CAMP VERDE, Ariz. — A delicate and diverse environment in Arizona's High Country is being impacted by the construction of Interstate 17.
A group of scientists and students from Northern Arizona University (NAU) is trekking through the mud to try and protect it and the animals that live there.
"We're trying to protect all our fish," said Professor Erika Novak, NAU Herpetologist and project lead.
Novak and her team are working with construction crews to preserve native and some non-native species of fish, insects and reptiles that live in the Verde River flowing under an I-17 overpass. The species are at-risk after the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) diverted the flow of the river for construction.
The section of the river near Camp Verde was diverted to a human-made channel after ADOT determined the bridge piers of I-17 were deteriorating and needed to be reinforced.
"it's a bit of a fish salvage, and we're catching everything in terms of fish," said Fishery Scientist Kurt Shollenberger. "We also have, you know, toads and lizards anything we can catch. We're moving away from the construction site in order to get them somewhere safely."
The bridgework started in the fall of last year and, once completed sometime this summer, will force the river to be diverted to another part of the riverbed.
The team of scientists are planning on moving with it to continue to keep the ecosystem alive for future generations.
"You never know what you're going to find in the Verde River," Shollenberger said.
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