WEBVTT

00:08.579 --> 00:10.630
Along the Cape Fear River , water

00:10.630 --> 00:12.630
doesn't just flow downstream , it

00:12.630 --> 00:15.670
connects an entire ecosystem . We are

00:15.670 --> 00:19.069
looking at ways we can use our releases

00:19.069 --> 00:22.829
from Jordan Dam to provide sufficient

00:22.829 --> 00:25.790
flows downstream at our locks and dams

00:25.790 --> 00:29.030
to allow fish passage over the locks

00:29.030 --> 00:31.252
and dams . But for fish trying to reach

00:31.252 --> 00:33.590
their spawning grounds , those systems

00:33.590 --> 00:36.130
can become barriers . The Cape Fear

00:36.130 --> 00:38.074
River is one of the most important

00:38.139 --> 00:40.417
rivers for fish that live in the ocean ,

00:40.900 --> 00:43.067
so trying to improve the conditions of

00:43.067 --> 00:44.956
this river is going to impact the

00:44.956 --> 00:47.011
populations of those fish , not only

00:47.011 --> 00:49.233
locally in the river but throughout the

00:49.233 --> 00:51.344
entire ocean . We're seeing about 80%

00:51.344 --> 00:53.567
reduction of fish population downstream

00:53.567 --> 00:55.733
of the Cape Fear River , a lot of that

00:55.733 --> 00:57.844
due to their inability to go to their

00:57.844 --> 00:59.289
native spawning grounds .

01:01.209 --> 01:02.029
Female .

01:05.329 --> 01:07.385
To better understand those impacts ,

01:07.638 --> 01:09.860
teams are working on the water to track

01:09.860 --> 01:10.916
how fish respond .

01:13.709 --> 01:15.431
We've had a few years of these

01:15.431 --> 01:17.431
environmental flows that we've been

01:17.431 --> 01:19.542
able to do both for fish spawning and

01:19.542 --> 01:19.379
then I know we've also talked about

01:19.379 --> 01:21.490
algal blooms and breaking those up as

01:21.490 --> 01:23.435
well so I think so far we've had a

01:23.435 --> 01:27.430
positive impact . They don't have

01:27.430 --> 01:29.597
to be large releases . They don't have

01:29.597 --> 01:31.763
to be a huge effort on our end to have

01:31.763 --> 01:33.874
a reasonable impact downstream . That

01:33.874 --> 01:36.150
data helps guide decisions , balancing

01:36.150 --> 01:38.790
water needs for people , ecosystems ,

01:38.870 --> 01:41.037
and the future of the river . The Army

01:41.037 --> 01:43.290
Corps is the largest manager of water

01:43.290 --> 01:45.234
in our country , and So the Nature

01:45.234 --> 01:47.012
Conservancy is also the largest

01:47.012 --> 01:48.957
nonprofit working on environmental

01:48.957 --> 01:51.068
issues , so we paired together to try

01:51.068 --> 01:53.290
and use our talents to make the systems

01:53.290 --> 01:55.512
better . When we put ourselves together

01:55.512 --> 01:57.734
and work together , it is shocking what

01:57.734 --> 01:59.790
can be accomplished . So anything we

01:59.790 --> 01:59.724
can do to improve the water quality is

01:59.724 --> 02:01.891
gonna help both people and the animals

02:01.891 --> 02:03.280
that live in the water .

02:07.239 --> 02:07.389
Y .