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By RUSTY DENNEN
Water flowing down the Rappahannock and Potomac rivers often looks pristine and clear.
But appearances can be deceiving, according to a new state "dirty waters" report that found hundreds of miles of area streams and rivers impaired by pollution.
The draft report, released yesterday by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, found that 8,984 miles of rivers and streams in Virginia are unable to support any or all of six categories of use--aquatic life, fishing, shell fishing, swimming, public-water supplies and wildlife. That's up 29.6 percent from 6,931 miles in 2004.
In addition, about 109,200 acres of lakes and reservoirs, and 170 square miles of estuaries are impaired. The report, updated every other year, covers nearly 90 percent of state waters.
"We are developing a very clear picture of the type and location of our water-quality problems," DEQ Director David K. Paylor said yesterday.
Paylor said more impaired areas are listed this year because new waters are being added and some water-quality standards have been tightened.
DEQ officials also stressed yesterday at a news conference that there are no imminent threats to human health and that recreation in impaired waters generally is not harmful as long as people are aware of fish-consumption advisories and are careful about swallowing water.
There are 50,357 miles of rivers and streams, 116,058 acres of lakes and 2,248 square miles of estuaries in Virginia.
When waters are found to be impaired, the federal Clean Water Act requires the state to study the waterway, find the source of the pollution and draw up a plan to clean it up. Many area waterways are in the study phase, part of a state and federal effort to significantly reduce pollution flowing into the Chesapeake Bay .
"The take-home message for us is that the numbers don't lie," said Ann Jennings, Virginia executive director of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. "This document provides proof of the sad reality that Virginia is facing a water-pollution crisis."
Mike Gerel, the foundation's Virginia staff scientist, said the report confirmed that low dissolved oxygen was significant for the lower York and James rivers. That has contributed to vast "dead zones" in the bay where marine life cannot survive.
He said the pollution problems go far upstream.
"The point there for me was that it was not only in the bay, but the smaller streams as well," Gerel said.
The results for the Rappahannock and Potomac show the presence of chemical and bacterial pollution from the Chesapeake Bay to freshwater reaches many miles upstream.
More than 200 miles of the Rappahannock and its tributaries, such as the Rapidan River, were impaired in at least one or more category. On the Potomac-Shenandoah river basin, nearly 1,300 miles of the rivers and tributaries were impaired.
Among the problems: E-coli bacteria, indicating the presence of human and animal waste; low dissolved oxygen, which can kill plants and fish; high acidity; naturally occurring pollutants such as chloride; and the presence of persistent toxins such as PCBs, which have triggered fish-consumption advisories in portions of both rivers, and portions of Lake Anna.
Polychlorinated biphenyls, banned in the 1970s, were used in insulating oils for electrical equipment. The compounds have been linked to cancer and neurological problems.
Hundreds of impaired river sections are listed for both the Potomac and Rappahannock.
On the Rappahannock, for example, E-coli bacteria were found in water samples on a 4.5-mile section of the Rapidan above Cedar Run.
A 3.3-mile section of the Hazel River in Culpeper County between Indian Run and Muddy Run had the same designation.
A section of river from U.S. 1 to Massaponax has a fish-consumption advisory in effect because of PCBs.
On the Potomac, E-coli bacteria were found in water samples along nearly a mile of water from Austin Creek to Aquia Creek.
Down river, along a small section of Machodoc Creek in King George County, low levels of dissolved oxygen were detected.
The report is not all bad. Approximately 5,300 miles of rivers and streams, 3,300 acres of lakes and reservoirs and 170 square miles of estuaries have high water quality that supports some or all categories of uses.
And the Bay Foundation's Jennings noted that the state is doing more testing and committing more money and resources toward water-quality issues.
The Virginia General Assembly, for example, committed $280 million towards cleanup in its last session.
The DEQ report will be discussed at public meetings around the state over the next two weeks. One is July 19 from 10:30 a.m. to noon at DEQ's Northern Virginia Regional Office at 13901 Crown Court in Woodbridge.
ON THE NET: For the full report, visit deq.virginia.gov/wqa.
To reach RUSTY DENNEN:
Email: rdennen@freelancestar.com
