{"id":26493,"date":"2016-04-21T12:07:15","date_gmt":"2016-04-21T17:07:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/?p=26493"},"modified":"2016-04-21T13:51:03","modified_gmt":"2016-04-21T18:51:03","slug":"why-killing-the-agency-protecting-oklahomas-most-delicate-rivers-might-be-the-only-way-to-preserve-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/2016\/04\/21\/why-killing-the-agency-protecting-oklahomas-most-delicate-rivers-might-be-the-only-way-to-preserve-them\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Killing the Agency Protecting Oklahoma\u2019s Most Delicate Rivers Might Be the Only Way to Preserve Them"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_26496\"  class=\"wp-caption module image right\" style=\"max-width: 620px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-26496\" alt=\"Grand River Dam Authority CEO Dan Sullivan speaking to the April meeting of the Oklahoma Scenic Rivers Commission. \" src=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2016\/04\/PHOTO-4-21-Sullivan.jpg\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2016\/04\/PHOTO-4-21-Sullivan.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2016\/04\/PHOTO-4-21-Sullivan-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2016\/04\/PHOTO-4-21-Sullivan-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2016\/04\/PHOTO-4-21-Sullivan-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Logan Layden \/ StateImpact Oklahoma<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Grand River Dam Authority CEO Dan Sullivan speaking to the April meeting of the Oklahoma Scenic Rivers Commission.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">The <a title=\"OK.govLink\" href=\"http:\/\/ok.gov\/osrc\/\" target=\"_blank\">Oklahoma Scenic Rivers Commission<\/a> is a small agency with a big job: Police the Illinois River and protect six of the state\u2019s most delicate waterways from pollution. But budget cuts have forced the commission to plan \u00a0for its own death.<\/p><p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/tracks\/260202531&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=false\" height=\"150\" width=\"100%\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><!--more--><\/p>\n<h3 dir=\"ltr\">Nothing left to cut<\/h3>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">It isn\u2019t easy to keep the Illinois River clean. Hundreds of thousands of tourists <a title=\"StateImpactLink\" href=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/2014\/08\/14\/flaming-waterways-and-death-threats-the-history-of-oklahomas-scenic-rivers\/\" target=\"_blank\">float the river near Tahlequah each year<\/a>, and when alcohol is added to the mix, the need for law enforcement becomes clear. The Illinois is just one of the six Oklahoma rivers afforded extra environmental protections because of their unique beauty, sensitivity to pollution, and importance as tourist destinations. For 40 years, the Scenic Rivers Commission has overseen the state\u2019s Scenic Rivers, but the agency could become a casualty of state budget cuts.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">\u201cI\u2019m running around trying to keep the agency afloat,\u201d says Ed Fite, administrator for the Scenic Rivers Commission since 1983. \u201cThis year we\u2019re operating on less than a half a million-dollar budget.\u201d<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Fite says \u00a0he used to have three full-time rangers and four maintenance people, but budget cuts have eaten away at an already barebones operation. Now there\u2019s just one full-time ranger and maintenance person.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_18016\"  class=\"wp-caption module image right\" style=\"max-width: 620px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-18016\" alt=\"Oklahoma Scenic Rivers Commission Administrator Ed Fite outside the OSRC office near Tahlequah, Okla. \" src=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2014\/01\/Fite1.jpg\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2014\/01\/Fite1.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2014\/01\/Fite1-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2014\/01\/Fite1-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2014\/01\/Fite1-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Logan Layden \/ StateImpact Oklahoma<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Oklahoma Scenic Rivers Commission Administrator Ed Fite outside the OSRC office near Tahlequah, Okla.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">\u201cAnd we\u2019ve completely mothballed our education and outreach program,\u201d Fite says.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">There isn\u2019t anything left to cut, and more funding reductions are expected when a new budget year starts in June, so Fite had an idea: disband the agency. He\u2019s not thrilled about it.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">\u201cI\u2019m kind of hung up trying to come through the door, because is it something I really wanted to happen? No. Is it necessary? Yes,\u201d Fite says.<\/p>\n<h3>GRDA on the way<\/h3>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Fite says killing the Scenic Rivers Commission might be \u00a0the only way to save it, and the key to this budgetary balancing act is <a title=\"OklegLink\" href=\"http:\/\/www.oklegislature.gov\/BillInfo.aspx?Bill=SB1388\" target=\"_blank\">Senate Bill 1388<\/a>, which is making its way through the legislature now. State Rep. Doug Cox, R-Grove, co-authored it, and says it originally had nothing to do with the Scenic Rivers Commission.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">\u201cDue to funding cuts with Tourism, we felt like the Department of Tourism was unable to maintain the conditions and improvement of the state parks around Grand Lake like those of us who live there and depend on the tourism industry would like to see,\u201d Cox says.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">There are several small parks around Grand Lake, and the <a title=\"GRDAlink\" href=\"http:\/\/www.grda.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Grand River Dam Authority<\/a> has offered to take them off the state\u2019s hands. The bill would allow the GRDA to charge fees like the Department of Tourism does.