Description
The Prettyboy Watershed Alliance, a citizen-led, non-profit organization was founded in late 2003 by a group of interested resident landowners.
WHY WAS PWA FOUNDED?
PWA formed in response to a unique study of our watershed conducted in 2002 by the Trust for Public Land (TPL), a national non-profit land preservation organization. TPL chose the Prettyboy as one of five watersheds in the entire U.S. for this study because we provide drinking water to a major metropolitan area.
A major concern expressed in TPL's summary statement was the absence of a citizen-led group that could serve the watershed both as a voice for local landowners and also provide help for residents who wanted to ensure that they were leaving their land and its streams in even better condition to the next generation.
As the organization formed we realized that one of the biggest challenges we faced was that most residents view this area as "pristine", therefore a proactive approach was unnecessary. However, as we learned more about the lands and streams in our watershed we found that these perceptions were inaccurate. Even though we are predominately a rural community (~50% agricultural) and are fortunate that many of our farmers engage in practices that help keep our lands and streams healthy, five areas of concern were identified that were troubling for the future.
Since 2003 we have engaged hundreds of landowners in various events to fulfill these goals. In addition we offer educational materials to those interested in finding out what they can do to improve the health of the watershed and in particular, the water quality of streams on their property.
We are an all-volunteer group that counts on the support of citizens like you! Please considervolunteering a few hours of your time or making a donation to help us in our work. We also welcomeinquiries from residents who may be interested in attending our meetings, joining our Board or just asking a question. To read more about us check out the sidebar links.
