Following is information regarding the release by the National Park Service of the study report and environmental assessment for the proposal to designate the lower Farmington River and Silver Brook as National Wild and Scenic Rivers. Please take the time to review the report and leave your comment on the National Park Service website:
The National Park Service has released the Study Report and Environmental Assessment for the proposal to designate the lower Farmington River and Salmon Brook in Connecticut as National Wild and Scenic Rivers. The report is available on the National Park Service Planning, Environment and Public Comment (PEPC) website at:
http://parkplanning.nps.gov/document.cfm?parkID=261&projectID=35651&documentID=48466
The public is encouraged to visit the site to review the document and provide comments. Comments may be submitted until October 17, 2012.
The upper 14-miles of the Farmington River were designated as a Wild and Scenic River in 1994, and due to its success in facilitating river protection through a partnership between residents and the state, local, and federal governments, there has been keen local interest in pursuing Wild and Scenic River designation for the downstream segment of the Farmington River and its tributary, the Salmon Brook. The lower Farmington River and its important tributary, the Salmon Brook, are rich in recreational, historical, and biological values. Protecting and enhancing the rivers through designation, can result in local benefits such as federal assistance for implementation of the Lower Farmington River and Salmon Brook Management Plan, research studies, and enhanced cooperation among numerous river stakeholders. River designation may bring prestige and recognition to a region, and can boost the local economy through tourism and possible funding through the National Park Service, matching grants, in-kind support, and volunteer assistance.
The five-year-long Wild and Scenic Rivers Study, led by the locally-based Wild and Scenic River Study Committee, resulted in the ten towns located within the study area to endorse the Wild and Scenic River designation and the Lower Farmington and Salmon Brook Management Plan, the companion document to the Study Report. Many other local and regional organizations have indicated their support of the designation. The Management Plan can also be downloaded from the PEPC website.
For more information or to request a printed copy of the report, please contact Joyce Kennedy Raymes at (860) 658-4442 x. 203.
To learn more about the Wild and Scenic River Study please visit: http://www.lowerfarmingtonriver.org/.
Photo of the Farmington River by Tom Cameron
