watershed protection
BIKE & BOAT BLENDS EDUCATION WITH FUN
Watershed “project tours” on Pennsylvania’s Lehigh River start with the kids. Things flow naturally from there for the enterprising Wildlands Conservancy.
Tom Kerr and Eleanor Yang
John Colon felt like he was flying over the water. The 11-year-old had swum in public pools before, but this was different. Here he could see the pebbly bottom of the Lehigh River as he swiftly glided over the top. This time he was in a canoe. John is one of 19 sixth-graders from an Allentown, Pennsylvania middle school who recently spent a day on the Lehigh River. The trip was part of Wildlands Conservancy’s Bike&Boat Educational and Recreational program. Wildlands Conservancy, a nonprofit organization in eastern Pennsylvania, purchased canoes, and mountain bikes for the program with one goal in mind: To introduce every middle school aged child in the Lehigh Valley to the Lehigh River.
“I’ll freely admit that trying to take every child in the Valley is a big goal,” says Tom Gettings of Wildlands Conservancy. “But why not set big goals? If we can introduce the Lehigh River and its importance to this region, both past and future, to the next generation then we are educating them about the role that watersheds play in the economic health of our region.”
Gettings continues, “The Industrial Revolution started in this watershed in the early 19th century, but that is ancient history. Today we have to look at what our rivers can offer to contemporary society and if we can educate the children, they will take that information and excitement home to their parents. It worked in the 1970s with recycling. It was the children who brought the logic of recycling to the adults. We are counting on that same dynamic happening in watershed issues. Activities from interactive museums and riverwalks to the economic reclamation of brownfields are dominating successful watershed efforts. The big challenge is how do we educate all of our citizens as to what positive things can happen in their watershed.”
THE BUSINESS-LIKE BIKE & BOAT
Wildlands Conservancy decided to launch Bike&Boat as an education tool. Bike&Boat uses an easy to paddle four-mile section of the Lehigh River between Allentown and Bethlehem, the two largest cities in the watershed. Both cities have been willing partners to the Bike&Boat program, making riverside facilities available to store canoes and bicycles. After the two-plus hour paddle down the river, participants exchange the canoe for a mountain bike to make their way back up river, less than a one-hour ride on the old towpath along the Lehigh Navigation Canal. The entire trip can be done in the reverse; bike ride first, canoe float second, if the participants desire. All necessary safety equipment for canoeing and biking is also supplied by Wildlands Conservancy. River guides and naturalists are available to make the experience as enjoyable, educational and safe as possible. “We don’t limit participation to school children, even though that is our primary focus,” says Gettings, “We really enjoy showing local political and business leaders the natural beauty of the river and at the same time exposing them to the importance the river plays in the environmental and economic health of the region.”
A decision to limit the number of participants to a maximum of 40 per trip was made in order to keep the floating classroom manageable. Twenty preowned canoes were purchased from a local “river outfitter” because even new canoes will become used in a hurry. Forty-five paddles and the same number of personal flotation devices were purchased from another outfitter that routinely upgrades equipment.
Bicycles were a different story. Not only don’t bicycles float, they have many more moving parts than canoes, so 40 new, 21 speed mountain bicycles were acquired on the advice of an experienced bicycle mechanic. Why new? “With a fleet of same-year, same-make bicycles, it makes repair needs consistent, number of tools are kept to a minimum and replacement parts are interchangeable,” explains Gettings. Forty-five new bicycling helmets in a range of sizes were also purchased. A portable, rechargeable 12-volt air compressor to make tire maintenance easy, a small tool kit, a bicycle-pulled child carrier and first-aid kits rounded out the necessary equipment.
Liability insurance is a must. Wildlands Conservancy is a not for profit 501-C3 that has liability insurance that covers a range of educational activities. Bike&Boat fits into the existing insurance package.
PROMOTION AND PAYING FOR THE PROGRAM
After a successful season of having staff fit Bike&Boat trips into their existing schedules, with the help of volunteers from a local canoe club, it was decided to hire two hourly paid employees exclusively dedicated to the program. A brochure with photographs of actual Bike&Boat activities was produced and the price of participation in the program was set. The prices were segmented into three categories: For the Self-Assured — $15 per person; A Little Unsure of Yourself? — have a recreational guide come along for an additional $80; The Supreme Experience — have a naturalist guide come along for an additional $95.
The program was marketed through slide show presentations to schools, mailings to the local Boy & Girl Scout organizations and a well placed article in the local newspaper. Starting in summer of 2000, there will be additional Saturday “Walk up Days” allowing anyone to make the trip on their own, without the need to be part of a larger group.
Corey Brown of the Trust for Public Lands in California believes that the best way, with no close second, to get people to understand the need for land protection is to conduct project tours. “Taking people on site is the most effective way to connect them to the message of land preservation. It’s amazing how little you have to say or do when the land and water are doing the talking,” says Brown.
Watershed protection and economic development in a community are hot topic issues. Project tours — in this case a “Bike&Boat” tour — is an excellent way to attract media attention to preservation efforts. Television is especially attracted to events that have stimulating visuals and a chance to dub a voice over the action of canoeing children. Taking legislators, mayors, business leaders and educators out on “tours will insure coverage by newspapers that are also looking for new visuals and a chance for a fresh quote that isn’t generated from a script in a conference room.
“Every watershed has issues that are important to its future, i.e. pollution, brownfield recycling, water quality and recreational uses. On the Lehigh River, our ‘Bike&Boat’ tours give us a chance to address these matters,” observes Gettings. “Uniting cities, boroughs and companies to plot the course of our region is a fitting way to serve history and create the future. What we do with our river today will be viewed by future generations as the flow of accomplishment that will take its place alongside canal boats, iron mills and shad runs.”
Tom Kerr and Eleanor Yang are with the Wildlands Conservancy based in Emmaus, Pennsylvania. For further details on Bike&Boat, contact Tom Gettings at (610) 965-4397 ext. 40; e-mail TL.gett@aol.com.