Protecting Our Resources

 

The Willamette River, the 13th largest river in the United States, drains a basin of 11,478 square miles, an area roughly the size of the state of Maryland. Historically treasured for its wealth of resources, including inexpensive power and irrigation, forestry, rich agricultural land, and outdoor recreation, the basin today faces serious problems. We are witnessing disappearing fish and wildlife, toxins and wastes in waters, undependable water supplies, and continued habitat destruction. Estimates indicate that the population will increase by 74 percent between the years 2000 and 2050, adding the population of three cities the size of Portland or thirteen cities the size of Eugene to the valley. To face these challenges to our unique environment, private and public sectors have come together to formulate goals and action plans to protect and restore the health of the Willamette Basin ecosystem. Such efforts, representing the input of hundreds of Oregonians, include the Willamette Restoration Strategy, the Governor's Willamette River Legacy Program and the Willamette Partnership.

The greatest enemy to these efforts is the indifference of basin citizens. This is not a job for "them" - it is a job for us. Everyone makes a difference, to the greater good or bad. Each individual must take action on and off their property, within their spheres of influence, through their daily routines. Youth have an especially powerful role to play in this fight against indifference. With their open, curious minds and enthusiasm for the natural world, young people can most effortlessly convince others, especially their parents and friends, to respect our basin's natural resources. Experience in other environmental initiatives such as recycling demonstrates that students readily share their increased awareness and concern for our watershed's health and beauty with others.

Our Mission

 

It is the mission of Honoring Our River anthology to engage the creative and reflective intellectual capacities of basin residents, particularly its youth, to promote and nurture respect for the Willamette River. Sponsored by Portland General Electric, Eugene Water & Electric Board, Wildwood/Mahonia, the Willamette Partnership and SOLV, this annually published compilation of literature and artwork features multiple expressions of the relationship between people and the Willamette River Watershed--the waters, weather, land, plants, animals and habitats that make up this beautiful and fragile ecosystem. Literary entries include poems and essays, both fiction and non-fiction.

Honoring Our River seeks to first educate students about the challenges that the Willamette River Basin faces. We provide all teachers in the basin with the opportunity to order a free watershed toolkit containing a wealth of information to supplement in-class or outdoor education about the river. After learning how human actions affect the health of our watershed, students have the opportunity to reflect upon ways that the river has affected their own lives and how others affect the life of the river through words and art. If they decide to submit their work to the judging panel of professionals at Honoring Our River, a panel of judges may select it to be published in the anthology, the tool by which the wider community may discover and reflect upon the multiple interactions and dimensions of the human relationship to our precious Willamette River watershed.