Genesee River Basin Summit

[camomanbg]

I recieved this today at work and figured that it might interest some of you. I asked CEI and they were excited to have some fisherman involved. I hope some of you can make it and have some input into one of the important aspects of our fishery.

Genesee River Basin Summit

DATE: Thursday, February 6, 2014

PLACE: Roger Robach Community Center at Ontario Beach Park

TIME: 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM (doors will be open at 7:30am for set up)

8:00 AM to 8:30 AM - Participants arrive and network (coffee & refreshments available)

Your input will help us to improve the water quality of our watershed.

We hope you join us!

Please see our Summit Page for more detail or download an info. packet.

Speakers for the morning include:

George Thomas, Executive Director, CEI

Corydon Ireland, Staff Writer, Harvard News Office

Joe Makarewicz Ph.D., distinguished Professor in the Department of Environmental Science and Biology, an interdisciplinary major at The College at Brockport, State University of New York

Ron Entringer, Chief of the Water Quality Management Section in NYSDEC

Vinnie Esposito, Executive Director of the Finger Lakes Regional Economic Development Council and of Empire State Development –Finger Lakes Regional Office

Complementary lunch is being provided

The afternoon will consist of break-out sessions to brainstorm and prioritize water quality and use impairments, develop action plans to address the top three priorities and establish a basis for a Genesee River Basin Improvement Action Plan, with a wrap up at 4:00pm.

Our goals for this Summit:

Attract between 150 and 200 people

Document the results in a report and circulate it to attendees Use the feedback from this workshop to guide our Genesee RiverWatch Initiative

Plan to annually hold a follow-up event (State of the Genesee River Basin) to review progress and adjust priorities.

Support groups of local stakeholders in follow through with project funding and development

One of the initial and critical steps in this portion of CEI's Genesee RiverWatch initiative is to convene the region's water quality stakeholders and experts to develop a path forward to sustained improvement in water quality. This activity will involve a wide range of stakeholders, including government, Non-Government Organizations (NGOs), agencies, and citizens. We envision this as an on-going process to ensure that stakeholders remain engaged in the restoration efforts. The other major components of this activity involve patrolling the river and tributaries, advocating for water quality regulations and standards, and being the voice of the Genesee River.

CEI is currently working to organize and implement a Genesee River Basin Summit. This event will be a one-day workshop where we invite a multitude of stakeholders and experts to accomplish the following:

• Review, discuss and document the State-of-the-Basin, including

o Water quality investigations

o Watershed characterizations

o State-listed impairments

o Past improvement activities

o Current improvement activities

o Planned, future activities

• Review NYSDEC plans for the Basin

• Brainstorm and prioritize water quality and use impairments (break-out sessions)

• Review lists of impairments and agree on top five

• Develop action plans to address the top five priorities (break-out sessions)

• Establish basis for a Genesee River Basin Improvement Action Plan

CEI expects this Summit to attract between 150 and 200 people. We will document the results in a report and circulate it to attendees for comment and revision in an attempt to reach consensus. CEI will directly use the feedback from this workshop to guide our Clean Water Initiative. We also plan to annually hold a follow-up event (State of the Genesee River Basin) to review progress and adjust priorities.

DATE: Thursday, February 6, 2014

PLACE: Roger Robach Community Center at Ontario Beach Park

TIME: 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM

This event is made possible by the generous financial support of the Rochester Area Community Foundation and North American Breweries.