Ancient Agua

According to a U.S. Geological Survey report, some of the water underneath Maryland is more than a million years old.  This is the first such ancient groundwater discovered along the Atlantic coast.

Apparently, water flowed from the land surface into the deep Upper Patapsco aquifer during cooler periods in our earth's history, when glaciers covered much of the northeastern U.S. and sea level was about 125 meters lower than it is today. Today, however, even this deep aquifer, which provides freshwater for the region east of Washington and Baltimore, may not meet future needs.

Worldwide, there aren't many aquifers containing million-year-old groundwater.   The Alberta Basin in Canada, the Nubian aquifer in the Sahara Desert, and the Great Artesian Basin in Australia are other examples.

A Fish With Choppers

In Lake Lou Yeager near Litchfield, Illinois, fish with teeth are being found. A fisherman caught one back on June 7th and now there are claims another was hooked ten days ago.  Apparently, these fish have been identified as Pacu, which live in the Amazon basin. Biologists claim that they are not dangerous because they mostly eat nuts, snails, and vegetation. They claim that they only eat other fish if these other food choices are not available. Further, they say that the Pacu cannot survive Illinois winters.  They are concerned, however, about the Pacu contaminating other species in the lake.

This Blind Bambi wouldn't be to thrilled about swimming with fish that could take a bite out of me.  I hope they find the person responsible for dumping them in the lake.

How Clean is the Water at Your Beach?

The National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) publishes water safety ratings for a number of popular U.S. beaches.  Their system  awards up to five stars for exceptionally low violation rates and strong testing and safety practices.  A dozen beaches got this top rating last year:

     Alabama: Gulf Shores Public Beach
     Alabama: Gulf State Park Pavilion
     California: Bolsa Chica Beach
     California: Huntington State Beach, Brookhurst Street
     California: Newport Beach, 38th Street, 52nd/53rd Street
     Delaware: Dewey Beach
     Maryland: Ocean City at Beach 6
     Minnesota: Park Point Franklin Park / 13th Street South Beach
     Minnesota: Park Point Lafayette Community Club Beach
     New Hampshire: Hampton Beach State Park
     New Hampshire: Wallis Sands Beach at Wallis Road
     Texas: South Padre Island (Town of South Padre Island)

Conversely, some of the worst recent offenders (lowest rated) include portions of:

     California: Avalon and Doheny State Beach
     Illinois: Winnetka Elder Park Beach, North Point Marina and North Beach
     Louisiana: Constance, Gulf Breeze, Little Florida, Long and Rutherford
     New Jersey: Beachwood Beach West
     New York: Woodlawn and Ontario
     Ohio: Euclid State Park and Villa Angela State Park
     Wisconsin: South Shore Beach