State by State
Arkansas: Hugh Durham is named Game and Fish director
Hugh Durham, a biologist who recently worked as a regional public affairs manager for New York-based International Paper, is now director of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.Arkansas' main wildlife agency oversees protection of wildlife through habitat management, hunting and fishing regulations, and other programs.
Durham, who was named director in May, is a native of Natchitoches, La. He has a bachelor's degree in forestry and wildlife from Louisiana Tech University. He has served as a forest and wildlife management consultant to private landowners; worked as a timberlands biologist with International Paper in Arkadelphia, Ark.; and worked as an environment and wildlife section leader for IP.
Louisiana: Illegal sales of crappie prompt federal charges
A Jonesville, La., man was charged in federal court with illegal sales of more than 1,700 pounds of white crappie, a protected game fish.Mike S. Wiley, 31, pleaded innocent in August before U.S. Magistrate James C. Sumner in Jackson, Miss. He faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
The charge against Wiley grew out of "Operation Coldstorage," an undercover investigation of illegal sales of game species in Mississippi and Louisiana.
Wiley allegedly caught 1,751 pounds of crappie with commercial-style nets in undisclosed Louisiana waterways. He allegedly offered the fish for sale to undercover agents in Mississippi between July 1999 and November 1999.
A dozen other defendants charged after the Operation Coldstorage investigation pleaded guilty to selling or buying meat of white-tailed deer in Mississippi and Louisiana.
Kentucky: River guide for teachers is available on Internet
The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources has produced a teacher’s guide for large river ecosystems.
The Big River Ecosystem Teacher’s Guide was prepared by the department’s aquatic education division and is available on the Internet. It focuses on the Mississippi River watershed and was produced to "stress the positive aspects of what we recognize as national biological treasures."
One section of the guide focuses on ancient fishes and their status. Another section discusses human interactions with large rivers and the economic importance of such waterways.
The guide can be downloaded from the aquatic education section of the department’s Web site. Go the department’s home page at www.kdfwr.state.ky.us.
Mississippi: Agencies set to issue fish advisories for DDT
State environmental and health agencies plan to issue fish-consumption advisories for DDT-contaminated waterways in the Delta by the end of the year.Tissue analyses of a variety of species and sizes of fish began in late summer because of continual attention to DDT contamination in the Big Sunflower River, a major Delta stream. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is planning to dredge and clear more than 130 miles of waterways in the Big Sunflower basin, but health officials, conservation groups and other federal agencies worry the project will stir up more DDT from the river bottoms.
The question now: Are Delta streams already contaminated enough to warrant issuing public health advisories?
In recent years, tests have shown that fish from Delta streams have some of the highest DDT levels in the nation. Health experts have estimated that adults in the Delta eat 26 pounds of fish caught non-commercially each year, while adults in non-Delta areas of Mississippi eat 7.4 pounds each year.
After setting criteria, the Department of Environmental Quality and the Department of Health expect to jointly issue consumption advisories for certain fish.
Missouri: ‘Big Muddy’ journal will be published soon
A new publication on the Mississippi River will debut this winter."Big Muddy: A Journal of the Mississippi River Valley," will be a semi-annual, interdisciplinary publication that explores history, biology, political science, economics and other topics in the 10-state river region. It will be published by Southeast Missouri State University. "Big Muddy" will also include reviews of books written by residents of the region.
Subscriptions will be $20 annually. Editors are encouraging submissions of manuscripts on environmental sciences, biology and ecology.
Send manuscripts to Dr. Susan Swartwout, Big Muddy: A Journal of the Mississippi River Valley, MS 2650, Southeast Missouri State University, Cape Girardeau, MO 63701.
Tennessee: River is focus of display at center in Memphis
The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and the Lower Mississippi Conservation Committee have erected an informational display on the Mississippi River and its valley.The exhibit at the Memphis Visitor Center at Mud Island depicts the historic condition of the valley, how levee-building and other activities have changed the landscape, and opportunities for environmental restoration. It also depicts the richness of fish, birds and other wildlife of the valley.
Visitors can learn how restoration projects can benefit game fish and rare species such as pallid sturgeon; how ducks, shorebirds and songbirds can have more habitat; how some forests can be re-grown; and how trails and other facilities are being expanded.