River Management Society Supporting Professionals Who Study, Protect, and Manage RMS SPRING 2013 VOLUME 26, NO. 1 North America’s Rivers Vehicles loaded with pontoon boats and floats are moved up in Remagen, Germany, by Engineers of 1st Army. (Courtesy of U.S. Army) SOUTHWEST FOCUS “The History of Inflatable Boats Colorado River Basin Study ................. 4 and How They Saved Rivers” Eagle County River Access .................. 5 by Greg Trainor Partnerships and Restoration ............... 6 When I wrote to Herm Hoops (Jensen, of hours of his own time. This dedication Recreational In-Channel Diversions ..... 7 Utah) indicating that I wanted to do a was what prompted me to support his review of his “book on rubber boats,” he effort through the purchase of one of his River Users and Tamarisk Study .......... 8 was quick to respond indicating that it first editions. was a documentary on inflatable boats. I The documentary is bound in a large, Nonpoint Source Pollution in WA ........ 10 purchased a copy a year ago ($100) and three-ring binder with plastic pocket Yosemite River Plans ......................... 12 was amazed at the depth of detail, history, holders for the narrative and photographs and photographs depicting the rise and holding histories going back to pre-Civil A Journey for Clean Water, Canada ... 14 continued development of the inflatable War times and up through the current boat industry. He has managed to collect period. I always thought that inflatable Tennessee Valley Authority ................. 18 hundreds of photographs, drawings, boats started with the Second World War RMS Pro Deal Program ...................... 24 illustrations, and first person interviews of and the post-war era. Not so. The most the key manufacturers and principals of fascinating part of his documentary are the WSR Video and Photo Contest .......... 27 that industry. He has traveled thousands of photographs of the United States Army miles on his own dime and spent hundreds (continued on page 17) Executive Director’s Eddy RMS Main Office Risa Shimoda, Executive Director Welcome to RMS 2013! PO Box 5750, Takoma Park, MD 20913 Ph / Fax (301) 585-4677 We have been busy preparing for [email protected] the 2013 Interagency River Management [email protected] Workshop, River Crossings: Linking River National Officers Communities, where we look forward to Dennis Willis, President Price, UT (435) 650-0850 seeing familiar faces and new professional friends. We thank many members for their Linda Jalbert, Vice President Grand Canyon, AZ (928) 638-7909 contribution, especially Maile Adler, Judy Jorjena Daly, Secretary Culver, Dave Schade, Troy Schnurr, Mike Anchorage, AK (907) 267-1246 Wight, and Dennis Willis. The loudest Helen Clough, Treasurer Juneau, AK (807) 790-4189 shout out goes to Bunny Sterin, leader of the RMS effort and liaison with our tradition. Last summer, we devoted an Ex Officio Advisors primary agency sponsor this year, the issue to the topic of managing invasive Gary G. Marsh Mountain City, TN (423) 768-3621 Bureau of Land Management. Bunny and species, on which we received extremely Randy Welsh the others have been willing to step into positive comments from members. You Washington, DC (801) 625-5250 the detail, many times. We are also thrilled encouraged us to produce another ‘topic- Dave Ryan, Legal to have had the opportunity to get to know focused’ issue, so we will: Missoula, MT (406) 728-4140 our Tamarisk Coalition and Colorado “Kids Today, River Professionals Ken Ransford, Financial Basalt, CO (970) 927-1200 Mesa University’s Water Center partners: Tomorrow” will take a look at they are smart and industrious, and share opportunities we are creating to go beyond RMS Listserve our interest in growing a positive future introducing a group of kids to the river, [email protected] for our nation’s rivers. offering a first angling lesson or ride in a Web Page Coordinator Cheston Crowser (406) 273-4747 Recently, we supported the kayak. We as river professionals can serve [email protected] Interagency Wild and Scenic Rivers young people uniquely by encouraging Pro Deal Coordinator Scott Springer (541) 490-5289 Coordinating Council (IAWSRCC) and mentoring their view of rivers as [email protected] Introduction to Section 7 of the Wild the backdrop for continuing studies; a Merchandise Coordinator and Scenic Rivers Act webinars, two platform for developing river skills; and Dan Haas (509) 546-8333 [email protected] times each in December and January, a special place around which to build a RMS Journal for a collective audience of over 100 career. Enabling even one young person’s Caroline Kurz (406) 549-0514 [email protected] individuals. RMS helped project awareness of a potential professional leads Randy Welsh and members river path contributes mightily to your RMS is a non-profit professional organization. Mollie