A man in Greene County, New York, was required to pay a $27,000 fine for illegally excavating multiple protected streams in the Catskills and selling the material to a local homeowner, as reported by Times Union.

The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) explained that Clyde Edwards, owner of C.J. Edwards Trucking and Excavation, violated state laws designed to protect public bodies of water and freshwater wetlands. The fine was imposed after investigators interviewed local residents and received video footage of Edwards selling the sediment he dug up from the streams. They also found the sediment in question at the homeowner's residence.

Protecting natural streams is important in order to maintain the balance of the ecosystems of which they are a part. Streams feed into larger bodies of water, supporting biodiversity. The streams and the surrounding areas provide habitats for a range of species, and by illegally excavating them, Edwards disrupted these habitats.

Some of those habitats include spawning grounds for fish. When habitats are destroyed, it can affect fish populations, which, in turn, affects humans who rely on the fish for food, their livelihoods, or recreation.

Streams also help protect surrounding areas from extreme weather events that are increasing in frequency and severity due to the human-caused warming of the planet.

Protecting streams, rivers, waterways, and the resources they provide helps create a more sustainable future.

Creating laws and regulations and educating the public are important, but strict enforcement is also vital to keeping the lands protected. When others who may potentially choose to violate the regulations see that a stiff fine has been imposed as a method of enforcement, it will hopefully discourage them from making a similar choice.

The article clarified that in New York, "State regulations bar residents from disturbing streams, excavating public waterways, and dredging within a 100-foot buffer zone of a freshwater wetland. There are also regulations for what materials can be used for fill and home landscaping projects."