Flint River Conservation Association
Gillian Bee visited with Susan 'Soos' Weber, founder and Chair of the Flint River Conservation Association. 2018 marks their 20th anniversary. Soos, and FRCA, have been active members of the Tennessee River Basin Network since 2016. Thanks for your participation, FRCA!
What part/species/ecosystem service etc. of our freshwater aquatic ecosystem do you think is the coolest?
That is a tough question. But I have been an environmental educator all my life, and I get the biggest kick out of seeing the wonder in children's eyes when they discover an aquatic "critter". I am a huge fan of Richard Louv's book--The Last Child in the Woods. So we put on Kids in the Creek in the summer to let kids be kids in the process of exploration of a new environment. It's unstructured discovery time. Some of these kids will go on to become environmental professionals.
What is the mission of your organization?
The Flint River Conservation Association is a group of concerned residents, landowners, and recreational users who are working to conserve and improve the water quality, natural resources, and scenic beauty of Madison County's Flint River Watershed.
What is the association's framework?
We depend on Volunteers for most of our projects--Earth Day, Kids in the Creek, our Bi-Annual "Splash for Trash" for American Rivers Clean Up Week (June), and National Public Lands Day (Sept.), water testing workshops with Alabama Water Watch, The Wild and Scenic Film Festival (2x per year), the Top of the Watershed Project with Monte Sano State Park, and providing workshops to assist the Denizens of Monte Sano (Mountain) in becoming certified with the National Wildlife Federation. Monte Sano is the 59th Community in the Nation to be certified as a Wildlife Habitat Community--all due to FRCA's workshops and grants.
How can people get involved? And what sort of assistance could they provide?
We are currently working on our Facebook page to let folks know about our organization and projects, and invite folks to contact us to participate in them.
What has been your favorite project?
The setting aside of 1000 acres of bottomlands and swamps on the Flint River which became the Watershed and Wetland Education Centers.
What has been your proudest moment for your organization?
The Grand Opening of the Hays Nature Preserve on June 15th 2002, which FRCA sponsored alongside the Hays family. We tallied 4000 people that attended the Grand Opening and had ~200 folks paddle on the River.
Anything special happening this year ?
We resurrected our very popular program, Kids in the Creek! The Nature Conservancy in Alabama is a sponsor of this event, and we will continue to do this every year. Richard Louv would be proud!
How did you hear about the Tennessee River Basin Network?
Our association with TVA over the years since we formed (1998) has been positive, and they have kept us in the loop on this conference.
Why do you participate in the Tennessee River Basin Network?
Just that--To Network--to see what others are doing that we might adopt here in North Alabama. We may be the only non-staffed organization in the Network and at times are overwhelmed by the projects undertaken by our members. It is important for us to attend these annual meetings to glean information, lessons learned, and look for ideas, opportunities or partnerships to help our organization further it's mission.
How could your organization support others in the Tennessee River Basin Network?
As a small volunteer led group we primarily work to support other groups involved in water issues in North Alabama, or the Alabama Rivers Alliance (ARA) which is our "Umbrella" organization. The Tri States Water Wars has had a big impact on Alabama because we are the only one of the 3 States without a Comprehensive Statewide Water Management Plan, and FRCA has been involved in helping ARA with that and other issues.
