The fight for clean water in America.

In 1965, high levels of sewage and toxic waste in the Potomac River led President Lyndon B. Johnson to call it “a national disgrace.” Several years later, Congress passed the Clean Water Act, a landmark piece of legislation that has been instrumental in ensuring the safety and cleanliness of America’s bodies of water for the past 40 years.

But the fight for clean water is far from over. Today, American Rivers released a list of the nation’s Most Endangered Rivers, with the Potomac topping the list. Not only does the river have high pollution levels, but its location in the heart of Washington, D.C., is emblematic of the recent Clean Water Act rollbacks in Congress, which will cut funding for river restoration projects nationwide. Take a look at the other rivers on the list, then join American Rivers’ efforts to preserve them.

(above) Potomac River (Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Washington D.C.)

Green River (Wyoming, Utah, Colorado)

Chattahoochee River (Georgia)

Missouri River (Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming)

Hoback River (Wyoming)

Grand River (Ohio)

South Fork Skykomish River (Washington)

Crystal River (Colorado)

Coal River (West Virginia)

Kansas River (Kansas)

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View more photo collections here. 

Images: Craig Pennington, David, Viswanath Duvvuri, Darren Blackburn, US Army Corps of Engineers, pfly, The Greater Southwestern Exploration Company, apliiq, Patrick Emerson, American Rivers

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Water makes the world go round.

It is estimated that only one percent of the world’s fresh water supply is available for human use, in the form of rivers, lakes, reservoirs, and other above and below ground sources. Given the world’s impending water crisis, it’s more important than ever that we keep our water sources clean and free of impurities. This Earth Month, take a moment to appreciate this photo selection of healthy rivers, then learn more about the world’s water issues from our vault.

(above) Trento, Italy

Susquehanna River Valley, Pennsylvania, USA

Luckiamute Falls, Falls City, Oregon

Southern Ontario, Canada

River Dodder, Dublin, Ireland

Horseshoe Bend, Glen Canyon, Arizona

Farningham, England

Munnar, Kerala, India

Budd Creek, Yosemite National Park, California

Red Deer River, Alberta, Canada

Strassel, Oregon

Firehole River, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Chirkhuwaa Khola, Khanbari, Nepal

Moor Brook, Dartmoor, England

Amazon River, Peru

Vuoksa River, Russia

The post 20 Photos of Healthy Rivers appeared first on EcoSalon.

VideoReminding us of the necessity, and resilience, of our planet’s rivers.

Rivers are an integral part of ecosystems and cultures around the world. Unfortunately, many of them are blocked from flowing freely, subject to the demands of power companies. Despite the challenges, there are successes.

Last fall I sat and watched the Condit Dam on the White Salmon river come down, albeit via live streaming. For years people have talked about this dam coming out, and friends and colleagues have been seeped in the process that it took to make that dream become a reality. Out of town on dam explosion day, I kept a window open on my computer screen and watched as an iconic dam was blown to pieces.

The White Salmon wasn’t the only dam to come down in the Pacific Northwest last year. A month earlier, the largest river restoration in history began on the Elwha River on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington.

American Rivers, a national organization that works to protect and restore rivers across the United States called 2011 the “Year of the River,” marking these two historic events and the removal of 1,000 dams across the country. American Rivers, American Whitewater and the Hydropower Reform Coalition released a short film today that illustrates the remarkable dam removals on the Elwha and White Salmon rivers. The seven-minute film premiered at the Wild and Scenic Film Festival in January and is the final installment in the “Year of the River” series by filmmaker Andy Maser.

This film is a good reminder of the power and resilience of nature, and how we all have a connection to the very rivers that run through our backyards.

Year of the River from Andy Maser on Vimeo.

American Rivers and Patagonia are prompting people to help to restore more of America’s rivers by removing 100 dams in 2012. You can take action here.

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Living in the Northwest, salmon is close to my home – and heart. That’s because the salmon restoration issue in the Northwest isn’t just about conservation. Like many other environmental issues, it’s also about jobs and the economy.

In fact, salmon fishing brings tens of millions of dollars into the regional economy each year, representing thousands of jobs. But because of salmon declines in the Columbia and Snake Rivers over the past three decades, over 25,000 jobs have been lost.

Just how much salmon decline are we talking about? During the time of the Lewis & Clark expedition up to 16 million salmon returned each year. Nowadays, that number is in the range of fewer than ten thousand fish. Salmon and steelhead are both endangered species but according to scientists, salmon runs would be restored by dam removal.

Dam removal is a contentious issue, and for the last 15 years a national coalition of conservation organizations, commercial and sportsfishing associations, businesses and river groups have been in litigation against the federal government to ensure protection for the endangered fish. Dam removal is part of the protection advocated for by the plaintiffs and regional fisheries biologists.

Last Monday, I went to the Portland Courthouse with Save Our Wild Salmon to listen to the latest in this process.

U.S. District Court Judge James Redden declared that he wants to end this 15 year ordeal, and that a working plan is in sight. But conservationists and scientists are less confident. The science supporting the plan, called a biological option or “biop,” runs counter to the advice of many experts from the Forest Service, Department of Fish and Wildlife and the American Fisheries Society’s top scientists.

“We scientists believed the President when he said he would protect science and strengthen the ESA, but secretary Locke and Dr. Lubchenco have seemingly allowed political pressure to circumvent a decision based on sound science,” said Bill Shake, retired Assistant Regional Director for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Judge Redden has asked lawyers to supply written briefs next month to help him arrive at a final decision.

Photo credit: pfly

The post Will Proposed Biop Plan Restore Salmon and the Economy? A Portland Court Must Decide appeared first on EcoSalon.