ST. LOUIS (AP) - Environmental activists on Tuesday urged the National Park Service to restore the Current River, a southern Missouri waterway that draws more than 1 million people each year for float trips, fishing and other activities.
A statewide coalition of environmental groups delivered petitions with nearly 5,000 signatures to the National Park Service office in St. Louis. The petitions seek reforms to revitalize the Current River, which is part of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways.
"The Current River is Missouri's river jewel," said Ted Mathys of Environment Missouri. "But overdevelopment, illegal and unauthorized vehicle use, and torn up trails are taking a terrible toll."
In May, the group American Rivers designated the riverways as one of the nation's 10 most endangered rivers, citing overuse and poor management.
The Park Service early next year will release its new General Management Plan for the Ozark National Scenic Riverways. The plan will direct management of the riverways for the next two decades. The petitions ask Park Service director Jonathan Jarvis to strengthen protections for the riverways.
Environmental advocates want the Park Service to address several concerns along the Current and its main tributary, the Jacks Fork.
"Unfortunately, these rivers have become badly impaired, due to a combination of overuse by commercial horse ride operators and excessive motorized traffic facilitated by illegal roads," said John Hickey, director of the Missouri chapter of the Sierra Club.