The Conasauga River Alliance formed in 1995 after a $200,000 USDA Ecosystem-based Assistance Study. The Nature Conservancy and other grants fund the Alliance staff.
In addition to the major partners listed below, the Alliance consists of more than 30 agencies and private organizations including; Limestone Valley Resource Conservation District (RCD), Univ. of Tennessee, Univ. of Georgia, DOW Chemical, Trout Unlimited, Conservation Fisheries Inc., Auburn Univ., Southeastern Aquatic Institute, SAFC, Tennessee Aquarium, National Wild Turkey Federation, Appalachian Sportsmen's Club, Pacific Rivers Council, The Nature Conservancy, Georgia Forest Watch, NRCS, EPA, USFWS.
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Major financial assistance for this website provided by:
In 2000 and 2003, this project was supported by funds from the USDA Forest Service Community-Based Watershed Restoration Partnerships.
In 2001 and 2002, this project was supported by a grant awarded to the National Association of Resource Conservation and Development Councils, Inc. from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF).
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 In 1995, the Limestone Valley RCD brought together interested citizens to begin a close and coordinated look at their watershed and the Conasauga River Alliance was created. The RC&D has served a key role in the partnership by providing staff and organizational support to the Alliance. They have helped the Forest Service implement 3 teacher workshops, 2 in Tennessee and 1 in Georgia and helped to organize and facilitate the NW Georgia Water Resources Partnership workshop last fall. The Limestone Valley RCD 319 EPA grant pays the Alliance coordinator and it is this same grant that will supplement upcoming bank work in the National Forest on Holly Creek.
 The U.S.D.A. Forest Service
The Forest Service is the largest public land manager in the watershed. The agency’s Conasauga River Project Coordinator is the central contact for the variety of National Forest issues in the watershed. The agency provides assistance from the staffs of the Cherokee National Forest, the Chattahoochee National Forest, Southern Research Station, and State and Private Forestry programs. The Forest Service offers technical and financial assistance to partners, brings experience in regional coordination and outreach, as well as skills in stream and riparian restoration, upland forest management, urban forestry, conservation education and fire management. The research branch assists the project in answering critical management questions regarding aquatic fauna populations and habitats (Center for Aquatic Technology Transfer), use of fire in ecosystem restoration and sediment yield from roads and trails (Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory), and modeling the distribution of vegetation communities (Bent Creek Experimental Forest).
 The Georgia Forestry Commission
The Georgia Forestry Commission is a supporter of the Conasauga River Watershed Initiative. Our main role has been conservation education for teachers, citizens, and landowners. The GFC mobile classroom has been used as an instrument in the education process. GFC foresters have also provided Best Management Practices education at local field days and at Master Timber Harvester (MTH) Workshops. The MTH workshop goal is to provide training on environmental issues, OSHA Regulations, endangered species, water quality, etc., to local loggers in order to have the best trained work force available. To date, over 173 foresters, timber buyers, and loggers in the area, have completed this 3-day training.
 The Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) was established in 1972 to manage and protect the state's diverse natural resources. Two groups within the Department are particularly active with the Conasauga River Alliance. The Environmental Protection Division and the Wildlife Resources Division. The DNR Wildlife Resources Division is charged with managing, protecting, and encouraging the conservation of all wildlife, including game and nongame animals, fish, and plants.
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 Dalton Utilities
Dalton Utilities has operated as a public utility since 1889. Today, Dalton Utilities provides potable water, electrical, natural gas, wastewater treatment and telecommunication services to the City of Dalton and portions of Whitfield, Murray, Gordon, Catoosa and Floyd counties. Throughout the history of first the bedspread industry and then the carpet industry, Dalton Utilities has been in-step with the needs of residents and local industry -- meeting immediate needs, anticipating future needs and always setting the stage for future growth.
As a partner of the Conasauga River Alliance, Dalton Utilities is a sponsor and provides volunteer workers for the annual Conasauga River Clean-up. Additionally, Dalton Utilities provides laboratory assistance to the Conasauga River Alliance on a continual basis. Dalton Utilities' water lab tests river water samples as a volunteer service to the Conasauga River Alliance, thus saving the Alliance countless dollars in lab testing fees by an outside source. Dalton Utilities makes protecting our natural resources a top priority and is proud to be a partner to the Conasauga River Alliance.
 The mission of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is to conserve and protect fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats for the benefit of the American people. Best known for its national system of wildlife refuges, the Service also enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores significant fisheries, and enhances wildlife habitat.
The Conasauga River and its watershed are home to a dozen threatened or endangered aquatic species plus a fascinating diversity of plants and wildlife above and below the river’s surface. The Fish and Wildlife Service enthusiastically supports the Conasauga River Alliance in protecting the ecological integrity of their community.
Together, this partnership of individuals, groups, state agencies and local governments can work to preserve the quality of life enjoyed along the Conasauga, while maintaining an environment beneficial to both people and wildlife.
The Ecological Services Field Office in Athens, Georgia is the primary liaison for technical assistance and advice between the Conasauga River Alliance and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. For more information, call 706 613-9493.
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