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Keeping
the Reflection Clear: Threats to the New |
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This is the kind of reaction you’re likely to get when you bring up
the subject of environmental quality and the New River. It’s not broken,
so does it really need fixing? A look at the current data from the Department of Environmental Quality
and the Environmental Protection Agency supports this view. According to
the EPA web site, the Upper New River has a rating of 1, the highest
rating on a scale of 1-6, indicating "Better Quality" and
"Low Vulnerability" to "stressors such as pollutant
loadings." While the overall impairment of Virginia’s waterways has
risen 240% since 1996 to a figure between 40 and 50%, only 79.14 miles of
the New River Basin, which includes all the streams and tributaries that
empty into the New River, are considered impaired. And half these
impairments are concentrated on four creeks, Chestnut, Back, Peak, and
Crab. Less than three miles of the New River itself show up as impaired on
DEQ environmental reports. But experts from just about any group concerned with the health of the
New River will tell you that this good news is no reason for complacency.
Real threats to the water quality of the New River exist, and their
sources are not always the more obvious ones that we associate with water
pollution. The river may not be in need of a major fix right now, but a
strong regimen of preventive maintenance is required to keep it that way. The most prevalent type of contamination threatening the New River
today is nonpoint source pollution. In contrast to point source pollution
where a single, Waterways struggling against nonpoint source pollution show up on DEQ reports as contaminated with fecal coliform (a result of animal waste) or as benthic, which means that the population levels of their bottom dwelling macroinvertebrates are being effected by an unspecified source. This type of pollution is hard to correct, in large part because its sources are so difficult to track. According to the DEQ, agricultural run-off is the main source of impairment for six of the eleven impaired sites in the New River watershed.
In addition to the known impairments to the New River Basin, many experts believe that the current monitoring and reporting of water quality data on the New River does not provide a true picture. They say more monitoring is needed. Among these people are EPA environmental scientist Mark Barath and Vic Marcussen, an environmental manager for the Virginia Department of Health. Marcussen told the Roanoke Times, "I could take you to a place on Claytor Lake and take two samples in a 24-hour period. One would be drinking-water quality, one would be pure sewer." The Clean Water Act contains two provisions that, if used aggressively, can effectively prevent the water quality of the New River from deteriorating. The Maximum Daily Load provision generates pollution emission limits for both point and nonpoint source pollution. The Tier III system allows waterways with excellent water quality to earn Tier III designation, which prohibits any new uses that will permanently lower their water quality. A number of organizations throughout the New River Basin are dedicated to the conservation of the New River. In addition to government organizations such as the Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Environmental Quality, and Department of Conservation and Recreation, groups such as New River Community Partners, Friends of the Rivers of Virginia, The National Committee for the New River, and the Friends of Claytor Lake participate in various initiatives to preserve the integrity of the watershed (see links). But with so many people monitoring the river’s health and planning conservation projects, communication between groups has been a problem. Two initiatives, one close to being completed and one in the planning stages, may remedy this problem. The first, called "Gateway," has the goal of creating a single web site that can link the public to a broad range of organizations and web sites about the New River. Through this web site organizations will have access to the activities of other organizations and share important information. This site, expected to go up by the end of 2001, would link to the DEQ and EPA web sites in order to make their reports more accessible.
The second initiative is the creation of the New River Watershed Conservation Roundtable, composed of all organizations who identify themselves as stakeholders in the protection of the New River. According to Charlotte Burnett of the Department of Conservation and Recreation, the first job of the NRWCR would be to develop a long term strategic plan for the New River that focuses specifically on protecting water quality. Groups from West Virginia and North Carolina have been invited to participate in the hopes that all three states can have plans that share common goals and formats. Increased monitoring, better communication, and more efficient use of the provisions of the Clean Water Act have the potential to ensure that the New River continues to receive a clean bill of health. Many of these activities, however, depend on continued state financing in a time when the budgets of environmental protection agencies are being cut. New initiatives such as the Gateway web site and the Conservation Roundtable already rely solely on volunteer hours for their very existence. Continuing these projects will require extensive citizen support and an ongoing commitment from the state. One only has to glance over the State of Our Rivers Report,
published by the Friends of Virginia Rivers, to be impressed by the
contrast between the New River and seriously impaired rivers such as the
Staunton and Roanoke. Unlike some 40% of Virginia’s waterways, the New
River is not in need of a drastic fix. If we truly understand what a
blessing this is to our quality of life and that of our children, we’ll
support the efforts that are necessary to keep it that way. For more information contact: Department of Environmental Quality Environmental Protection Agency National Heritage Rivers Environmental Protection Agency "The New River." The Roanoke Times The National Committee for the New River Virginia Department of Recreation and Concervation Patrick N. Woodie PO Box 1897 45 North Main Street Sparta, NC 28675 336-372-8118 pwoodie@skybest.com www.nrcp.org Friends of the Rivers of Virginia Charlotte Burnett
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