The National Fish Habitat Board just released a summary of the risks for watershed and habitat degradation for the entire US.
Overall, 27 percent of the miles of stream in the lower 48 states are at high or very high risk of current habitat degradation and 44 percent are at low or very low risk. Twenty-nine percent of stream miles in the lower 48 states are at moderate risk of current habitat degradation.
It’s the usual suspects that are causal agents, most being activities of us humans, and the harsh chemicals that run off our land when it’s turned to industrial uses.
That harsh red band splitting California is where I live and fish, suggesting at least one stalwart crept to the edge of the bridge and tossed some vial into the murky brown below.
The report is very light on science and a suitable read for the average angler, if you’re interested in a map of your state and a brief mention of projects and issues, take a look at the 72 page PDF.
The upper Missouri (in Montana) surprises me. Eastern Texas is not surprising, I’ve been to all of those drainages. At least Alaska is mostly purple.
Where others see red, Brownliners see opportunity !
i knew it was bad here but not this bad.
it’s tough to bitch about the folks who feed us, however the idea that “it’s mine and i can do what i want” gets a little old.
one of the little red dots is a half mile down stream from our ground. the epa says it is a bad place indeed.
the only good part about the report is that they realize we’re the great plains and not the damned midwest.
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