2004 Tennessee State Watershed Roundtable
The 3^rd annual Tennessee State Watershed Roundtable was held in conjunction with the 7^th annual Southeast Watershed Roundtable in Nashville Tennessee on October 27-29, 2004.  It was well attended, over 200 people from 10 states. The theme was “Growth, Development & the Future of Southeast Water Supplies”. Forty presentations were made in four categories; Growing Greener Communities, Transport and Natural Context Design, Farmland Protection and Rural Issues, and Saving Aquatic Habitat and Open Space. To view the final conference report as a PDF click here.

Working Together for Measurable Water Quality Results

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The 2003 Tennessee Watershed Roundtable was indeed a watershed event for the State!

Nearly 130 representatives from industry, agriculture, watershed organizations, city and county government and state and federal agencies came together to develop action plans for achieving "measurable water quality results" in their watersheds. We were privileged to have two mayors and six county executives among our attendees, demonstrating the increasingly complex issues that cities and counties are facing in regards to watershed protection. In addition, we were honored to have the participation of six agency and association leaders on our Leadership Panel; including TDEC Commissioner - Betsy Child, TDA Deputy Commissioner - Terry Oliver, NRCS State Conservationist - James Ford, USDA Farm Services Agency Executive Director - Louis Buck, TDOT's Chief of Environment and Planning - Ed Cole and Doug Goddard, Executive Director of the TN County Commissioner's Association.

Our keynote speakers lent new, long term perspectives on some old ideas about Tennessee's water resources and farmland. Six presenters showcased local success stories in watershed protection which reflected strong public-private partnerships and innovative planning. The Tennessee Growth Readiness program received its state-wide rollout at the Roundtable. This program is designed to provide communities the training and tools they need to protect their local quality of life in the face of growth and development pressures. And sever organizations and agencies provided specific information on areas to secure financial support for their local watershed efforts.

The heart of every Roundtable, though, is the interaction, networking and partnership-building that is generated through the basin breakout sessions. This year's basin-level breakout sessions generated tremendous support, as demonstrated by the vigorous group participation, the commitments that were made and the scores on the evaluation sheet. The objective of the sessions were to identify an issue/pollutant or geographical area to be improved and then to secure commitments from each participant to help make that change possible. As you can see from the summary table on page ---, there are an impressive array of commitments to work together for measurable water quality results. In addition, one specific basin plan was developed for the Tennessee River basin.

Sixty-five percent (65%) of the Roundtable evaluations voted the basin-level breakout sessions the part "you liked most about the Roundtable." Only the watershed success stories rated a percent higher - 66%!

Such high marks speak to the amount of pre-planning and preparation that went into the 2003 Roundtable. Months in advance, staff at the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation worked with Roundtable planners to develop oversized, color maps of impaired streams in the Tennessee, Cumberland and Mississippi river basins for use in the break-out discussions. These maps served to help participants focus on where cooperative activity could have the most impact. The breakout discussions were expertly facilitated by specially trained staff from TVA, NRCS, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and Southeast Watershed Forum.

With all night staff work on the part of the lead facilitator, we were able to present a synopsis of issues, concerns and local commitments to the members of the Leadership panel at Friday's Leadership Breakfast. The dialogue that ensued was especially gratifying, for as the local commitments were presented, they evoked commitments from the Leadership panelists to sustain and promote these local watershed initiatives, while improving their own agency's delivery of services.

The Tennessee Watershed Roundtable continues to provide a unique opportunity for networking among organizations and agencies, a 90 percent score the evaluations. Approximately 92 percent of the evaluations would like to see an ongoing watershed "forum" to foster continued watershed cooperation and collaboration. Most feel that such a Tennessee Watershed Forum could improve coordination of regional water issues (77%), promote water education (77%), enhance public-private partnerships (76%) and serve as a clearinghouse of watershed information. Others suggested that such a forum could facilitate more local watershed partnerships and funding. And 33 people signed up to help start smaller basin-level "roundtables" throughout Tennessee. A number of people mentioned the need for follow-up and communication with Roundtable attendees throughout the year, which is another role that a Tennessee Watershed Forum could serve. And for the second year in a row, participants voted to have the Tennessee Watershed Roundtable an annual event (90%)!

There will be much for the Roundtable Planning Committee to discuss when it reviews all the recommendations and feedback provided in the evaluations. My commitment to all of you is to make sure your recommendations get reviewed and acted upon.

View the Final Report | View Map of TN 303d Streams

Tennessee Watershed Roundtable

• Increase the understanding and visibility of water quality and supply issues in the state,
• Highlight successful stories in watershed protection,
• Encourage discussion and feedback on resource priorities for the State of Tennessee, and
• Explore the establishment of a neutral forum for long term dialogue on water issues.

The Roundtable exceeded all expectations established by the planning committee. Nearly 70 percent of the attendees felt that the event gave them a chance to network with other organizations and nearly half of the attendees felt the program gave them a better sense of local issues and concerns. When asked if the information received at the Roundtable would change the way people do business in their community, organization or agency, 28 percent said that it would and another 36 percent said that it might change the way they operate. That represents a lot of potential change for Tennessee.

The response to creating a forum of watershed stakeholders to foster dialogue and cooperation on water programs and issues in the State was unanimous at 96 percent. And 78 percent want the Tennessee Watershed Roundtable to be an annual event!

The heart of the Roundtable was the facilitated breakout sessions for the three major river basins in the state; the Tennessee, Cumberland and Mississippi. The groups were asked to identify the top resource priorities for the state, define action plans to address those priorities and define some next steps for the Tennessee Watershed Roundtable.

The top resource needs identified were the need to protect water quality and quantity, especially in the face of urban sprawl and development, the need for more education of elected officials, developers and the general public, and the need to improve coordination in regional planning and implementation of water programs.

The Tennessee Watershed Roundtable Planning Committee met on these recommendations in September and are currently planning the second state roundtable to be held at the Millenium Maxwell House Hotel in Nashville, on March 27-28, 2003. Meanwhile, the information and partnerships begun at the Tennessee Roundtable will enhance a greater awareness of the vital role water plays in the state's quality of life.

Contact: John McClurkan, 615-837-5305 – John.McClurkan@state.tn.us.