Waterways
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Southern Blend
John Rittmann
Summer is fast approaching. I have my first sunburn, and oh boy is it a doozy.
We aren’t talking a little bit of sun on the cheeks and shoulder tops. We are talking front, back, up, down, completed with a nice little heat rash on my neck. Suffice to say, I’m a little bit miserable.
However, it was well worth the suffering. I recently spent time at a medium-size creek just wandering about in the water and watching the people as they came and went.
There’s something about a creek or a riverbed that is truly special. The water is shallow enough to be submerged just up to your knees, and you can see all the beautiful rocks and minnows and tadpoles just flitting about around your ankles.
The thing that really makes this experience stand out, I think, is being absolutely enveloped in trees while you’re there. It gives a feeling of being home that is hard to replicate at the beach or in a lake. It’s as if Mama Nature has spread her arms, and you are spending time nestled in for some comfort.
Alabama’s waterways are truly special. We have an amount of biodiversity that is not just worth protecting, but is absolutely worth bragging about. It may not be as flashy as a big city or a casino, but I can assure you that it’s much better, at least from my point of view.
This biodiversity is a tremendous part of the experience of loving our home. It seems every creek you go to there are different flowers, different little mud creatures, different trees to tower over you. Every spot is absolutely magical and unique.
I’d like to share some information about our waterways, which you will find below. Also, as summer begins, take some time to get river mud between your toes.
About our 132,000+ miles of rivers and streams in Alabama:
- Alabama has more than 132,000 miles of river and stream channels.
- Alabama has 3,627,600 acres of wetland and 563,000 acres of ponds, lakes and reservoirs.
- 33.5 trillion gallons of water are withdrawn annually from streams, rivers and reservoirs to supply drinking water to 56% of the population in Alabama.
- There are 16 hydroelectric power dams and 16 navigational dams (five of which are also hydroelectric) in Alabama.
- The Southeastern United States has the world’s greatest diversity of temperate freshwater fishes. Alabama has 303 freshwater species of fish, 20 of which are endemic to Alabama.
- Alabama’s rivers are among the most biologically diverse waterways in the world: 38% of North America’s fish species, 43% of its freshwater gill-breathing snails, 51% of its freshwater turtle species, and 60% of its freshwater mussel species are native to Alabama’s rivers.
- There are more species of fish in the Cahaba River alone than in the entire state of California!
- Consider the economic value of clean waters. The Alabama Fisheries Association estimates that Alabama’s water based recreation industry brings over $1 billion per year into the state’s economy.
