The freshwater reservoir effect is real, is documented in multiple river systems around the world, and represents a genuine challenge to the chronological accuracy of dates derived from the bones of people who ate substantial quantities of freshwater fish.

The Buhl case has become a reference point in discussions of this problem — a concrete example of why stable isotope analysis and radiocarbon dating must be considered together when dating ancient human remains from aquatic-resource-rich environments.

Researchers working with comparable material — other early western North American burials from river environments, other individuals whose isotope signatures suggest heavy fish consumption — now know to ask the freshwater reservoir question explicitly and to take steps, where possible, to estimate and correct for the reservoir offset.

The Buhl case helped crystallize that awareness in the field.