Natural gas extraction planned for Pennsylvania and New York has made the Upper Delaware River the most threatened in the United States according to an annual report by river watchdog organization American Rivers.
The Upper Delaware supplies drinking water to 17 million people. Proposed extraction through the unproven method of hydraulic fracturing involves injecting chemicals into the ground, generating highly toxic waste water.
Jessie Thomas-Blate, the Most Endangered Rivers coordinator at American Rivers, said that the Delaware River Basin Commission is not issuing fracturing permits until new regulations, scheduled for later this year, are established. The commission will not conduct an environmental impact study before issuing the new regulations, she said.
The annual reports are a call to action. Thomas-Blate said this year they are asking people to write their congressmen in support of the Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act of 2009, which will force natural gas companies to disclose the chemicals used in the hydraulic fracturing process.
Since 1985 American Rivers has released yearly reports indicating which rivers face the most imminent threats from pollution, dams, and mining projects.
The most endangered rivers on the list are not necessarily the most polluted. The criteria for determining the most endangered rivers are largely based on whether a major decision affecting the river’s fate will be made in the coming year. “We want to make sure that these rivers don’t turn into those most polluted rivers,” said Thomas-Blate.
The Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta in California was the most endangered river in 2009 and is No. 2 this year for the same “outdated flood and water management.” American Rivers wants more protection for the river to be incorporated into the conservation and flood management plans for the Bay Delta area.
Ongoing coal mining and mountaintop removal put the Gauley River in West Virginia at No. 3 this year. American Rivers is asking the EPA to apply stricter water quality standards and not issue mining permits unless those standards are met, according to Thomas-Blate.
Other rivers are endangered in 2010. The Little River in North Carolina is endangered by construction of a new dam. The Cedar River in Iowa is at risk due to outdated flood management. The Upper Colorado is threatened by water diversions, the Chetco in Oregon could be harmed by mining. Idaho’s Teton River is at risk from a new dam. The Monongahela River in Pennsylvania and West Virginia is also endangered from natural gas extraction, and the Coosa River in Alabama could be hurt by hydropower dams.
The report also highlights successful conservation efforts. Thomas-Blate said that these successes do not mean the rivers are “completely pristine and perfect,” but that the reason they were listed has been successfully resolved.
In 2005 the EPA dropped its proposal to dump partially treated sewage into New York’s Susquehanna River after the river was listed as endangered. The Susquehanna is now threatened by natural gas extraction.
In 2009 American Rivers and 25 other parties signed an agreement with utility company PacifiCorp to remove four dams on California’s Klamath River in 2020. Thomas-Blate called this is “the world’s biggest river restoration project.”
To learn more or take action, visit: http://www.americanrivers.org/
To view the full report of America’s most endangered rivers 2010 visit:
http://www.americanrivers.org/assets/pdfs/mer-2010/americas-most-endangered-rivers-2010.pdf
The Upper Delaware supplies drinking water to 17 million people. Proposed extraction through the unproven method of hydraulic fracturing involves injecting chemicals into the ground, generating highly toxic waste water.
Jessie Thomas-Blate, the Most Endangered Rivers coordinator at American Rivers, said that the Delaware River Basin Commission is not issuing fracturing permits until new regulations, scheduled for later this year, are established. The commission will not conduct an environmental impact study before issuing the new regulations, she said.
The annual reports are a call to action. Thomas-Blate said this year they are asking people to write their congressmen in support of the Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act of 2009, which will force natural gas companies to disclose the chemicals used in the hydraulic fracturing process.
Since 1985 American Rivers has released yearly reports indicating which rivers face the most imminent threats from pollution, dams, and mining projects.
The most endangered rivers on the list are not necessarily the most polluted. The criteria for determining the most endangered rivers are largely based on whether a major decision affecting the river’s fate will be made in the coming year. “We want to make sure that these rivers don’t turn into those most polluted rivers,” said Thomas-Blate.
The Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta in California was the most endangered river in 2009 and is No. 2 this year for the same “outdated flood and water management.” American Rivers wants more protection for the river to be incorporated into the conservation and flood management plans for the Bay Delta area.
Ongoing coal mining and mountaintop removal put the Gauley River in West Virginia at No. 3 this year. American Rivers is asking the EPA to apply stricter water quality standards and not issue mining permits unless those standards are met, according to Thomas-Blate.
Other rivers are endangered in 2010. The Little River in North Carolina is endangered by construction of a new dam. The Cedar River in Iowa is at risk due to outdated flood management. The Upper Colorado is threatened by water diversions, the Chetco in Oregon could be harmed by mining. Idaho’s Teton River is at risk from a new dam. The Monongahela River in Pennsylvania and West Virginia is also endangered from natural gas extraction, and the Coosa River in Alabama could be hurt by hydropower dams.
Successes
The report also highlights successful conservation efforts. Thomas-Blate said that these successes do not mean the rivers are “completely pristine and perfect,” but that the reason they were listed has been successfully resolved.
In 2005 the EPA dropped its proposal to dump partially treated sewage into New York’s Susquehanna River after the river was listed as endangered. The Susquehanna is now threatened by natural gas extraction.
In 2009 American Rivers and 25 other parties signed an agreement with utility company PacifiCorp to remove four dams on California’s Klamath River in 2020. Thomas-Blate called this is “the world’s biggest river restoration project.”
To learn more or take action, visit: http://www.americanrivers.org/
To view the full report of America’s most endangered rivers 2010 visit:
http://www.americanrivers.org/assets/pdfs/mer-2010/americas-most-endangered-rivers-2010.pdf