DEQs refusal to even evaluate this evidence to make an impairment determination is unacceptableas is EPAs failure to step in and perform its oversight duties as the Clean Water Act requires it to do., Phillip Ellis, Earthjustice, (202) 745-5221, Mark Frondorf, Shenandoah Riverkeeper, (571) 969-0746, Phillip Musegaas, Potomac Riverkeeper Network, (914) 806-0916, Hershel Finch, Warren County, VA Chapter of Izaak Walton League of America, (540) 270-1590, Stephan J. Kimm, Potomac River Smallmouth Club, (703) 928-5473, Potomac Riverkeeper Some fish in the two rivers currently have mercury levels more than eight times the level at which the state issues health advisories. The state should take action to implement the cleanup plans it creates, so that TMDLs are more meaningful. Virginias monitoring of water quality is inadequate. Learn about the threat of rising salt levels in the Potomac and its tributaries, and alternatives to traditional salt to keep both our roads and freshwater safe. visit EIPs web page on water quality in the Valley. Women who are pregnant or may become pregnant, nursing mothers, and young children should not eat fish from these waters. Cattle stand on the banks of the North Fork of the Shenandoah River in Rockingham County, VA, where a harmful algal bloom recently closed more than 52.5 miles of the waterway to recreational uses. He said theres always room for improvement in the states nutrient management program, but Virginia has seen an overall improvement in bacterial contamination in the Shenandoah River basin. Small changes can make a big difference. For years, Shenandoah Riverkeeper has been pressing Virginias Department of Environmental Quality to designate the river as impaired because of the algae blooms. Fish consumption advisories have been in place on the South River and South Fork Shenandoah River since the mid-1970s. Determine the natural range of variability in water chemistry (including bacterial composition). Some of problems are old and ongoing, but others are new. All Rights Reserved. Mark Frondorf, the Shenandoah Riverkeeper, said: Virginia should not implement a two-tiered system that protects saltwater beach goers at the expense of folks living, working and recreating in the Shenandoah watershed. When they find that a facility is violating its pollution permit, they consider factors, such as the impact of the violations on public health, and the size and scope of the violations, before taking action. Shenandoah National Park is located in Virginia's Blueridge Mountains. Paved, drained, dammed and polluted to the point where it is barely recognizable as a stream, the Santa Ana River has long been more a source of ridicule than recreation, more of a waste pit than . Site Designed by DC Web Designers, a Washington DC web design company, Advocates Guide For Challenging LNG Projects, Water Quality in the Shenandoah Valley: Virginias Cleanup Plans Fail to Solve Bacteria Problem, Environmental Integrity Project's Twitter. A recent report found that 90 percent of the water quality monitoring stations along the Shenandoah River and its tributaries detected fecal bacteria (E. coli) at levels unsafe for human contact between 2014-2016. The Environmental Integrity Project analyzed hundreds of state records for the report released Wednesday. The warning signs could include a website or hotline that people could use to get the most recent bacteria monitoring information. By contrast, she said, EPA provides grants for state water quality testing along ocean beaches and in saltwater areas, like Virginia Beach, and to the state provides regular testing and raises swimming advisory signs in these saltwater areas. Virginia eliminated its state freshwater beach action value in October 2019 and changed its impairment value. A recent report found that 90 percent of the water quality monitoring stations along the Shenandoah River and its tributaries detected fecal bacteria (E. coli) at levels unsafe for human contact between 2014-2016. And each other? Mercury is a neurotoxin and it is not to be trifled with. In a victory for clean water, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced its intent to publish updated water pollution control standards for slaughterhouses and animal rendering facilities by August 2025, following a lawsuit filed by community and conservation organizations late last year. PRKNs EIN # is 54-1982624. Cleaning up our local streams and creeks isn't just good for public health. Virginia is required by the Act to consider all information about stream impairments when updating its list. Due to the interest and concerns expressed by public and nonprofit groups for improving the information available on inland beach water quality, VDH has made several attempts to secure funding as recently as 2018, for the 2019-2020 state fiscal budget year. Shenandoah River The famed Shenandoah River is the major waterway and drainage system of the Shenandoah Valley. The Southern Environmental Law Center will be assisting in the case. 3070 M St, NW "The Shenandoah is one of the most beautiful rivers in the countryand a popular recreation destination. Schaeffer was formerly the director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencys office of civil enforcement. Agricultural runoff, including manure from the Valley's many livestock operations and industrial scale poultry operations, is a source of contamination for 71 percent of the polluted river and stream miles in the Shenandoah Valley, according to state figures. RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Excessive livestock manure from millions of turkeys, chickens and cows in Virginia is making its way into the Shenandoah River, polluting the scenic waterway with unsafe levels of E. coli, according to a new report from an environmental advocacy group. Mark Frondorf, Shenandoah Riverkeeper, said: Virginia has failed to implement plans already on the books that would actually result in improved water quality in the Shenandoah Valley. 