MADISON COUNTY, Ark. — Months after a Bentonville company suggested the Buffalo River be redesignated — which led to an outpouring of input from communities, advocates, and local legislators — the controversial project has seemingly come to a halt.
Here's everything you need to know about the project and where it stands right now.
Background
The Buffalo River was the first national river in the United States, designated as such by an Act of Congress on March 1, 1972.
The legislation was first introduced by former Congressman John Paul Hammerschmidt and former Senators J. William Fulbright and John L. McClellan in 1967. It was finalized in 1971 and voted on in 1972. President Richard Nixon signed it into law shortly after.
The designation ended the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' plans to construct at least one dam on the river, as well as protect it from industrial uses or other things that would change the natural character of the river or disrupt the habitat around it.
"The Buffalo National River is one of the state's and indeed the nation's premier rivers and is a source of scenic beauty, a unique habitat for local biota, and an agricultural resource to the state as a whole. It is essential that we preserve of this irreplaceable natural and cultural resource for future generations of Arkansans," the Arkansas House of Representatives said in a release marking the 50th anniversary of the river's designation.
The river is 153 miles long, with the lower 135 miles flowing within the boundaries of an area managed by the National Park Service, designated as the Buffalo National River, while the upper section of the river is managed by the U.S. Forest Service.
Redesignation
The Runway Group is a privately held company based in Bentonville that "invests in part in outdoor recreation experiences" founded by Steuart and Tom Walton, the grandsons of Walmart founder Sam Walton.
The group presented an idea to the public last year to redesignate the Buffalo River.
"We believe a change in status is one idea that would provide needed infrastructure support to a growing number of tourists; would support the preservation of the river and its current boundaries; and would create new ways to benefit the surrounding communities," the group said in a statement.
According to a fact sheet published by Runway, nearly a fifth of Americans live within 500 miles of the Buffalo River, but in that same area, there are only two national parks, neither of which are recreation focused.
While the National Parks Service (NPS) lists parks and preserves as two different things, the Runway Group said in an official statement that they intended to redesignate the Buffalo River to a "national park and preserve."
However, according to NPS, there are a few main differences between a national park and a national preserve. On preserves, Congress can approve public hunting and trapping as well as oil and gas exploration and extraction ventures. National parks are protected from these actions.
The Buffalo River's redesignation would also potentially lead to an increase in tourism, which would in turn lead to more infrastructure and management.
The project first began to make headlines in October 2023. However, the work on the project began much sooner than that.
According to Runway, the group approached Congressman Bruce Westerman in July 2022 to first discuss the idea of the redesignation of the Buffalo National River to a National Park Reserve.
Westerman, the U.S. Representative for the 4th District of Arkansas, serves as the chairman of the House Committee on Natural Resources.
"We studied preserve status because it’s the only park status that can maintain hunting and other public recreation access. We wanted to get the congressman’s thoughts, first because part of the [Buffalo National River] is within his district, and because he holds a position on the Natural Resources Committee," Runway said.
Runway said Westerman "made it clear" at the time the project needed support from state and local officials, as well as the surrounding community.
Ultimately, the status change is up to Congress.
The Survey
After regrouping and conducting more conversations, Runway paid for a poll in September 2023 regarding the idea of changing the river's designation.
In total, 412 voters were surveyed from Baxter, Madison, Marion, Newton, and Searcy counties. Results, which were shared publicly, show that 64% of the people who responded said they would want their member of Congress to vote for designation of the river as the "Buffalo River National Park & Preserve."
Nearly half of responders had lived in Arkansas for more than 20 years.
"We learned a lot from the survey, including where we have shared values with the community: Runway doesn’t support the taking of private lands and doesn’t support mining or drilling on the Buffalo River. We are in favor of maintaining public access to traditional forms of recreation, such as hunting," Runway said.
"A designation change for the Buffalo National River is not our decision to make, but we believe it’s an idea worth exploring," Runway added.
Krista Cupp, the Communications Director for Runway, said that the poll's results prove that the idea is worth exploring.
