TAMPA, Fla. — The city of Tampa is an inaugural member of the White House's new "America the Beautiful Freshwater Challenge."

The challenge sets a goal to protect, restore and reconnect eight million acres of wetlands and 100,000 miles of rivers and streams across the country.

The President of the group “Friends of the Hillsborough River,” Phil Compton, says he thinks the challenge will help make more progress.

“Friends of the Hillsborough River is a group that started 25 years ago to stand up for the river to make sure the river got the fresh water it needs to function as a title estuary, the most fertile place on earth,” he said.

Compton has always had a vision of what the Hillsborough River could be.

“I don’t want to see trash. I want to see birds and I want to see fish, and people fishing, and people like this guy in the boat behind me that’s enjoying his time on the river instead of looking like, ugh, the river,” he said.

Compton has worked to restore this river that flows through the heart of Tampa and provides our drinking water.

“The river’s had a lot of challenges. We’ve made progress, we’ve stopped fertilizer runoff which has helped stop fish kills, and we’ve restored a minimum daily flow of freshwater every day,” he said.

But despite the progress, Compton says there’s still work to be done, and the America the Beautiful Freshwater Challenge can help.

“We’d have more fish, a greater variety of fish, and that’s one of the president’s main goals is to make sure outdoor recreational activities, whether you like to fish or see birds, all the critters in the river, that that sort of thing is improved,” he said.

While the challenge is new, the work to restore our waterways by the city of Tampa and groups like Friends of the Hillsborough River are not, and that’s something city officials say President Joe Biden recognizes. Now, Compton says he’s excited to see just how great this river can be. 

Mayor Jane Castor issued a statement about the challenge, saying in part, “As we’re transforming Tampa, we’re keeping sustainability and resilience at the forefront. Protecting our treasured waterways is a key priority. That’s why I’m thrilled our city is an inaugural member of the new America the Beautiful Freshwater Challenge.”