White Oak River Basin
By: Eli, Doug and Austin
Location, Location, Location!
Located along the central coast of North Carolina. The mouth of the river is connected to the Atlantic Ocean, the headwaters are located in Hoffman NC which is west of Fayetteville. It goes through Jacksonville, Wilmington, Sturgeon, Camp Lejeune and Harkers Island.
There are 194,802 people living there right now. There are 320 miles of rivers and streams connected to the basin.
Non Point and Point Source Pollution.
It has been having persistent algae blooms so water treatments have been watching and limiting the amount of waste going into the river. It's been coming from the shellfish beds from around the river. It's been putting harmful chemicals into the river. We think that they should make ponds at the actual farm and put walls around it. Make sure the walls are watertight.
The point source pollution has been coming from 63 waste lagoons. We have been cleaning the water and watching what goes into it. There have been restrictions on waste plants that don't allow waste to be dumped into the river. We think that they should have a fine for if they dump any into the river. The fine, we think, should be at least $500 to start with and then slowly rise by $5.
Land, Aquatic and Plants
Sundew
A carnivorous plant found around the river.
Alligators
Many are found in this area.
Green Backed Heron
This is the main bird found around the area.
Butterwort
This is another carnivorous plant in the area.
Manatee
This is a very rare animal found in the river basin.
Shrimp
Found in and around the river. There are shellfish farms around the river and this is what's been causing the pollution.
Map of the River
The White Oak River Basin is found in the central coast of North Carolina. It passes through Richlands, Jacksonville, Mayville, Swansboro, Ceader Point, Peletier and other towns.