195 



I* THE 

 ROFESSIONAL 



llliVV SOCIETY OF AMERICAN FORESTERS 



-V J 



MOO Groswnor Lant • Hethcsda, Maryland 20814 • (301) 897-8720 



Waterways Restoration Act of 1994 

 H.R. 4289 



A Position of the Society of American Foresters" 



The great Midwest floods of 1993 were a cruel reminder of the awesome influence natural 

 occurrences can have on our daily lives. The damage done by this flooding can largely be 

 attributed to the fact that there were no natural buffer areas present to help dissipate the 

 stormwater due to the extensive levying of the midwestern waterway system and the lack of 

 vegetation along much of its watercourses. The lack of natural stormwater drainage areas 

 resulted in watercourses jumping levies and other water channelization structures to 

 massively flood both agricultural and residential areas. The deforestation of riparian areas 

 associated with agricultural production and urbanization has significantly reduced the amount 

 of our nation's watercourses protected by forests. There is a definite need to provide land 

 contiguous to our nation's watercourses with naturally established flood control mechanisms, 

 such as riparian forests. 



The United States also has a severe soil erosion problem. Soil washed from the nation's 

 disturbed lands as surface runoff ends up as sediment and other suspended solids in natural 

 watercourses at a rate of approximately 1.5 billion tons per year. The deleterious impacts of 

 soil loss due to runoff seriously affect the flora and fauna of riparian ecosystems, as well as 

 cause degradation of water quality in the associated watercourses. 



The Society of American Foresters (SAF) has long recognized the importance of riparian 

 areas in moderating floodwaters and intercepting sediment and other pollutants in stormwater 

 runoff, and has advocated the sound management of our natural resources with these 

 objectives in mind. SAF strongly supports the voluntary, non-regulatory restoration of 

 riparian areas to improve flood and erosion control designed to protect the nation's 

 waterways. The Society of American Foresters agrees with the general thrust of H.R. 4289, 

 the Waterways Restoration Act of 1994, and urges Congress to adopt the language contained 

 in this proposed legislation, specifically, the provisions for voluntary restoration of diverse 

 waterway systems described in Section 14 of the bill. 



The restoration plans for the riparian areas reclaimed under the Waterways Restoration Act of 

 1994 should include an aggressive revegetation program that includes the return of 

 indigenous, hydrophytic vegetation to the landscape. The restoration of a healthy riparian 

 ecosystem requires the re-establishment of significant amounts of riparian forestland to the 



" Adopted by the Officers of the Society of American Foresters on May 26, 1994 and will 

 expire May 25, 1995 unless, after thorough review, it is renewed by the SAF Council. 



Using the Scientific Knowledge and Technical Skills of the Forestry Profession to Benefit Society 



