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Read the full report Download the Virginia Water Quality Assesment, draft 2008 (PDF), to learn more about the state's streams and rivers. Water-quality findings 191 watersheds (15 percent of the total) have no impaired areas identified. This means they can support some or all of these uses: aquatic life, fish and shellfish consumption, swimming, public water supplies and wildlife. 514 (41 percent) have one or two impaired areas 340 (27 percent) have three to five impaired areas 133 (11 percent) have six to nine impaired areas 69 (6 percent) have 10 or more impaired areas About 5,600 miles of rivers and streams, 18,200 acres of lakes and reservoirs, and 120 square miles of estuaries have high water quality. This means they can support some or all of these uses: aquatic life, fish and shellfish consumption, swimming, public water supplies and wildlife. About 10,600 miles of rivers and streams, 94,000 acres of lakes and reservoirs, and 2,200 square miles of estuaries are impaired. Impaired waters The list of 69 severely impaired waters includes the James, Appomattox, Pamunkey and Chickahominy rivers. SOURCE: Virginia Department of Environmental Quality 2008 Water Quality Assessment Learn more A public briefing on the report will be held June 24 at 7 p.m. and will be shown via teleconference at the DEQ's regional offices. A draft of the report and maps is available for download at www.deq.virginia.gov/wqa. Public comment will be received until July 25. |
Virginia has added about 1,100 miles of streams and rivers to its list of impaired waters, bringing the state total to 10,600 miles.
In addition, 94,000 acres of lakes and reservoirs and 2,200 square miles of estuaries are impaired, according to a report issued yesterday by the Department of Environmental Quality.
The report reflects six years of study, from 2001 through 2006, and comes out every two years. Water-quality standards show whether a body of water can support several specific uses, such as for swimming or for aquatic life. If it doesn't, it is considered impaired.
"We're finding more pollution and reporting more streams as being impaired because we're looking more and more closely throughout the state," said DEQ director David K. Paylor.
The affected waters are not just inland; the Chesapeake Bay is among the state's dirtiest bodies of water.
But there is some good news. Progress is being made in the cleanup process: Four beaches on the impaired list two years ago were taken off. Only one -- Fairview Beach, on the Potomac River in King George County -- remains.
About 5,600 miles of rivers and streams, 18,200 acres of lakes and reservoirs, and 120 square miles of estuaries have been determined to have high water quality.
The report says:
The water-quality report is the most comprehensive look to date at watersheds in Virginia. "We now have detailed information on waters in almost 1,200 watersheds throughout the commonwealth. That's almost 95 percent of the total, more coverage than we've ever had before," said Paylor.
"Each time we issue this report, by and large, when we add waters to the impaired water list, it's because we've looked in new places and not because water quality is deteriorating in those streams.
"At the same time, we are seeing more improvements in water quality as our cleanup plans get under way," Paylor said. The state will be required to develop cleanup plans for the affected areas.
The process includes identifying which pollutants need to be reduced from which sources, said Glover. This could include promoting better agricultural practices in farming communities or stormwater management in urban areas.
Those improvements aren't coming fast enough for some. "The crux is that again we're seeing increased impairments in waters across the state," said Joe Tannery, Virginia deputy director of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.
"These are not just numbers. They are real. . . . Look at the Virginia crabbing industry. Try telling a fisherman who has lost his job that this is no big deal. We should be making gains."
Yesterday's report indicated that an EPA deadline for Chesapeake Bay cleanup by 2010 will not be attainable.
"There is way too much planning and not enough implementation," said Tannery.
Every two years, the state monitors about a third of watersheds on a rotating basis, taking six years to complete a full monitoring cycle.
The 2008 water-quality report contains a water-quality assessment from January 2001 to December 2006 and the state list of impaired waters. It takes more than a year to sift through the information and produce the report, which runs more than 3,300 pages.
The report also incorporates input from residents who monitored water quality on about 3,000 stream miles.
Contact Lisa Crutchfield at (804) 649-6362 or lcrutchfield@timesdispatch.com.
