Participation Type
Paper
Presentation #1 Title
Bleeding Water: Adverse effects on Appalachian Waterways and the Native Brook Trout due to Pollutants.
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
Before industrialization found its way into the Appalachian region, natural mountain streams and rivers were used as a natural resource for fresh water and fresh fish. Unfortunately, industrialization soon introduced pollutants into the waters and killing large numbers of fish and causing the water to become non-potable. Strip mining, deforestation, and a combination of factories and plants that dumped chemical waste were all factors to these pollutants. Since then, the native Brook Trout population has been devastated and this species only inhabits about 25 percent of the water it has in the past. Along with non-profit groups, state and federal agencies have begun the process of rehabilitating the waterways and reintroducing the native fish and controlling the population of non-native species of trout. In a presentation at the 2016 ASA Conference in Shepherdstown, I propose to explore the history of Appalachian waterways utilized as a natural resource, explain how aspects of industrialization has polluted these waterways, and provide options to help conservation groups promote the rehabilitation of the native Brook Trout back into the rivers. This analysis will explain how helping the conservation groups will benefit the heritage of Appalachia.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Nathaniel Skaggs is a student of East Tennessee State University pursuing a Master of Arts in Appalachian Studies. He received a Bachelor of Arts in English from Austin Peay State University and has been published in the Red Mud Review.
Bleeding Water: Adverse effects on Appalachian Waterways and the Native Brook Trout due to Pollutants.
Before industrialization found its way into the Appalachian region, natural mountain streams and rivers were used as a natural resource for fresh water and fresh fish. Unfortunately, industrialization soon introduced pollutants into the waters and killing large numbers of fish and causing the water to become non-potable. Strip mining, deforestation, and a combination of factories and plants that dumped chemical waste were all factors to these pollutants. Since then, the native Brook Trout population has been devastated and this species only inhabits about 25 percent of the water it has in the past. Along with non-profit groups, state and federal agencies have begun the process of rehabilitating the waterways and reintroducing the native fish and controlling the population of non-native species of trout. In a presentation at the 2016 ASA Conference in Shepherdstown, I propose to explore the history of Appalachian waterways utilized as a natural resource, explain how aspects of industrialization has polluted these waterways, and provide options to help conservation groups promote the rehabilitation of the native Brook Trout back into the rivers. This analysis will explain how helping the conservation groups will benefit the heritage of Appalachia.
