cover image River in Ruin: The Story of the Carmel River

River in Ruin: The Story of the Carmel River

Ray A. March. Univ. of Nebraska, $24.95 (208p) ISBN 978-0-8032-3834-3

March (Alabama Bound) tackles the tumultuous history of Monterey, Calif.’s Carmel River, which has been declared endangered by the advocacy group American Rivers. It was not until the environmentalism of the 1970s that people realized the river was suffering from erosion, silt deposits, and the dumping of industrial waste. In 1999, a 40-day forest fire in Los Padres National Forest further damaged the river with lye and silt. In the epilogue, March provides a cautiously optimistic look at the river’s future. (Apr.)