We had a wonderful time last night honoring Dr. Liane Russell as the 2008 Bill Russell River Hero Award recipient.  A crowd of about 80 people gathered at the beautiful Foundry at World’s Fair Park to celebrate Lee’s many incredible accomplishments.  Check out our Flickr page for photos from last night’s celebration.

After the presentation, TCWN Board President Greg Buppert announced the award will now be the “Liane and Bill Russell River Hero Award.”  Greg also presented Lee with two white fringetrees that will be planted in her honor at two of her favorite places, Obed Wild and Scenic River and Frozen Head State Park.

We have to thank our sponsors for their support:

Communication Resources
Globally Green Consulting, LLC
Knoxville News Sentinel
Joe W. McCaleb & Associates
The Nature Conservancy- Tennessee Chapter
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning
Tennessee Parks and Greenways Foundation
Tennessee Scenic Rivers Association

We’d also like to thank Anetta Watson, WATE 6 News Anchor Gene Patterson, Phil Campbell, the staff of The Foundry, TCWN board members Greg Buppert, Katie Larue, Janet King and Dennis McCarthy, TCWP board members and all those that joined us for an unforgettable night.

One week from tonight- what will you be doing?  I hope you answered, “Celebrating the amazing accomplishments of Lee Russell at the 2008 Bill Russell River Hero Award.” 

No, that wasn’t your response? 

Well, that can easily be changed.  Seriously, it is going to be a great night for a great woman.  The award ceremony is set for next Thursday, October 2, at the Foundry at World’s Fair Park, from 6:30-8:30 p.m.  Tickets are $50 per person and there will be heavy hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar.  Best of all, we get to spend the evening honoring an incredible conservationist that embodies the spirit of the River Hero Award.  Tickets are available online and by calling 522-7007 ext. 102.

About Liane:
For more than 40 years, Dr. Liane Russell has been working to preserve and protect Tennessee’s rivers and parks.  Lee and her husband Bill (for whom the River Hero Award is named) organized Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning and were instrumental in protecting the Obed River and the Big South Fork of the Cumberland River.  Lee played a lead role in the drafting and passage of the State Scenic Rivers Act, which is the first such act in the United States.

Through her work more than 150,000 acres of land and more than 120 miles of river are permanently protected from adverse development in the Cumberlands.  Because of her efforts against strip-mining, many of Tennessee’s rivers are spared siltation and acid mine drainage.  Throughout Tennessee and in her hometown, her work has helped protect lands and water to make them available for generations to come.

I look forward to seeing you there!

Hi. This is Kristina Shands. I am the new director of development and communications. I have known two previous directors that held this position and I am humbled and honored to follow in their footsteps.

Today is my one-month anniversary. It’s hard to believe that I have been here a month. On one hand, I have learned so much that it is sometimes a challenge to keep it all in my brain; on the other hand, there is so much I need to know just to keep with the other folks in the office.

Here are a few of the things I have learned over the past 30 days:

• The level of dedication, not just from the TCWN staff and board but also our members, consultants and partners, is beyond anything I have seen before. This isn’t just a job- it is a passion.
• Clean water is about more than conservation and river cleanups. I always thought of water issues in terms of energy issues- the amount of water it takes to run power plants (coal and nuclear) and pollution from industrial processes- but I never imagined the impact agriculture, irresponsible development and storm drainage has on our drinking water, streams and rivers.
• The TCWN staff is extremely professional, knowledgeable and committed. Renée, Dana, Greg and Morgan are the best at what they do. They inspire me to work hard and be my best. I enjoy the challenge.
• Legislation, permits and enforcement are tough to understand. I am glad to have Dana and Renée here to explain things.
• TCWN is 100% accountable to its members and the community. We truly care about the health of our cities and state. We are active citizens who strive to make the world a better place.
• We can’t do it alone. And we don’t. I have met some very interesting people over the past month. People who are fighting along side TCWN to ensure we have clean water not just for drinking, but also for playing.

It has been a very busy first month, and I look forward to many, many busy months ahead. I invite every one of you to drop me a line and let me know what you think about TCWN- the organization, membership, website, water issues, whatever. You can reach me at 865-522-7007 ext. 102 or Kristina@tcwn.org. I hope to hear from you soon!

We at the Network are desk jockeys. We spend the majority of our time behind a computer writing letters, researching policy, talking to members and people in the community facing threats to their clean water resources. Rarely do we get outside. Yesterday was an exception.

Craig Walker, an ecologist, invited the staff of TCWN to go musseling on the Clinch River. I have never seen a freshwater mussel up close and person. I must say, it was luv.

We started the day with a lecture complete with textbook and quiz.

After a drive to the Clinch River, we were treated to a great day of snorkling, mussel identification and riverside lunch. We snorkeled in about a foot of water, but we came to the river in 5mm wetsuits, fins, snorkel gear and weight belts. The guy at the dive shop told us the river would be freezing and we’d need weight belts go with the very large wetsuit so we could get down far enough to see the mussels. Most of that gear was left in the car.

The biodiversity was amazing. We saw hundreds of snails of different types, rare, endangered and threatened mussel species, darters galore. I had never appreciated mussels as I did slowly drifting down the river only to stop and hike back up and do it all over again.

Mussels have no eyes so their strategies for feeding and reproduction rely on sensory abilities I have no idea about. It’s marvelous really to watch them close and open to changes in their environment that we could not perceive. We saw a number of them with a foot hanging out. Darters and Mad Toms were curious. If we stayed still enough they would come close to check us out these beings with weird smooshed faces and long breathing tubes.

None wanted to leave, but our desks were calling us. Dana had to get to Enterprise Rental Car before it closed to get a car for today’s Water Quality Control Board meeting in Nashville. I had to check a million emails and phone messages from my vacation last week. Greg and Morgan had to prepare for one last day of freedom before classes start. Only Craig could leave the river knowing he’d be back for mussel surveys.

Boy, has there been a lot of traffic at the office here regarding the news yesterday about Rarity mining it’s golf coarse for coal without a permit. The Office of Surface Mining took offense and did a stop work order. TDEC mulls.

Do you remember the big stormwater enforcements of the spring? The ones against Rarity that were millions of dollars? Well, here is the enforcement order.  oakridgeland-company-rarite The millions of dollars are now just thousands of dollars and 80% are going to be forgiven on the promise of future compliance. I wish I could talk last week’s traffic cop into that? Can you imagine? “Officer, I only want to pay $30 of my $150 fine. Is that ok by you?” That’s what these guys do all the time. Read the order. Pay special attention to the Order and Assessment section XXII. Everything listed in 1, 3, and 5 were required by Ross’ permit. Ross agreed to do those things before he started work, and now he gets a benefit for non-compliance. If he does them now, he doesn’t have to pay the fine. VERY, VERY BAD…

RvH