American Rivers is a Washington D.C.-based organization working to protect and restore the nation’s rivers and streams. Each year they honor our nation’s river systems. This year, the top “honor” goes to the Potomac River.

• Notice I have not yet disclosed the special honor bestowed on this beautiful river.

The Potomac River has been called our nation’s river because of its proximity to Washington, DC. Over 5 million people share the benefits of the Potomac River watershed that gathers its water from parts of Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia. In terms of area, the Potomac River is the fourth largest river along the Atlantic coast of the United States. It is the 21st largest in the United States. Throughout history, major river systems have been very important, strategic assets to the development and prosperity of towns and cities that have used (and abused) these waterways.

This year, the Potomac River has earned First Place on American River’s list of American’s Most Endangered Rivers of 2012!

The fact is that since the Clean Water Act was passed in 1972, there has been significant progress in cleaning up rivers. In spite of the efforts and results, pollution rates continue to soar.

• Smaller headwater streams miles upriver continue to be polluted from growing population and land use practices: urban development and agricultural pesticides, fertilizers and stormwater runoff.

The Potomac Conservancy discusses just one of the many issues that plague the river – Intersex Fish:

“A 2006 study by the U.S. Geological Survey of fish from the Potomac River and various tributaries found intersex in 80% of male bass examined. All samples — those with and without signs of intersex — contained detectible levels of at least one endocrine-disrupting compound. Also, a recent study showed that chemicals commonly found in personal care products, including fragrances and anti-mocrobial products, were found in muscle tissue of 100% fish tested. The waters (in Texas) were found to be persistent in the fishes environment because of continuous introduction from a wastewater treatment plant.”

What can be done to continue efforts to improve the Potomac and other polluted rivers?

Bob Irvin, President of American Rivers. “If Congress slashes clean water protections, more Americans will get sick and communities and businesses will suffer. We simply cannot afford to go back to a time when the Potomac and rivers nationwide were too polluted and dangerous to use.”

The article, Two West Virginia Rivers on Endangered List introduces us to the Potomac and Coal Rivers. Many river names can be substituted in their place because of high pollution levels. The Potomac River supplies almost 90% of DC metro area drinking water. If these problems are developing in fish, imagine the longterm impact on others who use rivers for recreational purposes and consume the very fish that are carrying the pollution loads that humans have introduced into our rivers and streams.

The opening paragraph from this Inter Press Service (IPS) article presents the challenge to yet another country that has accessible fossil fuel reserves.

“BUENOS AIRES, May 15, 2012 (Tierramérica) – Vast reserves of natural gas and oil trapped underground, whose exploitation would signify major environmental impacts, will be the greatest challenge facing YPF, the Argentine oil company that recently returned to state control.”

For Japan, Fukushima put a halt to its nuclear energy program. Germany soon followed with a plan to de-nuke itself before catastrophe occurred. The oil sands of Canada have created a tantalizing opportunity between that country and the United States. Nigeria’s environmental disaster to the Niger Delta has destroyed lives and the economy of seven of its southern states. “Fracking” in the United States offers a technologically “sound” process for extracting vast amounts of deeply embedded natural gas.

This is a list that could be augmented with too many examples of need and outcome. There is no question that energy is one of the most compelling issues for every major nation. And, as we have seen, each energy source offers a variety of strengths and weaknesses. There have been numerous posts addressing these concerns that will not be repeated here.

Now, it appears to be Argentina’s turn in this energy fray. The second paragraph of the same article drives home the challenge for Argentina (and every other country with retrievable energy resources).

“While experts in various branches of engineering and economics are enthusiastic over the prospects of the reserves discovered, they warn that the price paid to benefit from them could be steep.”

We have seen repeatedly, it seems that experts consulted will most often offer strong opinions that support views in favor of extraction. The prospects are always high but it seems that the price paid for these benefits is even higher.

Why has Argentina become so important? The reason is very simple.

“Argentina is the country with the third highest geological potential for these types of hydrocarbons, after China and the United States.” In addition, how could you not give this serious consideration? “The report also states that, although there is a “high degree of uncertainty,” the exploitation of these reserves would significantly increase gas production, create employment and promote the development of new technologies.”

The downside? Exploitation “would also take a heavy toll on the environment.”

It is safe to conjecture that favorable options abound and will carry a very strong message that great care would be taken to ensure that the environment is not harmed. So far, I think I am the only one making that statement. But, I would gladly wager that other similar comments will likely be made by real “experts”. In today’s global economic environment, how could this energy remain buried as it has for millenia?

Argentina Faces the Dilemma of Unconventional Oil and Gas. You be the judge.

This is a fascinating story appearing in the London Daily Mail newspaper that was provided to me by Dr. Reddy, a biochar research scientist in India. It shows the human emotion of elephants and the response to a tragedy by a very special human – conservationist Lawrence Anthony who was living and working in South Africa.

