Upper Allegheny River Basin Conservation Action Plan: A multi-partner blueprint

This project sought to develop a common conservation blueprint for the Upper Allegheny River Basin, or watersheds of the upper reaches of the Allegheny River within both New York and Pennsylvania.  Through collaborative meetings and correspondence among a wide range of organizations with expertise in, and responsibility for, the landscape, we pulled together information on the status of natural systems in the basin and threats to those systems, brainstormed conservation strategies based on that information, and built consensus on recommendations for what should be done to protect and restore the diversity of this landscape, as well as where work should be focused.  Participating agencies and organizations included federal agencies, Seneca Nation of Indians, state agencies, non-profits, and academic institutions.  This talk will focus on the information and strategies developed for the aquatic systems, including improving aquatic connectivity, maintaining and improving ecological flows, and protecting and restoring floodplains.  The plan’s intent is not to replace ongoing initiatives of conservation partners, but to build on work done to date, coordinate interests and efforts, and focus conservation programs where they can be most effective in attaining watershed and landscape-based goals for targets of greatest conservation need.