River News

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Greetings Friends of the Clinton River and Lake St. Clair,

Our 2009 Annual Report reflects the work carried out through-out the season, honors our volunteers and celebrates the progress being made for our watershed by protecting water quality. Our theme last year was ways we are protecting our water resources. You will find in the report, a snapshot into the amount of effort provided by government members, storm water advisory groups, our students and teachers, mentors, adult volunteers, business leaders and other stakeholders in participating in programs that bring attention to water quality protection. De-spite the difficult economy, we were able to offer a continued level of service to our community because of the generous financial support of so many individuals, businesses, civic groups and governments all committed to focusing on the water resources throughout the watershed. We added hundreds of students to our student monitoring program, doubled our adopt-a-stream volunteers and number of sites monitored, doubled our River Day and Clinton Clean-up sites and conducted nearly 100 presentations on storm water management and telling the watershed story.

Please consider joining us this year at our Annual Meeting on March 25, 2010 to help us celebrate the 2009 season.
See you on the River!

Anne M. Vaara
Executive Director
Download this Issue as PDF

Monitoring our water resources along the Clinton River, throughout the watershed and Lake St. Clair has been the focus of the Clinton River Watershed Council for nearly 38 years. It started out with a hand full of dedicated people who cared deeply about what was going on in their own backyard with water quality and water quantity. Read more »

Give to CRWC’s Endowment Fund: Ensure A Better Watershed Into the Future

Your contribution to CRWC’s Endowment Fund is a “win-win” way to help ensure the financial foundation for the Watershed Council’s programs and services. Over and above your annual membership dues/donation, your gift to the Endowment Fund builds a permanent base of giving that grows for the long-run. Read more »

July 24, 2010 Walk-A-Thon Fundraiser at the Detroit Zoo

Saturday, July 24th, the Clinton River Watershed Council will host our 12th Annual Fundraiser and our First Annual Walk-A-Thon. The fundraiser walk will take place Saturday morning at the Detroit Zoo in Royal Oak, MI. Read more »

One of the staff favorites are the area Water Festivals. This year marked the third annual Clinton River Water Festival (CRWF) hosted by Oakland University and the second annual Lake St. Clair Water Festival at Macomb Community College. Water festivals help 4th and 5th students learn about the importance of water and how it impacts their daily lives. Read more »

Stream Leaders provides K-12 students with an educational experience in water quality monitoring, data interpretation, and citizen action, as well as provide general information to stakeholders concerning water quality. Read more »

The Clinton River Watershed Council, together with its partners, Anchor Bay Yachting Association (ABYA), Michigan Sea Grant and MacRay Harbor Marina, conducted the “Clean and Green Boating” Workshop last spring at MacRay’s. This workshop was hosted for the boating community and included top-ics on clean boating practices, lake friendly boat care products, Michigan’s Clean Marinas program, and controlling invasive species in the Great Lakes. Michigan is home to more registered boaters than any of the other Great Lakes states. Read more »

In an effort to assist our local government members with the education requirements of their NPDES Phase II stormwater permits, CRWC continues to develop and facilitate presentations, workshops and education materials to inform the public about the Clinton River watershed and engage them in stewardship of our local water resources. Read more »

River Day was once again a success in 2009! Forty six different partners throughout the watershed celebrated the Clinton River. Read more »

The Annual Clinton Clean up took place on September 26th and dedicated volunteers were able to clean up over 20 areas throughout the Watershed. Read more »

It was a very productive year for the Adopt-a-Stream program! Throughout the watershed volunteers showed their interest in our streams by joining CRWC‟s efforts in maintaining a long term water quality record. Read more »

River Walks give watershed enthusiasts a chance to experience the watershed in a variety of ways. Whether it is a bird walk, or cross country skiing, everyone who participates enjoys spending times out in the watershed. Read more »

CRWC uses data collected by Adopt-A-Stream volunteers to build a long term record of stream health for the Clinton River Watershed. This baseline data can be used to recommend areas for further investigation of water quality by other organizations and state agencies. The criteria used for scoring was developed by the Michigan Clean Water Corps. (MiCorps). This scoring system is a recognized standard throughout the State of Michigan. Read more »

Clinton River Coldwater Conservation Project

The Clinton River Coldwater Conservation Project had a busy year in 2009. After the Annual Volunteer River Rally that took place in April, CRWC staff, Citizen Volunteers, several Boy Scouts and Trout Unlimited members wasted no time Read more »

Last year was special for our canoeing and kayaking community as we were a partner with host cities, Auburn Hills and Rochester Hills to form the first annual Paddlepalooza event on May 30, 2009. Read more »

The Clinton River is the most populous watershed in the state, home to 1.5 million people. This heavy urbanization makes for challenges in protecting water quality where the proper balance between the built world and the natural world is challenging. Read more »

Mary has been a volunteer with the CRWC for over 10 years. She first became involved because of her passion of writing through the River of Words. She has been on the CRWC Finance Committee since 2006. Read more »

Jason joined CRWC in the summer of 2009 as the Adopt-A-Stream Site Coordinator. As an avid fly fisherman and outdoor enthusiast, he has a vested interest in the quality of the Clinton River and its watershed. Read more »