Chasing the Channel – Blog No. 29

Spring, Summer and Kansas Water! 

Friends….it was a typical super busy spring and start to the summer at FOK.  If you follow us on social media, then you know!  Cleanups, beginner paddles, student paddle trips, restoration work days, Kids About Water classes, and my work advocating at the legislature.  We also added a couple of new members to our team – Jane Liebert, our new Director of Major Gifts & Planned Giving; and Macy Baumgartner, our new Administrative Coordinator.  These new team members have already hit the ground running and have met many of you at our events.  Macy is the new face of our membership and Jane will work with donors to help them meet their goals for the Kansas River.   We have such a bright future ahead for the Kansas River – thanks to this great team and people like YOU!

We had a very successful legislative session for water this year.  By end of April, Governor Kelly signed Senate Substitute for HB 2302, a bipartisan bill that increases funding for the State Water Plan.  The Governor also signed House Bill 2279, a bipartisan bill that requires Kansas’ five Groundwater Management Districts to submit annual reports to the Kansas Legislature with updated water conservation and stabilization plans for groundwater.  You can learn more here:  Senate Substitute for HB 2302: http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/hb2302/.  House Bill 2279: http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/hb2279/

I also took a trip to Dodge City for the Kansas Water Authority Meeting in June. Following that was the Kansas Geological Survey tour in southwest Kansas. I learned how to measure the wells of the Ogallala Aquifer, a program that is performed every January, usually in very wintry conditions!

We also were grateful to be invited to the Symphony in the Flint Hills this year as a speaker. I spoke under one of the big tents about the Kansas River and the importance of being a prairie based river. When we protect prairie, we also protect the Kansas River!

Just released this week, I joined the podcast in my role as Chair of the Kansas Water Authority. Along with Connie Owen, the Director of the Kansas Water Office, we discussed water issues in Kansas. Click below to listen to the podcast and you can learn about the State Water Plan, the role of volunteers and public outreach, and efforts to elevate water funding in the Kansas Legislature. This podcast has it all!  Listen here:  https://ksoutdoors.com/KDWP-Info/News/Flatlander-Podcast

We have many more Beginner Wednesday’s coming up, so be sure to join us for your first Kansas River paddle!  This is one of our most popular events and we love sharing what we know with you so that you can create your own river adventure.  You can see the dates and sign up here: https://www.eventbrite.com/o/friends-of-the-kaw-17751155327

We also have Beginner Camping – two more events with one in Edwardsville and one in Junction City!  https://www.eventbrite.com/o/friends-of-the-kaw-17751155327

Lastly, and very importantly, Friends of the Kaw is The Merc Co+op‘s, Change for our Community recipient for July! We are honored to be chosen and to represent our wonderful community. Every time you round up at checkout, you’re helping to protect the Kansas River! Thank you so much for your support!

We are getting ready for the fall season for both our Kids About Water (KAWS) Program and our Riverbank Restoration Program….so watch for more details coming soon.  Oh….and Beers of the Kaw is coming up Sunday, November 5, 2023 at Abe & Jake’s Landing in Lawrence!  Make sure you have the date on your calendar.  The tickets will go on sale just after Labor Day!

Thank you for supporting our work. We are truly grateful to have all of you in partnership! We hope to see you all on the Kansas River soon!

For the river,

Dawn Buehler

Your Kansas Riverkeeper

Chasing the Channel – Blog No. 28

Historic Legislative Bills…and fun on the river for 2023!

What a whirlwind start to 2023!  I hope that each of you have started off 2023 on a good note and that you are already making plans for spring on the Kaw!  I have so many things to update you about, so let’s get to it.

First, I would like to say what an honor it was to be invited to attend Governor Kelly’s State of the State Address at the Statehouse last month. It’s not very often that a small town farm girl gets the chance to do something like that. I soaked it all in, knowing that this is one of those rare opportunities that doesn’t come along every day. It was also wonderful to hear our Governor talk about water, how important it is to our entire state, and how her administration would make a water a priority in her second term.

I want to share with you the historic vote by the House Water Committee and the full Kansas House of Representative today in support of two water related bills.  One of the bills is House Bill 2279 and it is centered around the Ground Water Management Districts, their conservation efforts and reporting.  This bill should provide some help for the sustainment of the Ogallala Aquifer.  The second bill is House Bill 2302 which sets aside 1.231% of state sales tax revenue to support the State Water Plan, as well as provide support to municipalities.  We have been long time supporters for increasing the funds for water across our state.  We have been advocating for years for funding and are so excited to see this advancement of the funding conversation. This effort has been bi-partisan and had wide ranging support from conservation organizations, municipalities and agricultural groups.  It is great to see what we can do, when we do it together. 

