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National Geographic Interview
Have a listen to Brett on Nation Geographic Radio:
Radio Interview
OMRP – Global Awareness
The Old Man River Project is definitely reaching audiences around the world:
There have been almost 8300 UNIQUE visitors from 42 countries/territories.
I know Brett has a goal of 10,000 Unique visitors, so lets help him reach that goal and maybe even pass it. Get the word out about the OMRP and lets get as many people as we can thinking about the might Mississippi River!
Corps’ operation of MR-GOdoomed homes in St. Bernard, Lower 9th Ward
Posted by LowerMississippiRiverkeeper in general, news on November 21st, 2009
Times Picayune
November 18, 2009
By Mark Schleifstein
Note from LMRK: LEAN/LMRK Member Dr. Ivor Van Heerden was an expert witness and provided much of the data for the plaintiffs in this case.
In a groundbreaking decision, a federal judge ruled late Wednesday that the Army Corps of Engineers’ mismanagement of maintenance at the Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet was directly responsible for flood damage in St. Bernard Parish and the Lower 9th Ward after Hurricane Katrina.
“The failure of the Corps to recognize the destruction that the MRGO had caused and the potential hazard that it created is clearly negligent on the part of the Corps,” said U.S. District Judge Stanwood Duval Jr. in his ruling. “Furthermore, the Corps not only knew, but admitted by 1988, that the MRGO threatened human life … and yet it did not act in time to prevent the catastrophic disaster that ensued with the onslaught of Hurricane Katrina.”
“The Corps’ lassitude and failure to fulfill its duties resulted in a catastrophic loss of human life and property in unprecedented proportions,” Duval wrote. “The Corps’ negligence resulted in the wasting of millions of dollars in flood protection measures and billions of dollars in Congressional outlays to help this region recover from such a catastrophe. Certainly, Congress would never have meant to protect this kind of nonfeasance on the part of the very agency that is tasked with the protection of life and property.”
Duval’s 156-page decision could result in the federal government paying $700,000 in damages to three people and a business in those areas, but also sets the stage for judgments worth billions of dollars against the government for damages suffered by as many as 100,000 other residents, businesses and local governments in those areas who filed claims with the corps after Katrina.
Duval ruled, however, that WDSU-TV anchor Norman Robinson and his wife were not entitled to damages because the corps’ dredging of the MR-GO did not affect the levee system that protects eastern New Orleans from hurricane storm surge. That probably means eastern New Orleans residents would not be able to collect on claims they’ve filed against the corps, said attorneys representing plaintiffs in the case.
“The people of this city have been vindicated,” said attorney Joseph Bruno, a leader of the large team of lawyers who represented the plaintiffs. “They didn’t do anything wrong and it’s time they be compensated.”
Read the full Times Picayune article here.
Lower Mississippi Riverkeeper is a member of the MRGO must GO Coalition. You can learn more at WWW.MRGOMUSTGO.ORG
Crew of Canadians travel from Bemidji, Minn., to the Gulf of Mexico in a 32-foot wooden York boat
Posted by LowerMississippiRiverkeeper in general, news on November 2nd, 2009
The crew of the Old Man River project begin to load up their 32-foot York Boat as it sits along side the Mississippi River at Port Byron. The crew is traveling the length of the river to the Gulf of Mexico without using man-made fuel. (John Schultz / Quad-City Times)
Quad-City Times
November 1, 2009
By Theresa Bries
While Mother Nature’s cool and wet autumn has been less hospitable than expected to an adventure crew paddling and rowing down the Mississippi River, people along the route have often saved the day.
“Whenever we are in a jam, some nice American fixes our problem,” said Brett Rogers, captain of the Old Man River expedition of six Canadians traveling from Bemidji, Minn., to the Gulf of Mexico in a 32-foot wooden York boat dubbed Annie.
“The cold, wet, dreary days never seem to end,” crew member Cliff Quinn said during their mid-October stop in Port Byron, Ill. And the cold continues into the night when the crew camps.
“Getting out of the sleeping bag is the hardest part of the day” on cool autumn mornings, said 25-year-old Sarah Stewart, the crew’s only female.
Read the full Quad-City Times article here!
Old Man River Project reaches QCs, to dock at Sunset Marina today
Posted by LowerMississippiRiverkeeper in general, news on October 19th, 2009
Photo: John Greenwood. In the photo from left are Brett Rogers, Magnus Anderson, Cliff Quinn, Doug Copping and Sarah Stewart. Also on the crew is Kyle Jeffery.
Quad-Cities Online
Dispatch-Argus
October 17, 2009
By Lindsay Hocker
PORTBYRON– The crew of the Old Man River Project has experienced many acts of kindness as they make their way down the Mississippi River to Louisiana.
“It feels great,” said Canadian Doug Copping, one of the now six-person crew aboard Annie, a 32-foot wood York boat. “Americans are opening their doors and hearts to us.”
The Annie reached Port Byron Thursday night and will leave there at 10 a.m. today to make its way to Sunset Marina in Rock Island.
The crew left Bemidji, Minn., on Aug. 22 to explore the Mississippi River, with a goal of not using a single tank of gas. They hope to reach the Gulf of Mexico in early December, a journey of 2,400 miles. There, they will present Annie to the Lower Mississippi Riverkeeper.