3070 M St, NW According to water quality monitoring data from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, 72 percent (or 18 of 25) of monitoring sites along the Shenandoah Valley and its tributaries had levels of E. coli bacteria last year above EPAs recommendations for swimming. All across our region animals once in decline are making a comeback. Thanks for signing up. Riverkeeper is a registered trademark and service mark of Potomac Riverkeeper Network, Inc. and is licensed for use herein. Over 20 years ago, DuPont and its consultants convinced government regulators that the mercury contamination would disappear on its own. But 47 percent of the waterways impaired by bacteria in the Shenandoah Valley lack either cleanup or implementation plans. An outdated sewer system is to blame. The Sierra Club, founded over a century ago, is a national non-profit organization of over 700,000 members dedicated to exploring, enjoying, and protecting the wild places of the earth; to practicing and promoting the responsible use of the earth's ecosystems and resources; to educating and enlisting humanity to protect and restore the quality of the natural and human environment; and to using all lawful means to carry out these objectives. Xranks ! This is a transmission line to get fracked gas out of Pennsylvania and West Virginia and ship it down to North Carolina and Portsmouth, Virginia. People might be upset by warning signs, but the signs would increase public pressure on state lawmakers to invest the funds and effort needed to reduce pollution for example, by requiring farmers to fence their herds of cattle out of the Shenandoah River, said Schaeffer, former Director of Civil Enforcement at EPA. This landscape and the park's many different . The regions leading clean water advocate, fighting to ensure the Potomac River boasts clean drinking water, healthy lands, and connected communities. But the public has the right to know when that water isnt safe to enjoy, said Eric Schaeffer, executive director of the Environmental Integrity Project. You can reach him at jcox@bayjournal.com. While we acknowledge DuPonts commitment to the community, and agreeing to stabilize the riverbank by employing a impermeable barrier and covering that with additional clay, soil and native plants, it has been 66 years thats right 66 years since the active leaking stopped. The Potomac Riverkeeper Network is a Proposed standards are due before the end of 2023. The organizations that filed the lawsuit want the state to list the river as impaired, which would require Virginia to impose pollution limits and work to improve the water quality. (Alan Lehman/Shenandoah Riverkeeper). Shenandoah National Park consists of nearly 200,000 acres of protected land in Northern Virginia and boasts over 500 miles of hiking trails, the 105 mile Skyline Drive with beautiful views, and thousands of living creatures, including the endangered Shenandoah Salamander that is only found in the park. In addition, they work with university law clinics, nonprofit legal groups and corporate law firms that provide pro bono legal services and conduct compliance reviews of pollution permits. Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Our Mission Our mission is to protect the public's right to clean water in the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers and their tributaries. As a result of high air pollution levels, atmospheric deposition is the greatest threat to protected mountain streams. Other states, including Maryland and Pennsylvania, still use this freshwater beach action value.. Using state records, it was found that more than 90 percent of the water quality monitoring stations where the state regularly samples the Shenandoah River found fecal bacteria (also known as E. coli) at levels unsafe for human contact. Many of these chemicals that are not regulated or tested for are endocrine distruptors, a type of chemical pollution believed to be the cause of fish kills and intersex fish in the Potomac and the Shenandoah Rivers. The pollution at Shenandoah National Park, which extends 80 miles along the crest of the Blue Ridge in northern Virginia, not only obscures the striking panoramas once visible from cliff-hugging . Washington, D.C. A new report finds that Virginias efforts to restore the health of the scenic Shenandoah River are failing because of toothless and absent cleanup plans, a lack of regulations on the livestock industry, and inadequate monitoring. Shenandoah Riverkeeper is working with the Allegheny Blue-Ridge Alliance and others to fight the construction of this pipeline. * Incorrect, fraudulent or misleading content RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Excessive livestock manure from millions of turkeys, chickens and cows in Virginia is making its way into the Shenandoah River, polluting the scenic waterway with unsafe levels of E. coli, according to a new report from an environmental advocacy group. Using salt can keep our roads safe, but it has dangerous consequences for the Potomac River. The company, Electron Hydro LLC, also will pay $1 million that mostly . Water sampling data from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, for sites that were sampled at least twice in the last six years. Working with, , Potomac Riverkeeper Network developed a mobile app, which is a Bay-wide initiative, to gather critical data on the waterways you love! Listing a waterway as impaired triggers a regulatory process leading to the imposition of limits on the amount of the pollution causing the impairment into the waterway. As a last resort, we will take a polluter to court to stop the pollution. The Shenandoah is such a beautiful and historic place and such a treasured spot for fishing, tubing, and recreation Virginia really needs to get more serious about protecting it, said Eric Schaeffer, Executive Director of the Environmental Integrity Project and former Director of Civil Enforcement at EPA.. Most of all, Virginia needs to regulate the growing livestock industry to stop the chronic overapplication of fertilizer to farm fields, and mandate livestock fencing along streams.. The Clean Water Act and other environmental laws allow residents to improve their local rivers and streams through citizen suits. On behalf of Potomac Riverkeeper Network members and the residents throughout the watershed, Shenandoah Riverkeeper and its attorneys routinely monitor known polluters. In a story April 26 about a report on pollution in the Shenandoah River, The Associated Press reported erroneously that the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation has 3,500 farmer members. As the former president of the Potomac River Smallmouth Club, he successfullylobbied both Virginia and Maryland officials to implement and expand catch and release regulations and he was instrumental in getting the federal government to revise the Code ofFederal Regulations to permit wade fishing on portions of the Potomac. Unfortunately, much of it is making its way into our rivers, causing serious threats to wildlife and public health, a new study found. 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