Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-08-18


life and fish throughout the
United States. The depletion
of eanne and fish will be felt for years,
according to the American Game Pro-
tective Association. Ashes and burned
timber falling into lakes, streams and
swamps formed . kind Of I've that
poisons fish.
"rrhe flnny tribes have already been
decimated and destroyed to degree
that ts incalculable," says the United
states Bureau of Fisheries.
"All of the cold-water game hsh.
such as trout, began to show signs OF
the stress weeks ago" Lewis Raocnne,
deputy commissioner OF fisheries SAID
AS the temperature OF their brooks
and streams ran up, there were Wnole-
sale endeavors to rescue these flSh and
nlace them in streams where they might
live"
Black bass, an essentially warm
water fish, and many other species
died in water thought TO be deprived
by the excessive heat Of its normal
content Of oxygen. Motor boats have
been kept going in many places
to keep the water stirred up, tnuS
creating more oxygen for the nsh.
every State and 1t will be some time
before state game commissioners, the
United States Bureau of Biological Sur
yey and the United States Bureau OF
Fisheries can approximate Toll TAKEN
of wild life.
because of these events, 1t Is all the
more imperative for all OF US to oe-
vote every effort to conserve the decl-
mated ranks and schools Of our game
and fish. Alarming as the SITUATION
is. Carlos Avery, president Of the Amer
lean Game Protective Association, said
we can not only conserve what we have
left, but we can restore the losses II
the public will turn to and help their
state game and fish commissions.
n Cd AND STREAM for the last two
X. weeks had speakers for its radio
broadcast over Station WMAL, two
men well qualified to talk on pollution.
The first was Arthur p. Miller, Associate
sanitary engineer, United States Pub
lick Health Service, who told his m
visible audience that the water resources
belong to the public and hence the
general public has a right OF use. How
ever. as is SO often the case, anything
owned in common Is generally abused
by some, he said. In the case OF most
OF our streams, their abuse has brought
about a deplorable condition OF pollu-
ton.
STREAMS. rivers lakes and other bodies
of water all are contaminated TO more
or less degree. Big rivers may receive
large amounts of polluting matter IN
the form of human wastes or as chem
ically complex rejected matter from IN
dustry. Assuming the absence OF any
control or alienation measures what
soever, the amount OF pollution re-
ceived by a stream will be dependent
upon the population contributing 70 IL.
Miller pointed out that every stream
accessible to the people should be con-
sidered as carrying some contamination.
This. he said, Is subStantiated by the
fact that those responsible Tor the
publication of drinking water usually
| insist upon the water being disinfected,
at least, even though the supply may
be one of very good natural quality.
Let us consider the uses 70 whlch
a river may be placed" he said. THE
highest use of q river or other body of
water Is as a source of q public water
supply. No settlement of people can
| long exist without drinking water. AS
| streams are natural drainage channels
| of the land, It follows that the second
highest use from sanitary STANDPOINT
| is for the conveyance or dilution OF
sewerage and for receiving wastes from
1nQuSGy OF lEOuk bAAC NSNSAOPAAASAN
natural resources. Thereafter, accord
| ing to local circumstances, the order OF
use NAV be for navigation, nanufac-
| turing. industry, power, irrigation, agrl-
| culture, fishing or recreation. Inc rrsI
| two uses of a stream, namely, as
source of public water supply ana as
means Of removing wastes, are the ones
which most often are in conflict with
each other. A city which must take its
water supply from a river badly pol
luted by wastes from towns farther up
on the watershed may. In turn, De caus-
ing similar trouble for municipalities
lower than itself on that same shed II
it discharges Its sewage into the river
| without treatment"
Miller said that in some cases the
polluting matter Is increasing so fast
that with our present processes 1t VIII
soon be impossible to purify enough 70
make 1t suitable for drinking purposes
except at q prohibitive cost.
Miller. referred to another aspect OF
particular interest to the angler-the
effect OF pollution on fish life. Chem
ical discharges from industry may bt
toxic to fish and kill them or may ruiz
the food supply OF the fish and force
them to change their habitat. Elk
cessive pollution in g river may so de-
plete the oxygen content as to make
it uninhabitable by fish life, he said.
The other speaker, Carroll Klotzbach
took as hts subject Observations of TIT
Potomac From Pleasure Boat.
Klotzbach lives on his boat the yea
round. He said:
EVERY time 90 for q trip dow