EPA to Study Oklahoma's Rivers, Lakes and Streams

 OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ The condition of Oklahoma's wetlands is being analyzed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Oklahoma Secretary of Energy and Environment as part of a national initiative.  
 The assessment will help the two agencies monitor and analyze wetland conditions in the state. The environment secretary will use a $131,575 grant from the EPA to produce a wetlands status report and implement a wetlands monitoring program.  
 The Clean Water Act recognizes the dangers of upstream pollution. As water flows downstream, it gathers and carries more pollutants with it. Wetlands are instrumental in helping to filter and eliminate this pollution, thereby improving water quality and the health of aquatic ecosystems.  
 So far, field crews have sampled 1,179 sites from Florida to Alaska in the first-ever national survey of the nation's wetlands.