Coming soon to a state near you?

have started to plan around their water supplies. The developers don't like it very much but at least the people that run the county get it. Seems to me like that is the key to the future of all water supplies....planning. The lack of planning is the biggest reason that this little corner of Spain is having so much trouble. Again everything comes down to local government and that all things political are local.

No matter that patriotism is too often the refuge of scoundrels. Dissent, rebellion, and all-around hell-raising remain the true duty of patriots.

Progressive Discussions

and the water we have is being misused and abused. Tomorrow is Clean Water Lobby Day at the Legislature. The Neuse River Foundation has the details.

Last summer was a proverbial 2x4 against our collective heads. First the issue for any area under severe drought will be available quantity. Then, it will be quality.

I don't know if it made the news or papers, but Falls Lake recently had a major fish kill. State people passed it off as normal spawn die-off -- sort of like the state passed of the Pfisteria kills in the lower Neuse several years ago so as not to scare tourists people, ignoring the fact that there was something there to truly fear.

But according to the Upper Neuse RiverKeeper, locals at Falls say they had never seen anything like the recent May fish kill in 24 years. With that witness, it is hard to totally believe the claims that it was a "normal die-off, no need to take samples or investigate". Move along folks. Nothing to see here.

This email came from Dean Naujoks, the Upper Neuse RiverKeeper:

There was a large fish kill on Falls Lake (see links below), which
started approximately on Wednesday May 28th and continued until Friday
the 29th. I received a call late Thursday afternoon, but had no idea
how extensive the kill was until I got out to the lake on Friday. Most
of the fish died on Thursday. Witnesses stated "dead fish were
everywhere" from below Highway 50 up the lake to the Sandling Beach/
Rolling View area. The state responded to the kill on Thursday, but
only reported 30 dead fish. When I arrived on Friday, dead fish were
on the boat ramp and all along the shore line. I counted 27 dead fish
before I even launched my boat. I started counting every dead fish I
could see. Every cove in Lich Creek had dead fish--all Cat Fish. The
smell of dead rotting fish was everywhere. I called Wade Rawlins with
the News and Observer and kept him updated on the totals. I contacted
a fish pathologist with NCSU to let them how extensive the kill was
and to discuss possible causes. It was determined a bacterial or viral
infection likely caused the kill, since only one species of fish died.

I also took out camera crews for WRAL to cover the event. While out on
the lake, we met the NC Wild Life Resource Commission who was in the
process of counting dead fish. My total was 634 dead fish, their total
was only 350. I was surprised they did not venture into any of the
coves where the wind had blown a majority of the dead fish. They
explained the fish kill was nothing out of the ordinary. Spawning
likely created sores that allowed the fish to become susceptible to a
bacterial infection. As a result, they did not collect any fish to be
sampled by their labs. My question to them was what caused the
bacterial infection that led to such a big fish kill? I also
questioned why none of the state agencies seemed interested in
collecting fish samples for testing? Any connections to increasing
pollution problems in Falls Lake were officially dismissed. However, a
fish pathologist I spoke with questioned if such a large fish kill
could have resulted from spawning activity. Environmental factors
could have played a role in creating additional stress while the fish
were spawning or contributed to a serious bacterial infection that
caused thousands of fish to die. Perhaps both. According to Amy Poole
of Rolling View Marina, she had never seen any thing like it in the 24
years she has owned and operated the marina out on Falls Lake. This
was an unusual event.

Falls Lake was recently listed on the states 303d list for impaired
waters as a result of degraded water quality in the lake. After
prolonged drought, we believe the recent flushing of accumulated
fertilizers and pet wastes from lawns, sediment from construction
sites, sewage overflows and failing sewage plants (like Butner's) may
have played a part in this fish kill. For years, the state has down
played massive fish kills in the lower Neuse and frequently dismissed
nutrient pollution as a contributing factor. We knew better and so did
the scientist we have trusted and worked with for years (who are now
winning awards for their research). The state did revise their
official fish kill total to 1400, but I wanted you to know that one
thing I am absolutely certain of is that thousands of fish died on
Falls Lake last week. Below are links to the video I shot while out on
the lake and to the News and Observer article and the WRAL piece.

Dean Naujoks
Upper Neuse Riverkeeper
Neuse River Foundation

http://data.imrivers.com/bulk_site1/view.php?blogid=neuseriver&oid=50989...

Articles on website: http://neuseriver.org/fallslake.html

"It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit." - Harry Truman