Read the full Quad-Cities Online article here!
Replica of 1800s boat docks in Q-C
Posted by LowerMississippiRiverkeeper in general, news on October 18th, 2009
Quad-City Times
October 16, 2009
By Theresa Bries
The Old Man River Project expedition arrived in the Quad-City area for a few days of drying out, getting a new mast and oars for its boat, Annie, and meeting local environmental groups, residents and businesses.
All six crew members of the Old Man River prepare for an over night stay in Port Byron, Ill., Friday Oct. 16, 2009. , The 32-foot York boat is built in the same style as boats used by fur traders in the 1800s to navigate the rivers of the United States and Canada. A new mast is being constructed to replace the one that broke in high winds last week. Crew members include (L-R) Sarah Stewart, Brett Rogers, Doug Copping, Magnus Anderson, Cliff Quinn and Kyle Jeffery. (John Schultz / Quad-City Times)
The crew is adjusting to new Douglas fir oars, which were built in a Rock Island shop and delivered to the crew a week ago while they were in Dubuque, Iowa, the boat’s captain, Brett Rogers, said.
Although the oars are heavier than the fiberglass racing oars they are replacing, the weight keeps them in place and the crew doesn’t have to work as hard. “We are using half the energy we were using before,” Rogers said.
Annie will soon have a higher and stronger mast that should improve the group’s sailing speed. The boat’s original mast snapped in a wind storm south of Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minn.
When the crew of six pulled into Port Byron, Ill., on Thursday evening, they had a dry, warm spot lined up for the night at the Main Street office of Art Norris, Quad-City Waterkeeper. Norris had been in touch with Rogers long before the group set off on the trip and had offered his hospitality.
Read the full Quad City Times article here!
Q-C pit stop yields repairs for boat on 2,400-mile journey
Posted by LowerMississippiRiverkeeper in general, news on October 13th, 2009
Quad Cities Waterkeeper, Art Norris (right) and Mike Lawrence, owner of Native Woods (left), present one of the new oars to Doug Copping (center) of the Old Man River Project Expedition Crew
Quad-Cities Online
Dispatch-Argus
October 10, 2009
By Lindsay Hocker
Life on a 32-foot-long wooden vessel floating down the Mississippi River has its perks — among them, beautiful surroundings and plenty of wildlife sightings.
“We get a lot of fresh air and exercise,” said Doug Copping, one of a seven-person crew powering a York boat, a flat-bottomed wooden boat propelled by oars and a sail, on a trip from Bemidji, Minn., to the Gulf of Mexico in Louisiana.
The boat, named Annie, is expected to arrive in the Quad-Cities next week. Crew members were resting in Dubuque on Saturday.
The excursion has been dubbed the Old Man River Project, and it is described on the group’s blog as “a modern-day expedition to rediscover the Mississippi River with the explicit intent of supporting the mission of Lower Mississippi River keeper.”
The Lower Mississippi River keeper organization, based in Louisiana, is part of the Waterkeeper Alliance. It works to reduce Mississippi water pollution.
Thursday afternoon, Mr. Copping, who is Canadian, was at Native Woods in Rock Island, working on creating a new masthead and oars for Annie. Mike Lawrence, owner of Native Woods, and Art Norris of East Moline were also in on the action.
Read the full Dispatch-Argus article here!
Quad-City artisans make oars for Old Man River project
Posted by LowerMississippiRiverkeeper in general, news on October 9th, 2009
Quad Cities Waterkeeper Art Norris helps Mike Lawrence of Native Woods to craft new oars for Annie
Quad-City Times
October 9, 2009
By Theresa Bries
Two railroad bridge I-beams that nearly ended up in a firewood pile in the Quad-Cities are gaining new purpose as oars and a mast for an unusual boat traveling down the Mississippi River.
The York boat – a flat-bottomed wooden rowing and sailing vessel dubbed “Annie” – was handcrafted by a Canadian crew for the Old Man River project. The group documented the boat’s construction and is filming the trip and the work of local conservation groups along the way, including several in the Quad-Cities.
The crew’s voyage has been slowed because Annie’s 30-year-old mast snapped off Sept. 28 during a strong storm with 40-45-mph winds, just south of Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minn., crew member Doug Copping said Thursday.
See the full Quad-City Times article here!
River Expedition Rowing Through The Twin Cities
WCCO ANOKA, Minn.
September 23, 2009
One month along on a three-month journey, the seven crew members of “Old Man River Project” have it down. Each morning, after breaking camp, they tightly stow hundreds of pounds of gear onto the 32-foot wooden boat they call Annie.
She’s what’s known as a York boat; a flat-bottomed, wooden rowing and sailing vessel they built themselves for this 2300-mile adventure down the mighty Mississippi River.
Brett Rogers is the expedition leader. He’s done similar journeys down North America’s Yukon and Mackenzie rivers, but had always wanted to tackle a trip down the Mississippi.
After years of planning and three months of boat building, his team of six Canadians and one Australian are living their dream. Their idea is to examine the heart of America, by venturing down its watery highway, studying the quality of the river and the minds of its residents.
“We’ve connected with Republicans, Democrats, blue-collar, white-collar. And the whole point of what we’re trying to do is show that there’s no divide of where you stand in the world, is that water connects us all,” Rogers explained.
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