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St. Louis Front Page P.O. Box 1354 St. Louis, MO 63188 Voice: 314-771-0200 Fax: 314-771-0300 To submit news, contact: editor@slfp.com To advertise, contact: advertising@slfp.com  |
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 Recreational Trails to Get Nearly $1.2 Million Boost JEFFERSON CITY, (SLFP.com), April 7, 2002 - Missouri Governor Bob Holden has announced that 20 trail projects around Missouri have been approved for $1,182,720 in federal grants from the Recreational Trails Program. The Recreational Trails Program is a federally funded grant program for trail-related land acquisition, development or restoration. The federal program is authorized by the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century. In Missouri, Recreational Trails Program funds are administered by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources in cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration. "As one of the thousands of Missourians who regularly enjoy Missouri's network of state and local trail systems, I'm excited about the opportunities that these grants will provide," Holden said. "These funds will increase the quality of Missouri's trails by helping us establish new trails and improve existing trails all across the state." Sponsors, projects, counties, and amounts for fiscal year 2001 include: Jackson County Parks and Recreation, Longview Horse Park, Jackson County, $95,280The projects were selected based on recommendations from the Missouri Trails Advisory Board, which represents diverse trail interest groups. At least a 20 percent match is required by the applicant, and all projects must be consistent with the Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan. Funding is available up to $100,000 for trail-related acquisition, development and maintenance. A funding goal targets 30 percent of the funding for motorized trails, 30 percent for non-motorized trails and 40 percent for diversified trail use.  Missouri River Tops List of Endangered Rivers ST. LOUIS, (SLFP.com), April 2, 2002 - The Corps of Engineers' operations of a huge dam and reservoir system have once again put the Missouri River at the top of the annual America's Most Endangered Rivers list.
In a statement, Rebecca R. Wodder, president of American Rivers noted "The Corps of Engineers' water projects have put more than 30 rivers on our endangered rivers list since 1986, sometimes more than once. It's time to get the Corps off its path of destruction and onto a new path of stewardship of our natural resources." Each year since 1986, American Rivers has released the America's Most Endangered Rivers report to highlight rivers where imminent harm can be avoided or where ongoing destruction can be stopped. Four of the rivers were placed on this year's list because of ongoing or proposed Corps of Engineers water projects. The health of the Missouri River, this year's #1 most endangered river, is in sharp decline due to the operation of Corps dams and reservoirs, says the report. The Missouri River passes through Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri where it empties into the Mississippi River at the Confluence. "Far too often, the Corps builds projects to serve special interests instead of the public interest," Wodder said. "Once built, the operation of many Corps projects require continued infusions of tax dollars, and this dependence is nearly impossible to break no matter how much harm or how few benefits are being generated from projects dreamed up decades ago." The report states that the environmental consequences of the Corps' activities along America's rivers are profound. The agency has trapped rivers behind hundreds of locks and dams. It has cut off rivers from their floodplains with 8,500 miles of levees. It has gouged out 11,000 miles of navigation channels and constricted rivers with thousands of "wing dikes" and other structures. This transformation is a leading reason why America's freshwater fish and wildlife is disappearing five times faster than species that live on land. The cost to the taxpayer and to the economy can be equally substantial, claims the report. One watchdog organization, Taxpayers for Common Sense, estimates that cutting just the 25 worst projects from the Corps' budget could save $6 billion in the next several years.
The report states that: On the eve of the bicentennial of Lewis and Clark's historic exploration of the Missouri River, visitors experience just a fraction of its former ecological and historical glory, thanks to a management scheme that prioritizes a handful of barges over the river's health and its growing recreation and tourist industry. In the next few months, the Corps of Engineers must resist pressure to evade its Endangered Species Act responsibilities and instead modernize its dam operations to restore more natural seasonal water levels and reverse the river's decline - a step that would bring new prosperity to communities along America's longest river and prevent the extinction of several species first documented by Lewis and Clark. The Big Sunflower River in Mississippi, #2, is threatened by a pair of Corps projects that would scour the heart out of the river and drain its surrounding wetlands. The fish and wildlife paradise of the White River in Arkansas, #5, is threatened by the Corps' plans to build an enormous irrigation project and hundreds of navigation structures. The Apalachicola River in Florida, #11, is being systemically destroyed by the Corps' futile efforts to maintain a shipping channel for commercial barges that is barely used. Other rivers on the 2002 endangered list include: Klamath, Kansas, Powder, Altamaha, Allagash, Canning, and the Guadalupe.  The Saint Louis Front Page is owned and maintained by the Moore Design Group for the sole purpose of disseminating news and information about the Metropolitan Saint Louis area. Text or graphics may not be copied, rewritten or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission. For more information, contact editor@slfp.com All rights reserved world wide © 1996 - 2008 Moore Design Group . |
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