It is almost too incredible to believe!

Why is a story about elephants offered on this site about groundwater and freshwater degradation? Great question. The only answer I can give that makes sense to me is that it offers yet another excellent example of how we take for granted the significance of our humanness – especially in its relationship to nature. Without providing too much detail except that it profiles the death of one elephant from electrocution and the response of the heard, I leave you with the link to: Wild Elephants Gather Inexplicably, Mourn Death of “Elephant Whisperer”.

There is nothing further to add.

It seems that there has been increasingly more news about polar ice and the contribution that this melting ice will have on rising sea levels. There are many vivid, photographs and videos that show the acceleration of massive chucks of polar ice crashing into the sea or of lone 1 000 pound polar bears riding a shrinking piece of polar ice in a growing sea of open water (Polar Bears in Trouble). Numerous time-lapse photos taken over past decades show how this ancient glacial ice has rapidly begun to retreat from contact with the oceans revealing long hidden ice-carved valleys in full view.

A recent study sponsored by the American Geophysical Union adds even more fuel to sea level rise from two very unlikely sources: groundwater depletion and reservoir storage levels. The amount of projected level rise may not seem like a lot – “…research suggests that by 2050, groundwater pumping will cause a global sea level rise of about 0.8 millimeters per year” – but its volume is large! Just as important will be the impact of future freshwater needs for agriculture to feed the world’s expanding population as more and more of this precious resource is lost from the land and moved to the oceans.

It is difficult to imagine just how much freshwater is extracted from wells for irrigation and drinking, the the study’s author (from Utrecht University in the Netherlands) notes that “groundwater contributions to sea level rise are expected to become as significant as those of melting glaciers and ice caps outside of Greenland and the Antarctic.”

Reservoirs have been important to managing river flow and storing large quantities of water for use not only for consumption but also for hydroelectric power generation. With the exception of just a few countries, dam construction has been on a decline. The study also concluded that the “net effect of additional factors influencing the amount of terrestrial water entering the oceans includes marsh drainage, forest clearing, and new reservoirs.”

The AGU study in this issue of Water World: Groundwater Pumping Leads to Sea Level Rise Cancels Out Effect of Dams concludes that “one way to decrease groundwater’s contribution to sea level rise is to improve water efficiency in agriculture — to grow more with less groundwater.” This “option” is becoming less of an option – and more of a necessity – in many parts of the world.

Thanks to Ken H for forwarding this article. Maybe this is an example of an evolving “organic” way to preserve Amazonian rainforest.

Imagine. Google is providing GPS capability to Amerindians deep in the rainforests of Surinam, Brazil and Columbia. How significant is the Google Earth Engine and Amazon Surui Tribes project? “The Suruí Indigenous population of the Brazilian Amazon made contact with the outside world for the first time only 40 years ago.” And today, they are using GPS technology and laptop computers that have been provided by the U.S.-based Amazon Conservation Team! Even more importantly, forest preservation efforts with the Surui are being tracked under the REDD initiative. – ‘Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation’. REDD is a program created by the UN in 2007.

Why is it so important to work with such a remote tribe deep within Amazonia? The Surui very only “discovered” about 40 years ago. Since that discovery occurred “settlers soon followed, stealing 80 percent of the Surui land and bringing new diseases that killed 90 percent of the people.”

Forest encroachment continues unabated in search of minerals.

Since REDD was created, global efforts have been underway towards maturing a market for carbon credits. Credits provided under REDD are credits that can derived from projects that reduce emissions from deforestation and degradation. This raises the value of environmental preservation in areas that contains much of our planet’s sequestered carbon – the tropical rainforests. These valuable forests are being “slashed for their hardwood and burned to make way for cattle ranches and soy farms.” The longer this continues and the more forest that is removed, our planet will be less able to safely combat the rising levels of atmospheric gasses.

In theory, carbon trading offers considerable opportunity for companies/countries to “purchase” offset credits in a global commodity market. In reality, the purchase of offset credits also enables companies/countries to continue carbon emissions at a level that does not necessarily disincentivise the buyer of setting emission standards that would actively reduce their carbon emissions into the atmosphere.

The following link: Carbon Credit Trading provides a very good overview of REDD and carbon credits. I also like this link from Living on Earth: Protecting a Forest and Preserving a Culture that tells the impact from this illegal incursion and how the Surui have adopted space age technology to better understand where the damage is being incurred. These technologies also allow a “near real-time” prevention potential.

Finally, to have a broader understanding of REDD and the Surui, please see: Suruí REDD Project: Baseline and Carbon Stock Changes, Challenges and Opportunities. I think the details will be revealing about the changes that are being forced upon an environment and on its indigenous people.