BSB/3/15
Sponsored by Audrey Liang, Amelia Buiel of Girls Preparatory School
This legislation was filed in the Environment and Conservation category
Presented as part of the YIG Volunteer 2024 conference
| 1 | BE IT ENACTED BY THE TENNESSEE YMCA YOUTH IN GOVERNMENT: |
| 2 | |
| 3 | Section I: Terms in this act, unless the context demands otherwise, are defined as follows: |
| 4 | Conservation - Careful maintenance and upkeep of a natural source to keep it from being |
| 5 | destroyed. |
| 6 | Preservation - Protecting or sustaining a natural source. |
| 7 | Restoration - Repairing or rehabilitating nature back to a better condition. |
| 8 | Healthy Ecosystem - A balanced thriving community of healthy aquatic life within the Tennessee |
| 9 | River. |
| 10 | |
| 11 | Section II: In this act, the Tennessee River Hub City Association will be established. |
| 12 | |
| 13 | Section III: This act mandates an annual allocation of $7,500,000 from the Tennessee Department |
| 14 | of Environment and Conservation budget for every three years, after which the allocation will be |
| 15 | reevaluated. This funding will be distributed in the sections as follows: |
| 16 | 1. TRHCA shall allocate a portion of its budget to eco-friendly technologies. |
| 17 | 2. TRHCA shall allocate a portion of its budget to public engagement and education initiatives to |
| 18 | raise awareness about the importance of river conservation and preservation. |
| 19 | 3. TRHCA shall allocate funds for scientific research and monitoring activities to assess |
| 20 | conservation measures' ecological health and effectiveness within the Tennessee River. |
| 21 | i. Research including but not limited to: |
| 22 | 1. Studying the impacts of pollution |
| 23 | 2. Studying habitat degradation |
| 24 | 3. Studying invasive species on aquatic ecosystems |
| 25 | 4. Identifying strategies for mitigating these threats. |
| 26 | 5. Identifying major polluters |
| 27 | |
| 28 | Section IV: TRHCA shall implement no-wake zones in small river areas that need intense recovery. |
| 29 | These no-wake zones will not be implemented in the following areas: |
| 30 | 1. The channel |
| 31 | 2. Along the densest portions of major cities |
| 32 | 3. Port areas |
| 33 | |
| 34 | Section V: Requires TRHCA to conduct evaluations at the end of each year of its programs, |
| 35 | projects, and activities. These evaluations will assess the effectiveness, efficiency, and impact of |
| 36 | TRHCA's efforts at achieving its goals. The results of these reviews shall be made publicly available |
| 37 | and used to guide future actions and investments. |
| 38 | |
| 39 | Section VI: This act shall take effect as soon as possible after passing. |
| 40 |