Local waterways

flow on to impaired list
By Scott Nicholson
nicholson@wataugademocrat.com

The latest state list of impaired waters features two Watauga County creeks and the South Fork of the New River.

Beaverdam Creek and Cove Creek, in the Watauga River basin, appear on the list, based on biological criteria that measure aquatic habitat. Wendy Patoprsty, local N.C. Cooperative Extension Service agent working with river health, said usually development and the resulting sediment runoff were the primary culprits. She said Beaverdam Creek could also be experiencing the effects of agricultural runoff, but increased development in all areas had stressed many waterways.

“A lot of times this is just sediment coming in with development happening,” she said. “With a lot of runoff, there’s a loss in river habitat and the biological life and integrity.”

The South Fork of the New River, exposed to brisk development in the Boone area, has long been a fixture on the list. Four sections of the river are listed as impaired based on inventories of aquatic life, and sediment is clearly visible coating rocks in the riverbed.

The report is compiled every two years by the N.C. Division of Water Quality in compliance with the requirements of the federal Clean Water Act.

Waters making the list have a water quality standard violation, based on where a total maximum daily load, or TMDL, is developed. During the development of a TMDL, engineers make evaluations on possible sources of the pollutant.

The DWQ report looked at the 41,213 fresh and saltwater stream miles and 2,371,984 acres of estuarine waters and freshwater impoundments across the state.

Though only a third of the rivers and 8 percent of the total water acres have been assessed, the assessments are generally skewed towards those where the potential for impact may pose the greatest risk.

That includes areas of industrial or municipal discharges, recreational areas, shellfish harvesting or sensitive fish nursery areas.

Approximately 10 percent of the state’s freshwater streams, 20 percent of the saltwater streams, 36 percent of the freshwater acres and 38 percent of the saltwater acres were found to be impaired. All of the state’s 322 coastal miles are considered impaired because of fish consumption advisories for mercury in large King Mackerel and other coastal fish.

The N.C. Division of Water Quality is collecting public comments on the 2008 List of Impaired Waters. The report is available for public review on the DWQ Web site.
.
Those who wish to submit comments may send them to: Jennifer Everett, N.C. Division of Water Quality, Planning Section, 1617 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1617, or by sending an e-mail to : jennifer.everett@ncmail.net. Comments should be submitted no later than Feb. 15.