Va. DEQ says more streams polluted

By Brian McNeill
Media General News Service

Published: August 11, 2008

Virginia’s 51,000 miles of rivers and streams may be growing dirtier, according to a Department of Environmental Quality report due out this fall.

More than 10,600 miles of the state’s rivers and streams were listed as “impaired” between Jan. 1, 2001, and Dec. 31, 2006, according to the report, marking an 18 percent rise over the report issued two years earlier.

In that document, 9,002 miles of rivers and streams were listed as impaired, meaning that the waterway failed to meet Virginia’s clean water standards.

Only 2,016 miles of rivers and streams were deemed impaired in the report issued 12 years ago.

The report is published every two years and is the state’s most comprehensive look at the health of Virginia’s waterways. While the latest report shows an alarming trend toward impairment, part of the increase may be attributed to more widespread monitoring.

Many of the state’s rivers and streams were listed as unhealthy because of elevated levels of E. coli bacteria. The report lists agricultural practices as the chief culprit, though it also mentions urban runoff, leaking sewers, failing septic tanks, domestic animals and wildlife as contributing factors.

In the Charlottesville area, portions of the Rivanna River, Moores Creek and many other waterways are listed as impaired, according to the DEQ.

The report is not all bad news, however. It found that many fewer square acres of Virginia’s lakes were impaired and slightly fewer miles of Virginia’s estuaries were impaired.

James E. Beckley, water quality data liaison with the DEQ, gave an overview of the forthcoming report Saturday morning at a summit for the state’s volunteer water quality monitors.

Around 75 volunteers, state officials and students attended the conference, which was hosted by Virginia Citizens for Water Quality and held at the University of Virginia.

Volunteer water monitors take samples from their local waterways, testing for temperature; pH; nutrients such as phosphorous, ammonia and nitrogen; bacteria such as E. coli; the presence of invertebrates such as crayfish, dragonfly nymphs and mayfly larvae; and much more.

Local governments, research scientists and the DEQ are among those who tap the volunteers’ water quality data. In the DEQ’s 2008 water report, roughly 12 percent of the 6,000 monitoring stations included data submitted by volunteers.

The state government only monitors around a third of Virginia’s waterways. The volunteers, Beckley said, help keep an eye on the state’s rivers, lakes and streams.

“We welcome their data,“ he said. “It helps expand our monitoring network.“

In addition to hearing the DEQ’s report card on the quality of Virginia’s water, the summit attendees also learned how to measure E. coli levels in their local waters and how to participate in the regulatory process of cleaning up impaired waterways. They also heard an update from Virginia Tech scientist Don Orth on the state’s chronic problem of fish kills in the Shenandoah River, the James River and elsewhere.

While the cause of the fish kills remains uncertain, Orth said, it appears that poultry production may be a key contributor. Pollutants such as arsenic and ammonia seem to be entering the waterways, he said, and may be suppressing the fishes’ immune system, making them more susceptible to lethal ailments.

Several volunteer water quality monitors lamented the lack of sufficient state funding for their efforts. During fiscal 2008, the state government eliminated $108,000 worth of grants to volunteer water quality monitoring groups. The cut came just a few weeks before the grants were to be awarded. In fiscal 2009, the funding has been restored - for now, at least.

Bruce Lundeen, executive director of the Harrisonburg-based Shenandoah Valley Pure Water Forum, is trying to organize a statewide public service announcement campaign to boost the General Assembly’s support of volunteer water monitoring efforts. Most lawmakers, he said, “don’t have a clue” about the issue.

“We all deserve more than a year of skipped funding,“ Lundeen said. “We need to impress on our legislators that we have a ... value that we can contribute.“