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Contour farming helps to keep agricultural waste-water
and runoff from entering nearby rivers and lakes.
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Water -
the River of Life
Of all the resources that seem important to us on this
planet—food, building materials, books, aluminum, gold,
oil—none of them compare to water. Without water, life
in all its forms would cease to exist.
In modern times, with the explosion of industrial development,
clean water has become more scarce for people living in
populated areas. Although the surface of the earth is covered
mostly with water, 97 percent of that water is salty, two
percent is locked up in the polar ice caps and glaciers,
and only a tiny fraction is available for drinking. Thanks
in part to the water cycle, fresh water does abound on the
surface of our land, ever flowing through the creeks, rivers
and lakes of our world. What is most important is that we
take care of our water and keep it clean.
Where's
Your Watershed
Whether you live on a bayou in Louisiana or just downstream of the headwaters
of one of Northwest's glacier-fed rivers or in the desert
along the Rio Grande, you depend on water; and so does a
great host of life that lives with you in your watershed.
Do you know where the boundaries
of your watershed are? Find a map of your area and trace
the edges of your watershed. Draw a line between your river
and the rivers on all sides. This is, generally, your watershed.
Do you know who shares the water in your watershed?
If your water comes from a great river, a nearby lake,
a small tributary or a well, everything upstream from you
may affect your water. Find out who lives upstream from
you. And help those downstream by keeping the water that
passes you clean.
Benthic
Macroinvertebrates
In recent years, scientists have made a remarkable discovery
about how to check water quality, and it doesn't have anything
to do with reading specialized meters, testing water chemistry
or sending samples off to the lab. In many cases, all scientists
need to do is to find out who lives in the water, especially
the smaller animals—the benthic macroinvertebrates.
Macroinvertebrate is a term used to describe invertebrates
large enough to be seen without a microscope, which includes
most aquatic insects, mollusks, arthropods and worms. Researchers
count these organisms and compare their numbers with the
proportions that scientists have determined should
be found there. If the right proportion of species live
in the water, things are looking good for that body of water.
Certain macroinvertebrates have high tolerance to pollution.
If these species are found in a river in high proportions,
it may be that the river is polluted. When scientists check
the health of rivers and lakes, they also look for species
that are extremely sensitive to changes in water quality.
If these species are found in high proportions, it may be
good news for all those who live in that watershed.
Kneel down on the bank of your nearby stream and get a
closer look. You may be surprised who lives near you.
It
was kind of solemn, drifting down the big, still river, laying
on our backs, looking up at the stars, and we didn't even
feel like talking aloud.
What's important to federal land managers? Classroom materials are now available on invasive species, fire, watershed protection, and forest resource management. 
