The National Rivers Website, Rivers of West Virginia:

The following news is assembled from postings from various sources, as a public service. The sponsors of this website do not assume responsibility for accuracy. Always double-check information before relying on it, especially when your safety is involved!

WE NEED A WEBMASTER TO UPDATE OUR PAGES!

STATEWIDE ISSUES:

New pollution permit program

Drinking water standards sinking

Blackwater Canyon on list of possible parks

Clean Water and Groundwater Safety acts hobbled in legislature

Rock, rivers, paper: Wrangling over quarries

Legislature looks to enforce environmental protection laws

Dredging bill "nothing short of devastating"

Coalition Action Alert!

West Virginia Rivers Coalition gets tough to save rivers

Watchdogs for Pollution Permits

The West Virginia Rivers Coalition (WVRC) has developed a new system whereby grassroots organizations can keep an eye on how pollution permits are issued to businesses and individuals, increasing their ability to act effectively when lobbying for safer environmental practices.

WVRC will evaluate the state Division of Environmental Protection's (DEP) record in issuing and enforcing permits. The coalition will use the subsequent report cards and reviews to conduct workshops for local watershed groups, training individuals to monitor pollution permit applications and renewals. The Permit Analysis Program is funded for two years by the Switzer Environmental Leadership Program Fund of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation. It will be led by Evan Hansen, an environmental researcher and consultant. For more information, email the WVRC or call them at 304-637-7201.

Senate seeks exemptions for rural areas

The West Virginia Rivers Coalition's updates for the week of February 21:

The Dirty Water SWAT team dealt a blow to West Virginia's drinking water standards this week, with the help of one of their more effective pointmen, Sen. Mike Ross. On Wednesday, Ross offered several nasty amendments to the Category A drinking water rule in the Senate Natural Resources Committee, which the committee approved with little hesitation. All West Virginia surface waters are Category A, which is the most protective designation (would you want anything less for your drinking water?). Ross' amendments, handed down by the coal and manufacturing lobbies, lifts Category A protections from private domestic water systems and many other surface water intakes. The designation of WV's surface waters as Category A "drinking water" is an existing use under the provisions of the federal Clean Water Act. The Ross amendment is in clear violation of the federal law.

If the current amendments to SB 273 are put into law, West Virginians who drink surface water, but don't get their water from a municipal provider, do not have the same protections as everybody else. The scary part of this is that no one knows how many households this might be or where they are. Industry figures that as long as we identify folks served by municipal systems, we can forget about the untold numbers of people everywhere else.

Moreover, Sen. Leonard Anderson caved into the coal lobby and offered an amendment to exempt manganese from Category A standards. The amendment passed with little question, and no thought as to how this passes the treatment costs for manganese from the coal industry onto everybody else. If this exemption passes and industry gets its wish, what else might they be given? What other treatments costs might citizens have to bear? For months, the West Virginians for Clean Water Campaign has been working to get a good drinking water rule forwarded to the legislature for this session. But industry's friends in the Senate, with a couple of behind-the-back passes, slam-dunked an industry agenda in the span of ten minutes.

The fortunate news is that we have one final chance to get a good drinking water rule in place. SB 273 was sent on to Judiciary, where the bill (and its atrocious amendments) will likely be given more study. Our senators on this committee need to hear from YOU. Please tell them that the Category A rule should be passed exactly as it was forwarded from the Environmental Quality Board, WITH NO AMENDMENTS. Also, please request a public hearing on SB 273! This rule affects West Virginians statewide, and senators need to hear from us ASAP. These bills move quickly, and the industry lobby even quicker, so please call, e-mail or fax these Senators today: Wooton, Snyder, Ball, Dawson, Dittmar, Fanning, Hunter, Kessler, McCabe, Minard, Mitchell, Oliverio, Redd, Ross, Deem and McKenzie.

