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Where Rivers Are Born:
The Sierra Club's Small Streams and Wetlands Report Report, 2007
Where Rivers Are Born:
The Scientific Imperative for Defending Small Streams and Wetlands
 Download the four-page version (PDF, 795kb)
Download the full report (PDF, 2.5mb, 28 pages)
 Our nation's network of rivers, lakes and streams originates from a myriad of small streams and wetlands. The topographic maps most commonly used to trace stream networks do not show most of the nation's small, or headwater, streams and wetlands but, based upon local and regional studies, scientists know that headwater streams make up at least 80 percent of the nation's stream network. At least one out of five wetlands does not have a visible connection to a waterway, and, in some areas, more than half of the wetlands fall into that category. Despite the abundance of such wetlands, the United States has no national inventory of their numbers or locations.
Historically, federal agencies' regulations have interpreted the protections of the Clean Water Act to broadly cover the waters of the United States, including many small streams and wetlands. However since 2001, court rulings have called into question the extent to which small streams and wetlands should remain under the protection of the Clean Water Act. Most recently, the Supreme Court issued a confusing and fractured opinion that leaves small streams and wetlands vulnerable to pollution and destruction.
Intact small streams and wetlands provide us with benefits far greater than their small size would suggest. These benefits are provided by small or seasonal as well as perennial streams and wetlands, that is, those with visible surface water at all times. Seasonal streams and wetlands are usually linked to the larger network through groundwater even when they have no visible overland connections.
Small streams and wetlands provide the following benefits:
- Protect Water Quality
- Maintain Water Supplies
- Provide Natural Flood Control
- Trap Excess Sediment
- Sustain Natural Systems Downstream
- Maintain Biological Diversity
The natural processes that occur in small streams and wetlands provide Americans with a host of benefits. Scientific research shows that healthy headwater systems are critical to the healthy functioning of larger streams, rivers, lakes and estuaries downstream. The goal of protecting water quality, plant and animal habitat, navigable waterways, and other downstream resources is not achievable without careful protection of headwater stream systems.
Download the four-page version (PDF, 795kb)
Download the full report (PDF, 2.5mb, 28 pages)
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