User:Bendgardiner/Evaluate an Article

Evaluate an article
This is where you will complete your article evaluation. Please use the template below to evaluate your selected article.


 * Name of article: Still River (Housatonic River tributary)
 * I chose this article because of its closeness to home. I felt that learning more about an area nearby will help me appreciate things in my own backyard.

Lead
The Lead of the article is very short. It only includes the distance of the river and location. It does not help setup the article at all.

Content
The article does well at introducing the river and the setting. It briefly mentions the history of the river. It also skips over the exotox subject; going straight to recovery. It references mercury levels, but does not regard other toxins and anthropogenic effects. In the cleanup section, the article mentions multiple organizations that should be cited in the article. It does not reference any communities within the area of Danbury or Brookfield.

Tone and Balance
The article has a neutral tone. It does not reference any opinions or viewpoints.

Sources and References
The article contains 6 references, but only are referenced in the article 4 times. There are multiple citation holes. Two of the sources are from the same researcher (Varekamp), which makes up ⅓ of the sources from the same author. The “See also” category has three links. One going to a european travel website, the other not existing and the last going to the Connecticut land conservancy website. The first two need to be updated.

Organization
The current sections of the article make sense and have flow. But the article lack important ideas and updates. It references the mercury in the river, but skips over the ecotoxicological impact of the toxin. It also references clean up efforts, but these were last updated in 2008. I couldn't find any grammar errors.

Images and Media
The article includes one image. The image is of a larger part of the river, and a train bridge going across. This is promlematic because the river looks much different than this in most other locations.

Checking the talk page
The only conversation on the talk page is from the “Internet Archive Bot” where it added a link for the map and coordinates. http://viewer.nationalmap.gov/viewer/. I also added a note that the citations need to be adjusted. The article is within three Wiki Projects: Connecticut, New York (State), and Rivers.

Overall impressions
The article has good generic values. It describes the location and type of the river well, but lacks specific information regarding the actual health of the river. The article can be improved by considering its health and how it impacts the multiple communities around it. I would say the article is underdeveloped.

Optional activity

 * Choose at least 1 question relevant to the article you're evaluating and leave your evaluation on the article's Talk page. Be sure to sign your feedback

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 * Link to feedback: Talk:Still River (Housatonic River tributary)