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Introduction

Approximately 935,000 miles of rivers and streams flow across the South. These waterways are important in defining the landscape and in providing habitat for many of the South’s plants and animals. They also have significant economic values that are of great importance but are often overlooked. Rivers, lakes, estuaries, and wetlands provide flood protection and support industry. Recreation activities such as fishing, boating, and rafting generate jobs, economic benefits, and tax revenue to the region. In addition, much of the South’s drinking water is obtained from surface-water sources.

As the South continues to enjoy strong economic growth, increasing demands and threats are placed upon our river systems. These threats directly affect the natural and historical heritage of our rivers, and, ultimately, public health and quality of life. Threats are varied and include pollution and impacts from many sources, including residential development, construction, municipal and industrial stormwater runoff, agricultural runoff (containing sediments, pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers), deforestation, impoundments, channel alteration, and introduction of exotic species.

In recognition of these threats, there is a growing public awareness of the importance of aquatic resources and the need to manage land to protect, maintain, and restore water quality. All Southern States have adopted a watershed-based approach to controlling water pollution and improving water quality. A watershed is an area of land in which water flows across the land surface and drains into a particular marsh, stream, river, or lake. Watersheds can vary in size from a few acres to thousands of acres (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 2001d). A watershed management approach accounts for a watershed’s unique needs and recognizes that water quality is a function of not just one stream, but rather the entire watershed.

This chapter provides an overview of the history, status, regulatory controls, and likely future of water quality in southern watersheds. The relative impacts of land uses on water quality over time are evaluated, as are the ways in which point and nonpoint sources of pollution have influenced water quality. The original intent of this chapter was to describe water quality only in forested watersheds. However, in order to address the range of topics described previously and to respond to specific public comments about this chapter, all watersheds are included in this evaluation. The result is a more comprehensive overview of water quality in the South. A discussion of the role of forests in protecting water quality in the South is also included in the section “Role of forests in protecting water quality.”