In other water news: The best water bill offered yet this session, SB 525, sets up the Protection of Water Act. Sponsored by Sen. John Mitchell, this bill would eliminate the haphazard, reckless permitting of stream work we've seen in West Virginia by the Army Corps of Engineers. The Act would give West Virginians more oversight in what happens in their waterways, and spells out what type of stream work may be done and how, without landowners and local governments getting into trouble because of misleading regulations currently on the books. There is also a provision for emergency work to protect homes and property, so it's really a win/win piece of legislation. Please thank Senator Mitchell for helping us with this bill!

It is critical that we call and write the members of the Senate Natural Resources Committee. To move this bill, they need to hear from as many people as possible as soon as possible. It would be best if they are called on Monday or receive short notes requesting their support by Tuesday. They are: Sens. Dittmar, Mitchell, Anderson, Ball, Bowman, Craigo, Dawson, Love, Minard, Prezioso, Ross, Snyder, Deem and Minear. Also contact your delegates because we will need sponsorship and support in the House this week. Please take the time to express your support for this bill. Its passage will be a giant step in protecting the integrity of our surface and ground waters. And it will put the leash on dredging and wetland destruction!

Bills increasing maximum fines for Clean Water Act violations are still hung up in both the Senate and the House. Please ask our representatives on Senate Natural Resources (listed above) to pass SB 222, and those on House Judiciary (Dels. Staton, Amores, Coleman, Dalton, Ferrell, Givens, Hines, Hunt, Hutchins, Linch, Mahan, Johnson, Rowe, J. Smith, Spencer, Stemple, C.R. White, Wills, Capito, Faircloth, Riggs, Schadler, Smirl, Webb and L.G. White) to pass HB 4167.

For more information, call 304-637-7201.

West Virginian canyon one of six sites being considered

The National Park Service has included Blackwater Canyon on a list of six sites it plans to study for possible inclusion in the national park system, Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., announced Monday, according to a report in the Charleston Gazette. The privately owned Blackwater Canyon tract lies between Blackwater Falls State Park and the Monongahela National Forest, which had been pursuing the possibility of buying it from Allegheny Power. But in 1997, the 3,000-acre tract was sold to Allegheny Wood Products of Petersburg, which has logged about 1,600 acres of it and is conducting a 235-acre helicopter logging operation there.

"The Blackwater Canyon is one of West Virginia's most cherished natural treasures," Byrd said. The property includes Lindy Point, a vista overlooking the rugged, boulder-strewn gorge, that is often used in Division of Tourism promotional brochures. A popular rail trail used annually by thousands of mountain bikers follows one boundary of the tract. The fast-running stream flowing through the gorge is popular with trout anglers and kayakers.

Weak muscle behind the water safety acts

Water quality issues hit the fan at the West Virginia Legislature this week, and we're under the gun to get things moving for the better, says the West Virginia Rivers Coalition.

As in the Senate, the Division of Environmental Protection did a great job putting forth a bill in the House that would increase maximum fines for Clean Water Act violations in West Virginia from $10,000 a day to $25,000 (HB 4167). We were overjoyed to see this legislation come up, then dismayed to see it tabled in House Judiciary when the manufacturing and coal lobbies struck. These fines were last increased in 1974, and desperately need to be updated to be on a par with surrounding states and the federal government (other states have maximum fines set at the $25,000 level, while the feds can levy up to $27,500 a day). Essentially, by not raising the maximum fines, we're encouraging polluters to come straight to West Virginia!

Fortunately, we have folks on this committee with foresight enough to know how important it is to discourage water pollution. Delegates Mahan and Hines are already with us on this one. The others just need you to encourage them to stand up to the industry lobby! Please contact any or all of these delegates on House Judiciary, asking them to take this bill off the table and pass it: Staton (Chair, and sponsor of the bill), Amores, Coleman, Dalton, Ferrell, Givens, Hunt, Hutchins, Linch, Pino, Rowe, J. Smith, Spencer, Stemple, C.R. White, Wills, Capito, Faircloth, Riggs, Schadler, Smirl, Webb and L.G. White. See the end of this message for contact information.

