River Revitalization: Our Responsibility

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The French Broad River begins up in Transylvania County in the mountains of Western North Carolina and winds down through the city of Asheville, its waters eventually entering the Mighty Mississippi.

Today the waterway is utilized by paddlers, fisherfolk, sightseers, and countless other outdoor enthusiasts. Natives point to it with pride, and there's talk going around of turning parts of the river into a source of water for the Asheville area. To stand on its bank and gaze out over the vast expanse of beautiful, flowing water, you'd never guess that this river was once so severely polluted that the same folks who brag on it today once called it an "open sewer."

Twenty years ago the French Broad was used as a veritable flush toilet for all manner of environmental unmentionables, from industrial and agricultural wastes to raw city sewage, discarded livestock carcasses, and junked cars. Back then, the stench alone was enough to turn picnickers and paddlers away. And sadder still was the fact that many fish that are native to the river, such as the muskie, had all but died out.

So what happened? How did the French Broad change from a reeking sewer to a relatively healthy, stable waterway? Well, for one thing, back in 1972 the Clean Water Act was passed, and it put a lot of restrictions on the industries and sewage systems that were dumping wastes into rivers nationwide. But, more specifically, several groups in Western North Carolina-including the Tennessee Valley Authority, Land-of-the-Sky Regional Council, and informal groups of concerned citizens-combined forces to clean up the longneglected waterway. Their efforts paid off in a clean and pleasing river. What's more, the muskie have returned!

Don't go away yet; the story is not quite over. This past fall the regional council enlisted the help of a newly formed nonprofit citizens' organization called the French Broad River Foundation, Inc. The foundation is modeled after similar tax-exempt river revitalization groups in other parts of the state (most notably the Association for the Preservation of the Eno River in Durham). Its growing membership consists of livery owners, outfitters, local government officials, college professors, and other people who value the French Broad as an important natural resource for Western North Carolina.

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