We applaud the House Water Committee for their vision, the Kansas Water Authority and Regional Advisory Committees for their efforts over the years, and the water related agencies for all the great work they do in support.  You can learn more about these bills here:  http://kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/committees/ctte_h_water_1/ .  The next step for these bills is the Senate, so we are not done yet!  Please write your Senator if you are in support of these water-related bills.  You can find your Kansas Senator here:  https://openstates.org/find_your_legislator/

You can learn more by reading this article today in the Kansas Reflector:  https://kansasreflector.com/2023/02/22/theres-still-hope-kansas-house-advances-bills-to-help-save-ogallala-aquifer/

I also wanted to tell you today about Kansans for Conservation.   Kansas for Conservation is a coalition of diverse organizations working collaboratively to ensure a healthy and sustainable future for Kansas, focused on water, land, outdoor recreation, and environmental education resources for Kansans. Friends of the Kaw became a member of the coalition when it began in 2017, when the group of organizations gathered to address the growing need for dedicated funding aimed at conservation in Kansas. This group conducted a feasibility study in 2018, a needs assessment in 2019 and incorporated as a 501(c)4 in 2022.

Kansans for Conservation provided proponent written testimony for House Bill 2302 outlining the need for the increased funding as well as the fundamental benefits that water conservation has for all other realms of conservation, including agriculture, wildlife, and recreation.  You can read the coalition’s testimony on the website.  https://www.kansansforconservation.org.  We hope you will join us in supporting our statewide efforts to bring funding for conservation, focused on water, land, outdoor recreation, and environmental education for all Kansans. 

So, who is ready for spring on the Kaw?  We are!

To get ready for spring, we’ve got a few housekeeping things to do.  First, please make sure you have renewed your membership!  Members is due March 1 each year and is important to us for many reasons, including the financial support, your ability to get on the Kaw with us for FREE with your own boat, and to raise our voice!  We can do more, when we do it together and nothing says “together” more at FOK than membership! 

Second, join us for the 14^th Annual Wild & Scenic Film Festival this year on Friday, March 3, 2023 at Liberty Hall in downtown Lawrence.  We are thrilled to bring this event back year after year, so we can all gather and get inspired by these films.  If you can’t join us on March 3, please go ahead and buy a ticket through Liberty Hall and then you can watch the films “on demand” for the few days after the event.  We so very much appreciate your support for this event!

And…. we are getting river ready my friends.  We have finished our calendar, although we will not open our events until we are about 6 weeks out.  But mark your calendar for all of the great fun ahead including Beginner Wednesdays, Beginner Camping on the Kaw, and more! 

Our annual Kaw River Guide Workshop is Sunday, May 7, 2023.  If you have ever thought that this might be fun, come and join us.  You just need your own boat and life jacket and an attitude to volunteer!  We welcome everyone and hope you can join us for some fun this year helping others learn about kayaking the Kaw or helping us dig tires and debris out of our river!  No matter what, we have fun even if it’s hard work!  You can RSVP for the workshop here:  https://forms.gle/TuZic2RJws9zkzFH9

Well, I hope that all of you have a great remainder of the winter season. If you know me, you know that I very much dislike winter, so I can’t wait for the spring days to stay.  I look forward to seeing you all on the Kansas River this year.  If you need help planning your trip, please reach out and I would be happy to help.  You can also find a ton of information on our River Access Map.

Happy Paddling….and may you always have sand in your shoes.

For the river
Dawn Buehler

Kansas Riverkeeper

Winter season is here….hopefully spring comes early!

Like all of you, I am spending some time getting ready for the incoming arctic blast that will sweep across not only Kansas, but the nation.  It is going to get real cold folks….so you definitely will not find me out on the river this week.  However, we do check the river throughout the winter as much as we can.  I have a few rules for winter paddling, such as sunshine, rising temperatures and little to no wind.  Winter paddling can be so beautiful, but you must have the right gear and ALWAYS have a second set of your entire outfit in the dry hatch along with a fire kit. 

This fall has been very busy with advocacy work.  I know that most people in Kansas see Friends of the Kaw as a paddling group, but we do so much more than that.  I often remind people that the paddle program consumes about 20% of my time and advocacy consumes 80%.  Advocacy takes many forms and does not just include work at the State Capitol to try to advance water issues.  Much of the work that we do involves working with cities and counties on projects that can impact the Kansas River, education about the river, conservation practices that protect water quality and holding our communities accountable for the health of the river.

I have spent most of the last few months working on advancing water policy with the Kansas Water Authority (KWA).  This role has been one of my most important roles.  I am lucky to be surround by a wonderful group of passionate water advocates on the KWA.  To learn more about recent work at our December meeting to sustain the Ogallala Aquifer, you can read these articles in the Kansas Reflector and High Plains Public Radio. 

I also was honored to be on the stage with Governor Laura Kelly during the Governor’s Water Conference in Manhattan, Kansas. Governor Kelly has stated that she will make water a priority in her second term. We look forward to her leadership and stand ready to help however we can. Watch her interview with KCUR.

If you follow our social media, you already know that we have been busy staying up to speed on the Keystone Pipeline Oil Spill.  This pipeline break spilled into Mill Creek near Washington, Kansas.  As your Kansas Riverkeeper, it is my duty to be a non-government public advocate for the Kansas River and its watershed.  My duty includes investigating issues in the watershed and this is a big one.  I drove to the site about 5 days after the spill and took some water quality measurements and put eyes on the creek bvoth up and downstream of the oil spill.  I have full faith in the EPA Region 7 and the Kansas Department of Health & Environment to clean up the spill.  I am less enthusiastic about holding TC Energy accountable for the full cleanup costs.  We will continue to keep you informed via our social media and we will stay engaged to make sure the cleanup is complete and that it does not fall to Kansans.  You can read up on our visit to the site on our Facebook page here.

