The EPA has released the first nationwide study of “wadeable”
streams and found that one-in-four of these waterways in the
West are not doing so well. Scientists found elevated levels of
phosphorus and nitrogen and damage to the streamside vegetation.
Health of the streams was also determined by the amounts and
kinds of bugs present, a diagnostic tool preferred by many
scientists. The study, unfortunately, does not have streams by
name or specific location, but rather by geographic areas, ours
being the “Western Mountains Ecoregion” (see results beginning
on page 70). The data came from 529 random sites collected
during the summers of 2000–2004. While having one-quarter of the
creeks in poor health isn’t so good, the results are pretty
stellar compared to the rest of the country (see summary here).
More than 40 percent of shallow creeks nationally were in poor
condition, 25 percent fair and 28 percent good. The region with
the sickest streams is the Eastern Highlands. The study’s
purpose, according to Benjami