Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board New proposed action with respect to water quality

http://www.modbee.com/2010/05/08/1158938/fouled-waters-sierra-lakes-streams.html

Quite an amazing article, with Derlet coming off as a protector of water, and the USDA FS person coming off as a protector of the status quo (imagine that)

"Anne Yost, regional rangeland program manager for the Forest Service, said her agency is doing a good job managing cattle in the Sierra"

Thanks, Ken. Looks like Robert Derlet has a long fight ahead of him, even though he has the peer-reviewed, scientific facts. I do like his findings in the High Sierras, where cattle, horses and the like are not grazing, that the water in those areas are pristine and essentially pure. His findings, in my opinion, corroborate the many discussions on this board, especially those posted by Bob R, regarding the purity of Mt. Whitney's waters. (Bob R has always advocated drinking smart.)

Sorry...I'm relatively new here...and I can't tell from the context; what's "drinking smart" mean exactly?

"But now, with 40 million people in California, the Sierra is not for cattle. It's for water. We need water more than Big Macs."

I'll drink to that one. In fact, less beef and more chicken. Maybe a Chicken Ranch in every town. There's an idea I can get behind for sure.

I wouldn't want to speak for Bob, but it's not a bad phrase. To me, it would just mean don't be paranoid when hiking in the Sierra.

In the National Parks, the water is likely good if you're semi-careful. Look at the map of the streams you cross -- if there's no trail or obvious camp sites above you, the water is very likely good. The closer you are to dense use -- and especially stock use -- the more quality degrades. Except in a very few cases, I have never treated any of the water I drink in Sequoia Kings. On the USFS areas -- and especially where there's cattle -- I might be more cautious. 3% to 6% of horses/mules carry giardia -- and that's thousands of cysts per poop. I would definitely treat or avoid in all cattle areas.

I think basically it's knowing the ultimate source of the water you drink and knowing who else might be upstream of you.

George