Did you know 90% of Tennessee’s land is privately owned? This means that if we want to make a long-lasting difference in riparian forest and water quality, collaboration with land-owners, homeowners, schools, NGOs, and government entities is essential for our success. The CRRP has been broken down into 4 main objectives to achieve our goal of healthier waterways and forests for all.
High Need Watersheds
There is no doubt that Tennessee’s landscape has changed drastically in the last several decades, and with this change, our riparian forests and waterways have suffered. The CRRP has used land-cover statistics in HUC12 watersheds to identify areas that should be prioritized for restoration based on susceptibility to poor water quality, and potential to be restored.
You can access a more detailed map of watersheds here
First Phase- East Tennessee
The CRRP is a multi-phase process, currently in its first phase (2021-2023) The first phase of the project is focused high need watersheds in the following counties:Sullivan, Cumberland, Washington, Greene, Jefferson, Knox, Roane, Loudon, Bradley, and Hamilton counties.
Second Phase- Middle Tennessee
The second phase of the project(2023-2025) will focus high need watersheds in the Middle Tennessee region. Counties of focus in this phase include Sumner, Coffee, Lawrence, Warren, Giles, Williamson, Maury, Marshall, Franklin, Trousdale, Smith, Wilson, Davidson counties. The implementation of this phase will use proof of concept research and community engagement methods to complete its objectives in these counties.
Third Phase- West Tennessee
The third and final phase (2025-2027) of this project will focus on high need watersheds in select counties in the West Tennessee region. These counties include Lake, Obion, Dyer, Gibson, Crockett, Lauderdale, Haywood, Tipton, Madison, and Shelby counties. The implementation of this phase will also employ proof of concept research and community engagement methods to complete its objectives in these counties.
Objectives
CRRP has four ongoing objectives in the counties listed above
Community involvement in Watershed Restoration
- Give presentations and field tours of local streams to explain and describe riparian buffers, their value to stream health, and explain potential restoration techniques to community members
- Share information on how to measure and monitor conditions after restoration efforts.
Community Engagement in Watershed Restoration
- Involve the community in watershed evaluation and coordinate restoration efforts in these communities.
- Providing planting plans for restoration efforts
- Partner with local NGOs and community organizations to coordinate volunteer opportunities to assist with restoration efforts.
Development and Dissemination of Watershed Materials
- Collect a library of information on existing restoration projects and management practices
- Fill in the gaps where information is missing
- Generating new tools on an as needed basis
- Create and distribute digital education materials for private landowners within high-priority riparian buffer areas across the state
- Create signs indicating restored riparian buffer areas to bring attention to restoration efforts in public-use areas
Analysis of Watershed & Forest Health
- Use data analysis to assess stream health prior to restoration efforts to measure the impacts of the project
- Use data as a baseline for future analysis to track the improvements relating to stream health and riparian buffer ecosystem services