We did a river check on Sunday, December 4^th from Seward to Lecompton.  We were checking a recent outflow update by one of our river partners, as well as looking at the sandbar that we cleaned up this fall.  We found a lot more tires, trash, and debris so look for another cleanup in this area soon. If you don’t know, jet skis don’t do well on the Kansas River as the sand gets into the water intake. We find a lot of abandoned jet skis. By the way, that is polluting also! Once the arctic blast lifts, we will do another river check if the weather conditions are right.

I want to take this opportunity to thank you for your support in 2022.  It is because of you, that we can do our work to protect and preserve the Kansas River.  Great things are in store for 2023 with more river cleanups, more advocacy with local/state leaders, more education, more restoration, and more paddles. I ask for your help to build a lasting future for the Kansas River.  If you can, please consider a donation so that our work continues. You can also mail a donation to PO Box 1612, Lawrence, KS 66044.

As I close out my 2022 blog, I feel very optimistic about the future.  Yes, we have many challenges from climate change to education, but we have a dedicated team that is passionate about advancing our work.  While I work to advocate, monitor pollution and cleanup our river; Kim will be leading our programming efforts, Denise will be educating the next generation, Macy will be maintaining the FOK ship, and Jane will help us secure the tools to get it done.  I feel very grateful as the year comes to an end.  What a beautiful resource that we protect….and what a beautiful community of volunteers, staff, Board Members, educational team members and Kaw River Guides we have on our team to get it done.

With Gratitude.

For the river,

Dawn Buehler

Kansas Riverkeeper® & Executive Director

Please donate today, for the health of the Kansas River.

Where did summer go?  Beautiful fall on the Kaw is here. 

Do you ever just look back in a blur over the last few months and wonder where it went?  That’s about how I feel as I finally sit down to write a blog post.  Since I last wrote, we finished our educational paddle trip season and moved into fall cleanup season and the Kids About Water Education Program seasons.  Many of the programs that we do are very cyclical – coming at certain times of the year and then we move on to the next.  The one thing that remains constant, unfortunately, is pollution.  Pollution never takes a break.

I had a very busy August with many meetings with the Kansas Water Authority.  We hosted a Water Policy Conversation with stakeholders across the state to discuss how we can move forward together to solve some of our most important water policy problems.  This was a very important meeting and I think it set the reset button for many of us to reflect on what’s important, find where we have common ground, and how we are going to move forward.  I am a glass that is always full, kind of person, so for me this was a great step. 

As for Friends of the Kaw, we’ve had more events that I can count here in this blog post.  We owe a huge thank you to Kim, Denise, Jane and Macy for their hard work on behalf of FOK.  This team makes it possible. Thank you to everyone one of you that joined us for a Beginner Wednesday this year!

We held our bi-annual Manhattan Battery Case Cleanup event in Manhattan last weekend. When will the battery cases end? We’ve done this cleanup twice a year for 5 years now and they are still there. We know we are making progress. We move about 3 ton every time we do it. Last weekend we had our partners along with about 40 students! It was a great day for the Kaw. One of these days, we will get them all, we promise.

You likely saw all of our emails about our first ever Day of Giving!  Thanks to all of you that donated and participated.  We are truly grateful for the donations from our friends and members, and to the FOK Board and anonymous donors for challenging us to raise the dollars.  It is a wonderful thing as a non-profit to have such unanimous support of the Board of Directors.  If you see them around town, do me a favor and thank them for serving and giving so much to the river!

So what’s next?  We’ve got Beers of the Kaw (most fun of the year!), our big tire cleanup tomorrow (like, 500 tires or more), a Kansas Water Authority meeting next week, and lots of gear cleanup and storage towards the end of the month.

Our annual Kaw River Guide Weekend is coming up and I always look forward to this event.  A weekend with our volunteers, just exploring the river and enjoying each other around the campfire is the perfect way to end the river season.  While the public side of things winds down, we will still be out on the river doing river checks and looking for pollution.  I’ll try to write a blog post over the winter about pollution – don’t even get me started on the fact that it still happens!

We did have many celebrations for the 50^th Anniversary of the Clean Water Act and I was honored to stand next to Governor Kelly as she signed a proclamation.  It was a great month to celebrate how far we’ve come in 50 years! 

Lastly, I thought I’d let you all know that I became a first-time grandma in August.  My little grandson is healthy and perfect!  I can’t wait to get him in a kayak and on the river, but it will be a few years.  In the meantime, I plan to get him out on a few walks, playing in the dirt, sitting in the kayak on the pond, and dipping his toes into a mud puddle!  His Mom and Dad are gonna love how dirty he gets at Grandma’s! 

I wish you all a wonderful fall season.  The best camping season on the Kaw is October – get out there and enjoy!  Contact me if I can help you plan your adventure, we are happy to help. 

I hope to see you all on the river!

For the river,

Dawn Buehler

Kansas Riverkeeper