The Neuse River Basin

Name:______Date:______Core:____

Physical Characteristics

• The Neuse River Basin stretches ______miles from ______to the ______.

• The Neuse River is the ______in NC and the widest in America (__ miles at the mouth).

• The Neuse River is ____ million years old.

• The Neuse River has been affected by floods, ______, ______and a toxic aquatic organism.

• Major tributaries include ______, ______, and ______creeks as well as the ______, ______and ______rivers.

• The Neuse River turns ______at New Bern and becomes a ____ mile long tidal estuary that empties into the ______.

• The Neuse River Basin is the ______largest basin in NC.

Living Organisms

• The Neuse River feeds one of the nation’s ______and most ______estuaries (the Albemarle-Pamlico Sound).

• The Albemarle-Pamlico estuary system is a ______for ______% of the commercial ______species caught in NC.

• The Neuse River is a ______are for shad, herring, striped bass, etc… • Important recreational and commercial species of the Neuse River include ______, bass, ______, blue crabs, ______and oysters.

• The Neuse River is home to many species of freshwater ______and 2 rare ______species.

• The dwarf ______and the Tar River ______also live in the Neuse River and are considered endangered.

• The Eno River contains the only known NC population of the rare panhandle ______. • Another significant animal resident is the Neuse River ______(an aquatic sala- mander that is found nowhere else in the world outside of the Neuse & Tar-Pamlico river basins.)

• Other rare organisms include the Roanoke ______, the Carolina ______, the shortnose ______, the leatherback ______, Kemp’s Ridley ______, the West Indian ______and the redcockaded ______.

Water Quality

• A big threat to the water quality in the lower Neuse River are large quantities of ______, especially ______primarily from “______” sources.

• ______and ______-washed from lawns, urban developed areas, farm fields and hog farms contribute ____ % of the nitrogen and phosphorus overload.

• Water quality is also being affected by “______” pollution from more than ______sites that are allowed to dump treated wastewater into streams and rivers.

• In 1997, there was a statewide moratorium on the creation of new ______farms so re- searchers could investigate their effect on water quality and examine alternative technologies to handle their waste.

• The “Neuse Rules” are among the first in the country regulating ______and ______sources or nutrients.

• The rules require property owners to protect ____-foot strips of land covered with trees, shrubs and other vegetation known as ______-along streams, rivers, lakes and estuaries.

• Deep-rooted plants prevent ______and ______out nutrients in runoff that would otherwise flow into streams.

• Certain industries and municipalities must jointly reduce their ______source wastewater ______into the river.

• ______major cities in the river basin must now limit ______runoff in new developments and are required to reduce ______runoff from ______, ______and other large areas of fertilized land.

• Although ______pollution has been the most publicized issue, ______growth and ______contribute to increased ______runoff throughout the basin. • As ______and lawns replace natural ______and woodlands, rain and melting snow race over land more ______, carrying ______and enter- ing streams at a ______speed.

• The ______(Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill) was home to about ______people in 1970; that population has now surpassed ______.

• By 2020, Wake County is expected to have over ______residents.

*Please write any other facts or notes you feel are important about the Neuse River Basin!!