FORR 2009

Friends of the Roanoke River is a joint project with Bill Tanger and Friends of the Rivers of Virginia.

FORVA has been advocating on behalf of Virginia’s precious waterways since the 1980’s.  Over the years, FORVA has worked to bring a 180-acre conservation easement to the New River in southwest Virginia; participated in a case before the US Supreme Court that helped usher in environmental standing for the citizens of the Commonwealth, and led the way in providing Virginians with beneficial information and increased awareness of threats to Virginia’s rivers by publishing the first State of Our Rivers report in 2001.

FRIENDS OF THE ROANOKE RIVER (FORR) is an effort to engage the growing net-roots movement in southwest Virginia, western North Carolina and the entire section of the Southeast impacted by the Roanoke River Basin, from the headwaters to Albemarle Sound.

FORR will serve as a clearing house for up-to-date information on regional efforts to improve the quality of the Roanoke River Watershed.  Initially, our daily efforts will focus on issues facing the Upper Roanoke River from the headwaters to Smith Mountain Lake.

On January 29, 2009, Friends of the Roanoke River became a Virginia nonstock corporation.

The ultimate objective of FORR is to bring a Riverkeeper Program to the Upper Roanoke River through the Waterkeeper Alliance, a national waterway protection organization.  Several waterways in the region, like Virginia’s historic James River, have successful Riverkeeper programs.