American Rivers, a leader in the movement to reform the Army Corps of Engineers, named the Caloosahatchee River America’s 7 th most endangered river, mainly because of damages from massive releases of polluted water from Lake Okeechobee.

The St. Lucie River on the east coast is caught up in identical problems due to discharges from the lake into the St. Lucie Canal. The two estuaries were hit with a total of 855 billion gallons of the dirty water last year. Residents in Martin County were warned not to make contact with the water. The Rivers Coalition in Martin County plans legal action and supporting activity to curtail the discharges (see www.riverscoalition.org).

While the St. Lucie dumps massive nutrient-laden, freshwater discharges into estuaries and reef-rich coastal waters on the East Coast of the state, the South Florida Water Management District (District) and the Army Corps of Engineers use the canalized Caloosahatchee River to unload massive quantities of foul runoff into the Caloosahatchee estuary. As a result, massive fish kills have occurred, and critical nursery habitats for gamefish have been lost.

The Caloosahatchee Association (www.caloosahatchee.org) and American Rivers representatives are enabling concerned citizens to send electronic letters demanding positive action. Visit www.americanrivers.org, and click on Take Action.

Top Ten Endangered Rivers

1. Pajaro River, California
2. Upper Yellowstone River, Montana
3. Willamette River, Oregon
4. Salmon Trout River, Michigan
5. Shenandoah River, Virginia, West Virginia
6. Boise River, Idaho
7. Caloosahatchee River, Florida
8. Bristol Bay Watershed, Arkansas
9. San Jacinto River, Texas
10. Verde River, Arizona

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