"This re-designation is just an idea that’s being floated out there," Cupp said. “This is an idea that we certainly think is worth exploring, but there’s nothing new happening right now,” she said. “It’s an idea out there that’s being considered. The private sector brings ideas forward, to the public, to the decision makers. Outdoor recreation is a key area for us. This is something that we thought would be interesting to look at."
On Oct. 6, the group released a statement saying that the conversations about redesignation were "early stage," and that the group was open to listening to the community to figure out the "best path forward to conserve our national treasure here in Arkansas."
On Oct. 9, the group released another statement, this time reiterating that the redesignation was merely an idea that had been brought forward, and that no official proposal was offered.
"As Runway Group and others across the state continue to promote the outdoor economy in Arkansas, we want to make every effort to explore how adequate funding for critical infrastructure and resources would be available to conserve the Buffalo National River area, while maintaining access to the river, hunting, and fishing for all Arkansans," Runway said.
"Our intent with this survey is to better understand the feelings and beliefs of the Arkansans whose daily lives are connected to the river. At this time, no official proposal has been offered, only preliminary research as reflected in some fact sheets designed to lead meaningful conversations about the future of the Buffalo and the growth of Arkansas’ outdoor economy," Runway added.
After public backlash, the group backed down from the idea, claiming in a statement on Oct. 17 that it was not taking further action, saying “We wanted to explore a new idea for our home state together. However, this is not our decision to make. There is no new action being taken."
The Town Hall
A month after the survey results were released, momentum both for and against the redesignation fluctuated, due in part to Runway backing down from the project.
The conversation eventually reached a tipping point during a town hall meeting held at Jasper High School in October 2023.
Republican State Senator Bryan King, who represents Jasper and most of Newton County, was present for the town hall, which had an estimated attendance of 1,200 people.
He said transparency in the conversations around the proposed redesignation had been lacking.
“We need to be transparent and that’s just not quite happening right now,” King told the crowd. “Our founding fathers meant for the citizens to be able to know what [their] government is doing and that quite frankly just hasn’t happened and that’s flat out wrong.”
Runway was not in attendance at the meeting, saying that the group spoke to the event's organizers and chose to not formally attend "For all voices to be heard without distractions."
The Future
The future of the Buffalo River redesignation project remains unclear.
A spokesperson with Congressman Westerman's office confirmed to 5NEWS that he "is not working on any legislation to redesignate the Buffalo National River" at this time.
"Congressman Westerman has heard the perspectives of numerous local officials, landowners, business owners, and constituents about this issue and he’s said numerous times that he is not working on any redesignation of the Buffalo National River," the spokesperson said.
Representatives for the Runway Group did not respond to a request for comment from 5NEWS about if any more progress had been made as of February 2024.
Many locals have spoken out about the advantages and disadvantages of the redesignation.
Those in favor of the project say it will greatly improve already high tourism numbers in the Natural State, offering economic benefits for the small towns in and around the Buffalo.
Opponents of the project say that it will expose the area to environmental harm as well as take away from the natural charm of the area. The redesignation could also give companies the option to drill for oil on the land.
Arkansas Tech Associate Professor of Agriculture and Tourism Michael Bradley said that activity at the river could see a spike if the designation was changed.
“If you change the designation, you can open up to more tourism,” Bradley said. “With more tourism, you need more infrastructure, more management, all that kind of stuff.”
The National Park Service reports that the Buffalo National River contributed over $78.4 million dollars in economic output in 2022.
The report shows that the 1.3 million visitors to Buffalo National River in 2022 contributed over $64.9 million in spending to local gateway regions. This supported 864 jobs and had a total economic output of $78.4 million.
“We are proud that Buffalo National River spurs such positive economic benefits for our local communities,” said acting Superintendent Jesse Morris. “We will continue to work diligently, with the help of our park partners and community leaders, to ensure this amazing resource is managed for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations.”
The tourism numbers for 2023 have not yet been released.
Tourism is a $9.2 billion industry in Arkansas, and more than 48 million people visited the state last year, according to a report shared in 2023 by Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders and the state Department of Parks, Heritage & Tourism.
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