[acn-l] Colorado "Fish Story"

Christopher Scharpf (ichthos at charm.net)
Tue, 12 Dec 2000 11:35:50 -0400

The Dec. 3-5 issues of the Rocky Mountain News featured a lengthy story on the
the four endangered fishes of the Colorado River -- Colorado pikeminnow,
humpback chub, bonytail chub, and razorback sucker.

You can read the series in its entirety -- including many photos, maps, charts,
and video links -- at:

http://rockymountainnews.com/fishstory

The series describes, among other things:

* the political clashes of water rights advocates vs. environmentalists, and the
uneasy spirit of cooperation and compromise that exists between them

* the unique Colorado River ecosystem, both before and after alteration by man

* how dams harm native fishes

* the formation and unintended consequences of the Endangered Species Act

* the intentional poisoning of the Green River in 1962 to rid the river of
"trash fish"

* the costs of endangered species recovery ($100 million so far on the Colorado,
expected to reach $238 million by 2010)

* are the fish rebounding, or is it too late?

Well-written. Balanced. Thought-provoking. A must-read for any native fish
enthusiast who cares deeply about the moral and political implications of
endangered fish conservation.

Christopher Scharpf
Baltimore

"The secret of life is to have a task....And the most important thing is -- it
must be something you cannot possibly do!"
Henry Moore, sculptor
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