The legislative rule for Category A public drinking water supplies is moving through the Senate's Natural Resources Committee. Remember that Category A as it's written is a wonderfully protective measure for all of West Virginia's drinking water that comes from surface waters. All our surface waters currently have this most protective designation, and our senators should keep it that way. No exemptions, no changes! This could come up at any time with possible alterations! Please get in touch with your senators on the Natural Resources Committee (particularly Dittmar and Mitchell) and ask them to keep Category A as it is.

Finally, there's SB 269, currently in Senate Natural Resources Committee. This bill would provide for certain exemptions of the state's Groundwater Protection Act for Allegheny Power and American Electric Power. These companies stand to save $224 million if they have certain groundwater standards lifted for heavy metals at coal storage piles and fly ash storage sites around West Virginia. Yet, while industry claims there's no chance the public or environment will be affected, there's a possibility that these pollutants could leach into the Ohio, Kanawha, West Fork and Cheat rivers, potentially affecting aquatic life and thousands of people who depend on these waterways for drinking. It's important to note that this would be the first variance ever given under the Groundwater Protection Act - and for two specific corporations!

We're still learning about this bill and the study behind it. Incidentally, the $5 million study was conducted not by the state, but by the Electric Power Research Institute. We'll keep you updated on this issue.

Contact information: To get a free copy of a bill or to leave a message for a legislator, call the West Virginia State Capitol at 877-565-3447, or the local number for the Charleston area is 347-4800. The website for Legislative Services is www.legis.state.wv.us. Email West Virginia's legislators via Legislative Services at cglagola@mail.wvnet.edu -- and be sure to put the senator or delegate's name in the subject line so your message can be delivered.

Rivers Coalition finds fault in quarries

The West Virginia Rivers Coalion recently responded to criticisms from quarry supporters: Opponents to our positions on the quarry bill offered some interesting testimony at the Legislature's public hearings on January 27. Bill Kerns (Quarry Lobbyist) testified that quarries "have a benign effect on water." Is extracting up to 4 million gallons of groundwater a day to mine at a quarry benign? Kerns also told the committee that water can neither be created nor destroyed. Allow us to offer two words, Bill - Love Canal.

We heard industry reps testify that they "favor pre-blast surveys and water monitoring" (not groundwater monitoring). Since all existing permits are essentially grandfathered out of these requirements, those statements are hollow, if not misleading. Without pre-blast surveys, compensation for property or water supply damages are not required.

Dan Miller, WV Mining and Reclamation Association VP, characterized us as wanting to put quarries out of business, calling this "the sequel" to MTR. He indicated that whatever the legislature does, we will criticize it. Whoa, Dan. We're trying to protect the incredible economic development and diversification opportunity in spring water. If anyone can think of something that has more potential for our state than our miracle springs (and very near-term potential at that), let us know. If the legislature truly protects this resource and our citizens, I will personally write letters recognizing its vision and commitment.

On the Senate side, a Subcommittee was appointed to rework the bill. Senators Herb Snyder, Brooks McCabe, Jeffrey Kessler, Andy McKenzie, and Mike Ross comprise the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee. A stakeholder meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, February 1 at 10:00 a.m. in House Judiciary, and Chairman Staton said we would be there until the next day, if needed. As Viv Stockman said, keep on rocking with respectful and on-point calls, letters, and e-mails. Several areas of focus remain, including: groundwater monitoring at all quarries for quantity and quality of water; increasing buffer zones for streams to 300 feet, encouraging greater buffer zones for homes, and addressing dust, noise and safety issues.

WV Rivers Coalition updates on Clean Water, Dam acts, and funding river cleanups

A bill coming out of the Senate (SB 222) looks to increase the maximum fines for violations of the Clean Water Act in West Virginia. Senators Wooton, Mitchell and Chafin are proposing that maximum fines be raised from $10,000 to $25,000 to make state code consistent with federal clean water laws. These are simple alterations that show a step forward in protecting our water resources.

