Replenishing The Tennessee River

Virginia Tech once again set an example for the rest of the country to follow. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently announced that they would be giving grants to many states for the preservation of endangered fish and wildlife. The grants are intended to provide annual funding to all fish and wildlife agencies that have established conservation plans. While making the announcement, Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne pointed out the work being done by Virginia Tech and other groups to conserve mussels in the upper Tennessee River Basin. Part of Virginia’s plan states that Virginia Tech, the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, The Nature Conservancy, and the Upper Tennessee River Roundtable partnership will work with private landowners to restore freshwater mussels in the Tennessee River. There are few species of wildlife anywhere in North America that are more endangered than freshwater mussels, and without the aid of grants and several institutions, they could become extinct with other species following in their wake.

4/12/09