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_26497\"  class=\"wp-caption module image right\" style=\"max-width: 620px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-26497\" alt=\"Disney State Park, one of several small state parks around Grand Lake in northeast Oklahoma. \" src=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2016\/04\/PHOTO-4-21-Disney.jpg\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2016\/04\/PHOTO-4-21-Disney.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2016\/04\/PHOTO-4-21-Disney-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2016\/04\/PHOTO-4-21-Disney-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2016\/04\/PHOTO-4-21-Disney-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Logan Layden \/ StateImpact Oklahoma<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Disney State Park, one of several small state parks around Grand Lake in northeast Oklahoma.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">\u201cGRDA stepped up to the plate and said that they were willing to assume control of those parks and do a better job of maintaining them and improving them than the Department of Tourism has done,\u201d Cox says.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Fite thought if GRDA was willing to take the parks, maybe it would take the rivers, too.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">\u201cHe showed me their budget and I was appalled,\u201d GRDA CEO Dan Sullivan says.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Dan Sullivan spoke with StateImpact after addressing April\u2019s regular meeting of the Scenic River Commission in Tahlequah, which was packed with local residents anxious to hear more about how the marriage might work.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">\u201cI can\u2019t image that they\u2019ve been able to do what they have done on the budget that they have,\u201d Sullivan says.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">GRDA is an electric utility, but Sullivan says it already has the responsibility of managing lakes, and controlling the rivers would be similar.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_20992\"  class=\"wp-caption module image right\" style=\"max-width: 620px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-20992\" alt=\"A group of Tulsa bartenders prepare for a day on the Illinois River at Diamondhead Resort near Tahlequah, Okla. \" src=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2014\/08\/20140814-ScenicRivers001_WEB.jpg\" width=\"620\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2014\/08\/20140814-ScenicRivers001_WEB.jpg 620w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2014\/08\/20140814-ScenicRivers001_WEB-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2014\/08\/20140814-ScenicRivers001_WEB-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/files\/2014\/08\/20140814-ScenicRivers001_WEB-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Logan Layden \/ StateImpact Oklahoma<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">A group of Tulsa bartenders prepare for a day on the Illinois River at Diamondhead Resort near Tahlequah, Okla. in 2014.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">\u201cIt\u2019s not something that\u2019s going to be a moneymaker for us in any way, so that\u2019s not the motive at all,\u201d Sullivan says. \u201cBut we think that it\u2019s a natural relationship because of the water issues of recreation and law enforcement. There\u2019s a lot of commonality there.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>Shotgun wedding?<\/h3>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Not everyone was sold on the idea at first. Denise Deason-Toyne with the group <a title=\"STIRlink\" href=\"http:\/\/www.illinoisriver.org\/\" target=\"_blank\">Save the Illinois River<\/a> told the board she was skeptical.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">\u201cThis is more of a marriage of convenience and hopefully can work to the benefit of the river,\u201d Deason-Toyne told the board.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Save the Illinois River doesn\u2019t want this change. Neither Sullivan nor Fite are crazy about the idea, but both see it as the only way to keep the Scenic River mission alive. But it won\u2019t help address the state\u2019s budget hole in any significant way. Fite\u2019s done the math.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">\u201cIf you take $250,000, which would be our appropriation, divide that by $6 billion, I think the decimal point \u2014 I think it\u2019s four zeros before you get to a number. So it\u2019s a rounding error.\u201d<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">This story isn\u2019t as sad as it seems. If SB1388 passes, the Scenic River Commission will be gone, but its employees will become part of a new scenic river division at GRDA. And since GRDA is self-funded by its customer\u2019s electricity rates, the move could shield the rivers from future state budget cuts, and is likely to increase the amount of money to protect the state\u2019s most beautiful rivers.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">SB 1388 passed the state Senate April 21, and is headed back to the House.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Oklahoma Scenic Rivers Commission is a small agency with a big job: Police the Illinois River and protect six of the state\u2019s most delicate waterways from pollution. But budget cuts have forced the commission to plan \u00a0for its own death.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":42,"featured_media":26496,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[491],"tags":[519,518,586,42,620],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26493"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/42"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26493"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26493\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26511,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26493\/revisions\/26511"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26496"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26493"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26493"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/oklahoma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26493"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}