Current River to be named to nation’s ‘Most Endangered’ list

One of Missouri’s premier rivers, the Current River and Ozark National Scenic Riverways, is being named as one of the nation’s 10 most threatened riverways by American Rivers in its annual report released May 17.

The announcement was meant to serve as a wake up call to the National Park Service that Missouri’s largest national park needs to step up its management and address problems in the park that have slowly been eroding the quality of the park.

“We have to do more today to avert the catastrophes of tomorrow,” said Kally Higgins, Friends of Ozark Riverways spokesperson in a press release. “We are seeing visible signs that the health of the Current River is in trouble.  High bacteria levels that have led to restrictions on swimming activities and riverbank erosion are just several signs of major issues needing attention. We want to work with the National Park Service to make sure that these problems are examined, inventoried, and given full environmental review before it prepares its general management plan due in 2012.”

Next year, the park service will be releasing its 10-year General Management Plan and the conservation community has identified past decisions, policies, and practices that collectively are causing harm to the park resources.

Representatives from many statewide environmental, fishing, paddling, and conservation organizations are joining together to put the National Park Service on notice that NPS needs to manage the pristine river and parklands with an eye to the future. There are signs that the river, loved by Missourians and millions of visitors each year, may be destroyed by pollution, erosion and poor management.

The Current River is a spring-fed river that is approximately 184 miles long. In 1964, approximately 134 miles of the upper part of the river and its tributaries became a part of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways.

This is the first time that the Current River and its tributaries have been named a threatened riverway on American River’s Endangered Rivers list, which began in 1985.

In addition to comments by representatives of American Rivers, Friends of Ozark Riverways and the Missouri Coalition for the Environment, maps depicting the excessive number of access points and photos depicting damage to the riverway are available.

The Web sites for American Rivers – www.americanrivers.org – and the Friends of the Ozark Riverways – www.friendsofozarkriverways.org – feature a three-minute video on the waterway.