Buffalo River council to seek public input on watershed plan

A series of public meetings are planned to gain feedback on the development of a Buffalo River Watershed Management Plan.

It’s the first step taken by the Beautiful Buffalo River Action Committee, created in September at the request of Gov. Asa Hutchinson, to establish a statewide plan for protecting natural resources within the Buffalo National River Watershed by identifying and addressing potential problems.

The non-regulatory plan, which will be developed over the next 18 months, will provide a framework for landowners, communities and organizations to voluntarily undertake water-quality projects within the watershed, according to a press release from BBRAC.

FTN Associates, a Little Rock-based environmental consulting company, has been contracted with funding help from the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission and a $107,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency to develop the management plan, according to the press release.

FTN Associates will conduct the meetings, the first of which is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. on Dec. 8 at the Searcy County Civic Center Gym in Marshall.

“ANRC is excited to take the lead on the Watershed Management Plan,” ANRC Executive Director and Co-Chair of BBRAC Bruce Holland said in a statement. “With our experience we are uniquely positioned to contribute to the first step of BBRAC’s overall goal of sustaining the vitality of the Buffalo River.”

Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality Director Becky Keogh is also co-chair of the committee. Dr. Nate Smith with the Health Department, Kane Webb with the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism and Wes Ward with the Department of Agriculture are also on the committee, and other agencies including the Game and Fish Commission will partner in the effort.

The Buffalo River watershed is home to more than 300 species of fish, insects, freshwater mussels and aquatic plants, including the endangered snuffbox mussel, the endangered Gray bat, and the endangered Indiana bat.

In a press conference in September, Hutchinson said he has received many letters about protecting the Buffalo River.

Potential pollution from hog farms on the watershed is among the most controversial issues facing the newly formed committee.

Last August, the Arkansas Pollution Control and Ecology Commission ordered a five-year hold on new permits for large swine factory farms on the watershed. Those affected by the hold on permits are farms with at least 750 swine weighing over 55 pounds, or 3,000 swine weighing less than 55 pounds.