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Resource Institute
 Newsletter
Naturally Resourceful

summer   

  2014    





In This Issue
Hitchcock Creek
San Antonio Conference
Billy Joe Kepley, in memoriam

Chairman's Perspective

 

I'm pleased to report the second Southwestern Stream Restoration Conference, held this May in San Antonio, TX was a great success. The event was well attended and provided an exceptional venue for attendees and participants to see the latest projects and concepts being incorporated on stream restoration projects, while networking with other restoration professionals from around the country.

 

RI staff and select design engineers from around the country are currently preparing multiple million dollar funding applications for numerous state and multi-state proposals to the National Resource Conservation Service under the recently passed Farm Bill's Resource Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). 

 

RCPP is a $400 million dollar federal program to address stream restoration projects that links private organizations with private land owners. RI is modeling each of our proposals on our highly successful Western North Carolina Stream Initiative (WNCSI). This represents a significant undertaking, as we move projects outside NC on a true national scale.

 

Our individual pre-proposals will receive state and national ranking over the summer and if selected to move forward, we will submit final proposals in September with award announcements coming in October. I am optimistic we are in an excellent position to make the cut!

 

As indicated above, our WNCSI is progressing well. This calendar year, 2014, groundbreaking construction is scheduled or underway on over 30 designed projects in 16 of our 31 designated WNCSI counties for this $5.8 million dollar project. I am pleased to report we have secured similar funding from both National Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) and North Carolina's Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NC DENR) to continue this program for 2015.

 

On a very sad note, Pilot View RC&D and Resource Institute lost one of their most ardent supporters and a member of both Boards this past month, as Billy Joe Kepley passed away. All of us will sorely miss Billy Joe's historical perspectives, consistently keen insight into governmental bureaucracy, and his always humorous anecdotes. He was a true statesman and protector of our natural resources...God speed my friend.

 

"Squeak" Smith, Chairman

 

  

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2714 Henning Dr. 
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Board of Directors
 
Michael "Squeak" Smith, Chair, Morganton, NC

 

Meyressa Schoonmaker, Treasurer,  

Winston-Salem, NC

 

Lynn McCaskill, Secretary,

Ellerbe, NC

 

Darin Young,
East Bend, NC

 

Barbara Jones,
Mount Airy, NC

 

Richard Mode,
Morganton, NC

 

Lenny Smathers,
Granite Falls, NC

 

Harry Russell,
Star, NC 

 

Kelly L. Darden, Jr.

Greenville, NC

 

Staff

 
Charles Anderson,
Project Development

Debbie Dodson, 
CFO
 
Tammy Winfrey, 
Administrative Asst.

 

 

::

Hitchcock Creek Project

 

A Trail of Discovery 

 

Calling it a "great trail of discovery," the chief executive for American Rivers had high praise for what he saw during the May 13 ribbon-cutting ceremony for the final 3.7-mile stretch of the Hitchcock Creek Blue Trail and Greenway in the City of Rockingham, North Carolina. Michael "Squeak" Smith, chairman of Resource Institute called the project "a long journey that we have been on together."  

Champions of the Hitchcock Creek gathered
for the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
(courtesy of Pee Dee Post)

 

Paddlers enjoyed an inaugural run along the newly opened and restored stream segment. The entire project has in

cluded reclaiming the creek during the last dozen years since then-mayor Monty Crump first proposed the idea of making the formerly industrialized stream a recreational resource for the community. Construction began in 2009 with removal of a dam. Removing debris in 2011 helped open up the first 10-mile stretch of stream. Restoring the water quality was also a part of the $2.3 million project.

Rockingham Mayor Steve Morris enjoys a trip down the new stretch of Hitchcock Creek.
(courtesy of Pee Dee Post)

RI's Smith added, "The end is in sight," noting that another $600,000 would soon be acquired to complete restoring the remaining stretches of stream.  

 

City Planning Director John Massey added, "We so much appreciate the guidance and assistance of Resource Institute. Their help was invaluable in bringing together all the stakeholders and navigating the various hurdles to take the project from a simple concept to a reality. The new blue trail is a definite asset for our community and our citizens are using it daily."     

 


Successful Conference
in Texas  

 

The Southwest Stream Restoration Conference in San Antonio during May was a great success. Over 220 participants, most from across the Lone Star State, came to immerse themselves in the art and science and the challenges of restoring and maintaining healthy watercourses for ecological balance and water quality. The plenary session focused on managing streams today so they can be resilient in the future.

 

Feedback was enthusiastic: "I liked the blend of both research and practice in what was shared." "This conference really helped us move the entire science forward." "This was one of the best organized conferences I've ever attended. It really moved along well session to session and with workshops, too. Just excellent." "Well worth the investment of my attending."

 

Colorado and Baltimore conferences, 2015

Those planning to attend future stream restoration conferences can look forward to great experiences at those as well. The first Colorado Rockies Stream Restoration Conference will be in Breckenridge, Colorado, July 21-23, 2015. That conference will focus on restoring streams after floods and after wildfires, too increasingly common challenges facing the managers of watersheds for supply and quality.  RI logo with name

 

The 7th Mid-Atlantic Stream Restoration Conference is planned for Baltimore on September 23-25, 2015. Once again, it will bring together professionals to share ideas about their successes and the new challenges facing them in their water resource management roles.  

  

Put those dates on your calendar. For more information visit www.ResourceInstituteInc.org. 

 

Billy Joe Kepley,
in memoriam

  

Resource Institute notes with sadness the sudden passing of one of its longtime supporters and colleagues, Billy Joe Kepley. He served eight years on the boards of Resource Institute, Inc. and Pilot View RC&D, Inc. Kepley was deeply committed to his Davidson County, North Carolina, community, serving on the Board of Commissioners for 22 years. In his community he was an effective leader and a friend to all. He was a farmer, a professional photographer, an engineer, and statesman. "His leadership and counsel will be keenly missed," said Charles Anderson, executive director, Resource Institute. "Billy was a strong influence in directing our plans for the future," said Michael "Squeak" Smith, RI board chairman. "He was always looking ahead." Kepley died June 7; he was 78.
  

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Resource Institute has a clear mission: to engage and apply natural and human resources to enhance the quality of life for our partner organizations and their communities.

Our partners are non-profit organizations, local governments, private organizations, and civic-minded individuals interested in improving the welfare of their communities through the conscientious development of community resources. They partner with Resource Institute because they value our project assistance and guidance in bringing projects to successful completion. Resource Institute helps with project definition and finding funding sources. We assist and help direct conceptual planning, design, and engineering. We overview daily, on-the-ground construction management, manage grant reporting requirements, and most important, we help assure project completion. In short, Resource Institute helps its partners transform worthwhile community projects into real community assets.

 

Resource Institute is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization operating to serve community interests without the business demands of a for-profit corporation. As such, we help to reduce total project costs. Moreover, as a nonprofit, Resource Institute has the capacity to seek and find funding sources for partner projects related to conservation, stream restoration, environmental education, and the stewardship of natural resources-funding sources that are not available to for-profit companies.