The Black Warrior Riverkeeper and the Friends of the Locust Fork River have submitted a nomination for 3,200 acres along the Locust Fork of the Black Warrior River in Jefferson County and Blount Counties to be protected as public property by the Alabama Forever Wild Program.

The property, currently owned by the Birmingham Water Works Board, has been for sale since the beginning of April. This opportunity arose after the BWWB chose to discontinue longstanding plans for a dam on the river (to create a water supply reservoir). Now that this project is no longer going to occur, the threat to the Locust Fork’s free-flow is no longer, and the time is right to protect this property, according to the group’s press release.

A conservation purchase by Forever Wild could help this gateway to the Locust Fork become a resource for current and future generations.

The Locust Fork is one of Alabama’s longest remaining free-flowing rivers. It is a great place to swim, canoe and kayak, fish, photograph, watch wildlife, and more. The river is also home to a number of rare aquatic species such as fish, mussels, snails, turtles, and salamanders.

Protection of this property would provide watershed protection that is vital for both water quality and wildlife habitat. A Forever Wild acquisition will provide much needed public access for the many recreational users that visit the Locust Fork each year.

To read the nomination and view its attachments, click here.

For information, click here.

Tags: Friends of the Locust Fork River

This entry was posted on Monday, April 20th, 2009 at 5:11 pm and is filed under Black Warrior Riverkeeper. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.