Why saving rivers is harder than saving forests
Plus, tiny tech that tracks rare birds, and bears get buzzed by drones.
We’ve made it to the last week of January and through the first month of FUZZ. On Wednesday, I’ll spotlight some options for this month’s donation toward conservation and invite you to weigh in on where we should support — generally, I’ll try to find reputable organizations that work on solutions to some of the problems discussed in the newsletter each month. So stay tuned!
Why are rivers so hard to save? (and what's working)
Despite decades of conservation efforts and billions spent on cleanup, the world's rivers — and the species they harbor — are still in trouble. That's the conclusion from a massive new study published in Nature Reviews Biodiversity that examined over 7,000 river conservation projects worldwide.
The global set of researchers found that many well-intentioned efforts to protect and restore rivers have fallen short. While conservation generally improves conditions in forests and oceans, rivers pose unique challenges – they're literally downstream from every environmental problem.
Think of it this way: When rain falls on polluted urban areas or agricultural fields using pesticides, that water eventually flows into streams and rivers. A restored forest can begin recovery once logging stops, but rivers continue receiving whatever flows their way from upstream.
The stakes couldn't be higher. River dolphins, crocodiles, giant salamanders, and massive sturgeons – some of the planet's most strange and interesting creatures – are disappearing at alarming rates. The study cites research showing that 62% of freshwater turtles and 43% of freshwater mammals are now threatened with extinction. Between 1970 and 2012, populations of large river animals declined by a staggering 88%.
But it's not all bad news. The study identified several success stories, particularly when communities take a "whole watershed" approach rather than trying to fix individual spots or tourism priorities. Some of the most effective examples:
Wastewater treatment plants have dramatically improved river health in Europe and North America when combined with broader pollution controls
Protected areas work well when they cover entire river systems rather than just scenic segments
Removing dams and other barriers helps fish populations recover, especially when paired with habitat improvements. (Impacts on non-fish species, however, are usually poorly understood.)
Community-based conservation, like in Thailand's Salween catchment, successfully balances environmental protection with local needs
The research points to three main reasons why river conservation often falls short:
Most projects only address one problem when rivers face multiple threats
Restoration efforts are usually too small and localized
There's rarely enough long-term monitoring to know what's working
The takeaway? Think bigger about river conservation. Instead of just cleaning up one stretch of river or removing a single dam, successful protection requires coordinating across entire watersheds and addressing multiple problems at once. Rivers don’t respect human boundaries.
I saw this firsthand in Bhutan last November, where a few people I talked to voiced growing concern about China's plans for dam construction upstream. Many of Bhutan's rivers originate in Tibet, and neither Bhutan nor India downstream has much say in what happens to these waterways before they cross their borders. It's a stark example of how river conservation can't succeed without international cooperation – no matter how much work one country does to protect its waters, decisions made hundreds of miles upstream can undermine everything.
Quick links!
China launched a new international communications center focused on sharing rare footage and research from its tiger and leopard conservation efforts. The Northeast China Tiger and Leopard National Park, established in 2021, has become a remarkable conservation success story – from just 12-16 Siberian tigers in China in 1998 to around 70 today, along with about 80 Amur leopards. The park's monitoring system includes 28,000 infrared cameras and AI analytics to track individual animals.
Scientists successfully tracked one of the world's rarest birds using a solar-powered transmitter smaller than a paperclip. The device, weighing just 1.2 grams and costing $5,000, was attached to a spoon-billed sandpiper (one of only 490 left in the world) dubbed "K9." The tiny traveler revealed previously unknown nesting sites during its 5,000-mile migration from Thailand to Russia. Just eight years ago, these distinctive birds were expected to go extinct by 2026. While they're still declining, conservation efforts have slowed the losses. Scientists are keeping the new nesting location secret to protect it from egg collectors.
And finally, good news from Montana's prairies, where wildlife managers have discovered drones can be an unexpected ally in fending off pesky bears. As bears expand back into their historic Great Plains range (a conservation success with some thorny edges), officials found that drones equipped with thermal cameras are more effective than traditional methods like guard dogs at keeping bears away from homes and livestock. The program has been so successful that older bears now require less "hazing," suggesting they're learning to avoid human areas entirely.