Much of Tennessee experienced a historic flood in early May that caused unprecedented damage not only to our communities but to our vital waterways.  For 60 miles along the Harpeth River, household debris from hundreds of structures still lie in and along the river banks, and thousands of trees were uprooted that have created erosion problems as well as blockages that can cause future flooding and more property damage.  HRWA created our Waterway Flood Recovery Project to assess the damage and launch clean-up efforts. 

As a result of HRWA’s efforts, over 400 volunteers on 15 clean-up projects have removed 40 tons of debris.  But, by Thanksgiving the grant support for 3 clean-up coordinators via Work Force Essentials is over. At a multi-agency meeting HRWA convened in July to discuss funding for waterway flood recovery, FEMA and other federal and state agencies said they are not able to fund debris clean-up efforts on private property even when the debris is in the water.

We need your support TODAY
 for the Harpeth Protection Campaign.

• Continue the Waterway Flood Recovery Project:  We need to remove dangerous debris at key sites we have identified, work with the various long-term recovery teams to incorporate waterway restoration needs from the flood to prevent future property damage from erosion and flooding, and work on improvements needed to floodplain development rules that can help minimize property damage in the future.
• Increase the levels of dissolved oxygen in the river during the summer to meet state standards required to support wildlife and protect human health with the Water Quality Protection Program. 
• Improve recreational access to the river through the Harpeth River Blueway Project.
   
   

Ten Years of Success

HRWA has conducted important river studies, installed over 50 stream restoration and water quality demonstration projects on farms, new developments, parks, schools, and existing offices in five counties; worked with communities to get pollution problems addressed; and built new canoe accesses on the Harpeth as part of the Harpeth River Blueway.

Click here to read our full page flyer on our success HIGHLIGHTS!

The State Scenic Harpeth River is such a valuable natural treasure.  Thank you for investing in the Harpeth River Watershed Assocation, your community, and one of your most precious limited resources—clean water.