The Arrowhead Club boat ramp shows the beauty of the Chowan River today. 



cause unmanageable growth of algae and 

 other aquatic plants that rob the water of 

 oxygen. The lack of oxygen may lead to 

 fish kills, and fish disease often increases 

 as a result of environmental stress. 



Though runoff contributes more than 

 70 percent of the nutrients polluting the 

 water in both the Neuse and Chowan river 

 basins, the rivers' watersheds are very 

 different in terms of land use and develop- 

 ment. The Neuse River basin contains one 

 of the state's largest metropolitan areas and 

 experiences high population growth. By 

 contrast, the Chowan River basin contains 

 small towns like Murfreesboro, Ahoskie 

 and Rich Square. Overall growth declined 

 by 1 percent in the North Carolina portion 

 of the river basin between 1970 and 1990. 



A Dying River 



The problem with nutrients in the 

 Chowan surfaced in the early 1970s. The 

 most severe blooms of blue-green algae 

 were reported in the lower portions of the 

 river in 1972 and 1978, when warm, dry 

 summers followed high spring flows. Fish 

 kills and a high incidence of red sore 

 disease in fish also indicated water quality 

 problems in the river. 



The 1972 bloom concentrated near 

 Colerain and lasted from June to August. 

 Conditions were so severe that one news- 

 paper described the bloom as "gangrenous 

 velvet blanketing the river." By October, 

 the Winston-Salem Journal declared the 

 river dead. 



Fishers and riverside residents were 



especially outraged at the situation. Shore- 

 line residents complained that the rotting 

 algae smelled bad and that their bathing 

 suits were stained green. Volunteer groups 

 formed to raise awareness of the problem 

 and to search for solutions. 



By the late 1970s, the massive 

 growths had expanded to cover more than 

 a 20-mile stretch of the river, from Holiday 

 Island to below Edenton. Town officials 

 complained in 1978 that the water turned 

 green in July and remained that way until 

 December, putting a damper on tourism. 

 During several summer kills, it seemed 

 possible to walk across the dead bass and 

 catfish on the surface of the river. 



Fishers feared for their livelihood, 



C o n t i n u e d 



COASTWATCH 19 



