European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - January 8, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Battle Over channelization by Bill Schulz associated press Iver channelization has Long been a controversial subject pitting sportsmen and conservationists against engineers among the harmful effects of channelization riled by wildlife experts is the reduction of waterfowl habitat As flooded lowlands Are drained by the deeper straighter Waterways. Making Rivers wider and deeper can help destroy the protein base wintering ducks must have to be in shape to Fly North and raise Young the next summer critics say. The latest Battle Over channelization concerns the Obion forked Deer River system in Western Tennessee. Both the army corps of engineers and conservation groups Are awaiting study proposals from two universities. The idea is to channelized the 6.9 Miles on the South Fork of the Obion River and study its effect on wildlife. It s just a waste of taxpayers Money and not going to find out a thing that we Don t know said Chester Mcconnell of the wildlife management Institute. In All the projects that have Ever been done channelization destroys wetlands destroys habitat needed by fish and aquatic life and degrades water  the 3-million-acre Basin is in the heart of Mississippi River bottomlands sought for Protection and preservation under the North american waterfowl management plan a $1.5 billion 15-year agreement Between the United states and Canada to try to restore the continent s wild Duck populations to the Levels of the 1950s. That would mean about a 50 percent increase from present populations. Opponents include conservationists the Tennessee department of health and environment which has refused to Issue required permits for dredging in the forked Deer Basin and the  fish and wildlife service. While Mcconnell said he has 200 studies  the devastation to wildlife caused by River channelization Michael Callaway chief of flood Plain management services and the special studies Branch . Army corps of engineers Memphis said this one is different. He said studies alleging devastation would be Correct if you had a native Stream that had never been  the project in the Obion forked Deer he said would be a maintenance  the test would deepen the Stream from 1 to 3 feet and Widen it from 10 to 15 feet on one Side he said. Tom Talley Field supervisor of the fish and wildlife service s Cookeville tenn., office said our position is a Clearing and snagging alternative would be less damaging than a channelization plan. Talley said the Hardwood wetlands and flooded farmlands in the River bottomland produce insects Worms and shrimp like creatures which ducks eat for their protein. While Corn and soybeans Are Good Duck food they do not provide that protein he said. Researchers Are beginning to find that when Birds do not have these High protein diets they Are going Back North in the Spring almost totally emaciated Talley said. Callaway said the project would shorten the Winter flood season in farm Fields and save some Hardwood bottomlands that now Are dying because of too much flooding. Mcconnell said that translates to draining wetlands critical to the North american plan. Twelve of the 245 studies done on River channelization projects were in the Obion forked Deer system he said. They and numerous other studies All reached similar conclusions water Quality is severely degraded fish and wildlife Are devastated wetlands Are drained soil erosion increases and flooding problems Are often  he also said plans to create other wetlands to replace those the corps has said will be drained Are meaningless because they Are so expensive in the Long term. Manmade Ponds Are unable to hold water because of the area s Sandy soils and the Cost of pumping on water and removing it the Way it is done naturally in areas to be drained is proving so prohibitive at least one existing project is to be turned Over to Upland game management because the state can t afford to keep it a wetland Mcconnell said. The Middle Fork of the Salmon River winds through some of the United states most Pristine wilderness. Protecting our wild Rivers Page 16 the stars and stripes by Bill Schulz associated press he wild and Scenic Rivers act is going into its third decade after helping create a new Industry with a possible new tool to make it work better. For every River mile in the lower 48 states fewer than four Yards have been protected by the act said George t. Frampton jr., president of the wilderness society. After 20 years 7,709 Miles of River were protected As wild Scenic or recreational Rivers. Of that total 3,210 Miles Are in one state Alaska protected under the Alaska lands act of 1980. That s 41 percent of the system. But in october the first omnibus Bill added 1,439 Miles of River in Oregon the second largest Protection measure Ever. The wild and Scenic Rivers act created three categories of Rivers All to be protected because they and the land around them possess outstandingly remarkable Scenic recreational geologic fish and wildlife historic cultural or other similar  the three categories Are wild Rivers undimmed and with Access Only by foot. Scenic Rivers undimmed and with shorelines relatively primitive but with some Road Access. Recreational Rivers which May have some development along the Banks but the shorelines must be relatively primitive. There can be some Access by Road or Railroad. Eight Rivers totalling 789 Miles were placed in the system immediately. They Are the Middle Forks of the Clearwater and Salmon Rivers Idaho the Middle Fork of the Feather California segments of the Rio Grande new Mexico rogue Oregon St. Croix Wisconsin and Minnesota eleven Point Missouri and the Wolf Wisconsin. In 1982, the National Park service completed a Survey of Rivers in the 48 contiguous states which listed All River segments that were candidates for inclusion As wild or Scenic Rivers. The Survey did not cover recreational Rivers. The Survey found 1,524 segments totalling about sunday january 8, 1989 61,700 Miles of Rivers just under 2 percent of the 3.25 million Miles of Rivers in the 48 states. The wilderness society s Survey said 600,000 Miles of Rivers or about 15 percent of the total Are backed up behind dams. Meanwhile an Industry was growing. In 1987, the wilderness society said there were 2 million Whitewater raft trips taken in the United states up from 25,000 trips a decade earlier. River rafting is a growing multimillion Dollar Industry which contributes to the Economy Frampton said while the current great threat to wild and Scenic Rivers the Public Utility regulatory policies act of 1978, and varied tax Laws which followed would be taxpayer subsidized. While previous legislation has protected one River or a Small group of Rivers at one time the omnibus Bill is a new tactic. Round one was in Oregon. Round two May be in Washington. A Bill which protected 1,439 Miles of Rivers in Oregon was signed by president Reagan in october. The tactic works because conservationists can put together a statewide network of supporters said Steve Whitney director of the wilderness society s National Parks program. The effect of omnibus Bills is to begin to get ahead of that development curve he said. River by River we re not making it. Only if we protect 1,000 Miles of River or More at one fell swoop do we begin to get ahead of the development curve. Besides big Bills Are sexier in some ways. You get editorial boards to notice. You get congressional delegations to notice. You also get the opposition to notice. But if you be developed your data got your ducks in line then you re Well on your Way. In Oregon that s exactly what  the next step is an omnibus Bill for the state of Washington. Washington s Rivers Are so important not Only for recreational purposes or amenity values but also because of the role they play in supporting the commercial fishery traditional uses by native americans and sport fishing. There Are so Many Rivers that flow out of the cascades and the olympic Range that Are unprotected and threatened by hydroelectric Power projects Whitney said