The Cahaba River has been designated by The Nature Conservancy as one of only eight Hotspots of Biodiversity in the United States , because of its rich diversity of river life. There are eleven federally listed endangered or threatened species in this river. Development projects will require a high level of scrutiny to ensure that endangered species are not adversely impacted. This means it does not meet minimum water quality standards of the Clean Water Act. Sediment is one of the most significant pollution threats facing the Cahaba River.
Excessive pollution can also impact public health.
Currently, local governments have no plan in place for locating and managing development to protect our vulnerable drinking water. These road projects and the development they would allow would cause degradation of the region's primary drinking water source. This is a priority environmental protection issue to the undersigned organizations and, we believe, to the region s citizens. The entire land area that drains to the Cahaba River north of Highway 280 is important to our drinking water. Most people think that Lake Purdy provides our drinking water.