Chaudet and Steve Chesterton organization, corporation, or agency, and All contributions and membership dues are with content development as well as will likely inspire others. If you know tax-deductible. production. As a byproduct, becoming about programs or individuals sending The mission of RMS is to support familiar with Section 7 I think it could be kids and young adults to the river and professionals who study, protect, and a helpful management tool for managers providing avenues for them to pursue manage North America’s rivers. on all rivers. rivers as their future, submit an article or Editorial Policy: Articles are not edited for Current projects also include a Wild recruit a colleague to write about it! The content and may not reflect the position, and Scenic Rivers awareness campaign deadline for the Summer 2013 journal is endorsement, or mission of RMS. The purpose of this policy is to encourage the and improvement of membership benefits May 1st. If you have questions contact me free exchange of ideas concerning river to Organizational members: you’ll read or our journal editor, Caroline Kurz.u management issues in an open forum of about both elsewhere in this issue. Hope to see you downstream, communication and networking among the RMS membership. Unless indicated, points of Summer 2013 RMS Journal: view are those of the author and not RMS. revisiting a popular break from Risa Shimoda RMS Executive Director 2 RMS Journal From the President Confronting a New Normal New Normal: The term is recent, yet it is almost a cliché. climate in the already parched west. It seems to be applied to everything from lying politicians to One group aware of the situation and reacting to it is the obesity. I was ready to abandon the term until a recent High consumptive water users. Already well entrenched in western Country News article slapped me with a genuine new normal law and politics, this group works overtime to assure its interests affecting rivers and most everything we do as managers. are protected above all others. There are a number of bills Our friends at the National Resource Conservation Service being considered in western legislatures that would do just that: in the Department of Agriculture monitor the nation’s snow Assure that water rights for consumptive use are recognized as cover. The agency reports the snowpack, its water content and an ownership property right that would trump water rights for references current conditions to a rolling thirty year average, non-consumptive uses like fish, wildlife and in stream flows. referred to as “normal.” This year, the agency presented us with a In Utah, the Director of the State’s Natural Resources Division new normal. Until recently, normal was based on the years 1971 stated it would be preferable to dry up the Great Salt Lake, through 2000. Now normal is defined by the period 1981 through and its one billion dollar contribution the state’s economy, and 2010. What this means for most of the west is normal is drier than internationally significant ecological value, than to ask existing it used to be. water users to give up any water. This willingness to annihilate a Skiers complain about skinny snow despite snowpack that is public resource rather than ask consumptive users to limit their at the new normal. The ramifications go far beyond snow sports use is akin to cutting down the last tree in the forest for fear of and extend to irrigators, culinary water systems, river recreation, offending the timber industry by regulating their harvest. fisheries and wildlife. The town where I live was located in the At the River Management Society, we believe rivers are semi desert climate zone; now it is in the desert. public resources, best held in public trust, holistically managed The new normal makes good sense and is easily described on for public benefit. We know rivers are not just a conduit for water paper. The problem is it does not jive with the intuitive, gut sense and they are not to be treated like urban plumbing. Rivers are of normal we all carry around. Take a look at the chart below instruments of geomorphology, a sediment distribution system. from the NRCS. They are critical habitats and migration corridors for aquatic and The peak snow pack water equivalent is approximately 10% terrestrial wildlife. Any river has great cultural value enjoyed by less under the new normal and the peak occurs earlier in the ancients, in historical and modern times. Rivers connect us to the season. The story is much the same throughout the west with a great outdoors, to the wild and untamed, a source of inspiration new normal that is 5% to 12% drier than what we are used to. and rejuvenation. Everyone interacting with rivers has to adapt to the new Wherever you are, you are facing new climatic normals. It is normal even though most people are unaware of it.