control, improving water quality through green infrastructure, enabling safe public river access, and restoring ecosystems.

Examples of ongoing work where local communities in the Los Angeles River Watershed are engaged in partnerships with federal agencies are the: Station Fire Restoration, Los Angeles River Ecosystem Restoration, South Los Angeles Wetlands Park, Hansen Dam Wetlands/Stormwater Treament/Park Expansion Project, the Elmer Street Neighborhood Retrofit, and Disadvantaged Community Outreach Education Program.

The Partnership's immediate focus is on facilitating more economic development, especially in the Clean Tech Corridor; more recreational river access opportunities; more outdoor education in partnership with the LA Unified School District; and enhanced focus on conservation of the region's scarce water supply.

Spearheaded by leadership from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), participating federal agencies include the US Department of Agriculture (USDA); Department of the Army - Army Corps of Engineers (USACE); US Department of Commerce - Economic Development Administration (EDA); US Department of Commerce - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS); US Department of Health and Human Services - US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCP); US Department of Health and Human Services - National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS); US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD); US Department of the Interior (DOI); and US Department of Transportation (DOT).

The six other American river watersheds selected for this federal pilot program include: Anacostia Watershed, District of Columbia/Maryland; Patapsco Watershed, Baltimore Region, Maryland; Bronx & Harlem River Watersheds, New York; South Platte River, Denver, Colorado; Lake Ponchartrain Area, New Orleans, Louisiana; and the Northwest Indiana Urban Corridor along the Lake Michigan Shoreline.

The Pasadena Open Space & Conservation Element Update Points to a Sustainable Future

While local activists debate sediment removal in the Hahamongna at tonight's City Council meeting, another meeting will be taking place with a Pasadena City-appointed committee of citizens who have quietly been working for the past year and a half on the updating of the Open Space & Conservation Element to the City of Pasadena General Plan.

Under current State law, all California cities must periodically update their general plans, addressing such elements as housing, transportation, and health. The current committee has been working diligently with City staff and community stakeholders to both update the current Open Space & Conservation Element and integrate these general plan elements with the Green Space Element approved by the City in 2007 as well as the City's Green City Action Plan for sustainability (air quality, water quality/conservation and energy/greenhouse gas reductions).

After months of fact-finding, deliberation, community outreach meetings, walkabouts, and review of numerous plans and studies, the draft document for the Open Space & Conservation Element has been completed and will now be circulated to other City Commissions, including the Environmental Advisory Commission and the Recreation and Parks Commission, for review before reaching the Pasadena City Council for final approval.

The 63 page document, which can be accessed by clicking this blog's headline, provides a comprehensive overview of current City natural elements, conservation partners, sustainability issues, and urban nature needs within a framework to guide the City for future open space acquisitions and current open space stewardship. It was particularly gratifying to see in this report the extensive attention placed on the role that open space and conservation plays relative to water conservation and sustainable building practices.

The Open Space & Conservation Element Committee meets tonight at 6:45pm in the Grand Conference Room in the Basement of Pasadena City Hall. The meeting is open to the public and will be a fascinating update on a visionary future for Pasadena's urban nature culture with an eye towards an integrated approach to sustainability.

A River Lover's 12 Days of Christmas

As the traditional 12 days of Christmas arrive, here's my wish for the 12 things we could all do to love our rivers:

1. We will start each day by asking, 'where' is the water' and 'how do I protect it?'

2. We will re-connect with nature and enjoy the powerful joy of being present in the outdoors.

3. We will learn about and employ a watershed approach to resource management, including changing our approach to land use and real estate development to integrate healthy rivers into our urban designs.

4. We will stop tossing our trash out our car windows, onto our sidewalks, and among our nature trails because we know that everything that touches the ground ends up in our rivers and oceans.

5. We will honor our natural water systems by supporting a healthy habitat first, followed by reliable safety and flood control systems.

6. We will help injured animals and people in distress, coming from love, not ego, whenever we see them in pain or danger.

7. We will wonder at the birds that fly, the fish that swim, the animals that forage, and the peace that is known along a bucolic riverway, whether an urban, suburban, or rural stream.

8. We will be grateful for the safe. clean drinking water we have while we work to conserve water and improve secure potable water delivery in harmony with natural cycles.

9. We will revitalize our neighborhoods using 'green' principles that will protect our earth, water and sky.

10. We will practice individual and collective stewardship, to always leave our rivers, seashores, and wildlands in better condition than how we found them.

11. We will teach our children and grandchildren how to play in nature and be self-reliant, so they will know how to protect our rivers when we are gone.

12.  We will remember that our bodies are comprised mostly of water and as such, we are the river.  We will come to understand that restoring our rivers is also healing our own personal health.