Biological Survey — Genesee River 41 



tively large streams and endanger all fresh water life therein. 

 Inasmuch as this seepage lasts for only a comparatively short 

 period of time, probably not over two or three weeks, and does 

 not accumulate in very large amounts, it should never be per- 

 mitted to enter streams of any kind. Provision should be made 

 by the vineries whereby this seepage is spread thinly over gravelly 

 soil or where it can be dumped on land far enough removed from 

 streams to prevent its seeping into fresh waters. Silver lake inlet 

 is one of the streams into which the seepage from a pea vinery 

 stack was allowed to enter. The absence of any fresh water 

 organisms and the presence of foul water plants and animals 

 served to indicate the detrimental effect which this material pro- 

 duced within the stream. Furthermore, it should be noted that 

 this waste entered Silver lake from which the villages of Perry 

 and Mt. Morris obtain their water supply. 



Tn most canneries attempts are made to separate all solids, 

 ])ermitting only the liquid wastes to enter the streams. There 

 remains, however, sufficient organic material in the wash water 

 to pollute the streams to a considerable extent. The pea cannery 

 at Hemlock pollutes Hemlock lake outlet to the point of killing- 

 all fresh water food organisms and endangering fish life. This 

 stream is not a trout stream, nevertheless conditions within the 

 stream showed how detrimental cannery wastes are when they 

 enter fish streams. The case at Honeoye Falls where another 

 cannery is located, polluted Honeoye creek so badly last summer 

 tliat hundreds of bass were killed at the height of the canning- 

 season. This factory empties its waste into a filtering plant, but 

 during the flush season this plant was unable either to retain 

 the wastes for a long enough period of time or else the waste 

 was being discharged into Honeoye creek untreated. At any rate, 

 the stream was being polluted to the extent of killing many fish. 



The index organisms found in cannery wastes are very similar 

 to those found in milk wastes. From 18 to 15 miles of streams 

 were found to be polluted by cannery and vinery wastes in the 

 Genesee river valle3^ 



Oil Pollution. — Wastes from oil wells constitute a common 

 source of i)ollution in Allegany county around Wellsville. 



The oil forms a film on the surface of the water and also settles 

 down to the bottom of the stream where it forms an oil film 

 around the stones and other objects. The oil thus kills most fresh 

 water food organisms and although some forms of fish were found 

 to be present in such situations it was at once a]:)i)arent that they 

 could not thrive where the natural food had been killed by the oil. 

 Most of the stones were found to be thickly coated with a brown 

 ]dant growth. Samples of this growth showed this to be an almost 

 ])ure growth of diatoms of which the species MeJo^ira varians was 

 particularly abundant. -5* 



Approximately 25 miles of stream were found polluted" by oil 

 by oil and the greater proportion of this water would, if clean, 

 l)e ideal trout water. 



