Selection 24

Restoring Rivers

Margaret A. Palmer and J. David Allen

This article talks about how water quality and shortages are becoming an increasing concern for the United States. Aquatic life is becoming extinct at a high rate and the impacts of water shortage on humans is becoming more noticeable and is more frequently occurring. This has become a problem because of the history of cities being developed around water sources and pollution of these sources over the years has risen. River restoration is a solution which deals with repairing waterways, but the technology behind it needs restoration as well. The United States government needs to help by improving its regulatory and legislative federal policy reforms. The EPA has implemented many regulations to help farmers and communities to develop, implement, and enforce water conservation and quality strategies. Restoration strategies are now common in the United States but they are not seeing as big an impact as they should be for the amount of money and resources they are putting into it. Their solution to pollution is to reform federal, state, and local policies. A team of U.S. scientists, engineers, and restoration practitioners have recommended the common standards to be applied to each project to meet the required ecological goals. In order for restoration to be effective country wide, researchers must be able to learn from past efforts through monitoring. Funding is a big concern because existing funding must be used correctly along with current and future funding being allocated to the correct issues so that the restoration projects can be successful. Once these issues are all agreed on with the most effective methods being applied the United States streams and river will once again flow clean and clear.