Del. Virginia Mahan (along with Dels. Stemple, Varner, Coleman, Boggs and C. White) is spearheading an effort on the House side to make mandatory the deposit of certain state monies into the state's Stream Restoration Fund. This bill, HB 4136, gives the legislature authority over where these funds are spent. The bill stipulates that money from the Stream Restoration Fund is to be used to restore and enhance streams affected by coal mining or acid mine drainage.

Senator Dittmar introduced a bill that increases civil administrative penalties and establishes judicial enforcement provisions to enforce compliance under the Dam Control Act. The bill (SB 221) deletes existing provisions for dams overseen by the Natural Resource Conservation Service, and exempts dams designed or built by the federal government.

Finally, on Thursday, two public hearings dealing with the infamous quarry bill brought a host of speakers from across the state to testify to both the House and Senate judiciary committees. Fortunately, there were many folks who spoke up for the importance of healthy, abundant water supplies that are being jeopardized by the quarry industry. These testimonies were a refreshing reiteration of the importance of clean water to West Virginians, and were a great counter to industry rhetoric - for instance, one quarry rep claimed that everyone should have a quarry in their backyards to benefit from decreased transportation costs!

Legislation jeopardizes clean water, safe rivers

Nathan Fetty, of the West Virginia Rivers Coalition, sent in this update on SB 122:

Although we thought the "Flood Thy Neighbor" bill had been slain (since it has been defeated session after session), the relentless Senator Ross - along with Senators Ball, Sharpe, Mitchell, Kessler, Fanning and Love - introduced a similar bill yet again. This bill, SB 122, allows for the removal of flood debris (read: dredging) from streams to "prevent flooding of homes and property without incurring criminal or civil liabilities."

What the bill doesn't account for, though, is the increased downstream flooding and stream and habitat destruction that dredging causes. The bill flies in the face of the federal Clean Water Act. Ross and Company would be misleading their constituents by passing this bill. Folks would be led to believe that they don't need the proper dredge and fill permits to do such work. Essentially, these legislators would be elevating their own bill over hard-won federal Clean Water Act protections.

We thought this problem was resolved last year with an agreed-upon system whereby the state Soil Conservation Agency gives landowners technical assistance and helps them with the permit process. These legislators need to be reminded that their concerns have been addressed and that the measures set up by SB 122 are nothing short of devastating for our rivers and streams.

Help strengthen river clean-up plans!

The Environmental Protection Agency is currently accepting public comments on proposed regulations for river clean-up plans, or Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) guidelines. TMDL’s are a critical aspect of the Clean Water Act that can spur the clean-up and restoration of West Virginia’s exceptional rivers and streams. The TMDL provision is one of the most powerful tools to reduce water pollution because it addresses pollution regardless of its source and requires EPA to step in if a state fails to take action to combat chronic water pollution problems.

The draft TMDL rules have some good provisions, but EPA needs to hear from you about some of the shortcomings.

ACTION: Cut and paste the letter below into an e-mail message or regular letter to EPA. Comments are due January 20, 2000, so please act today! Send e-mail to ow-docket@epa.gov or mail to: Comment Clerk for the TMDL Program Rule; Water Docket (W-98-31); Environmental Protection Agency; 401 M Street, SW; Washington, D.C. 20460.

For more information on TMDL’s, visit the Clean Water Network website at www.cwn.org or the EPA's website on TMDL’s at www.epa.gov/owow/tmdl/index.html.

Thanks for speaking up to protect West Virginia's wild and wonderful rivers and streams! If you have questions, give the Coalition a call at 304/637-7201.

Here's the letter:

To whom it concerns:

I wish to express my concern regarding the EPA’s proposed regulations for Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) under Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act.

Overall, EPA's draft TMDL regulations are good in their coverage of non-point source pollutants and their requirement that states list all sources and causes of impairment to water quality, including all POLLUTION, not just POLLUTANTS. However, the proposed regulations only require water quality restoration plans (TMDL’s) for water bodies impaired by POLLUTANTS, not those impaired by all POLLUTION. This goes against the intent of the Clean Water Act.

If the new regulations do not call for TMDL’s to address all sources of pollution, including the amount of water left in a river, it will become a piecemeal and illogical approach to water quality restoration that is inconsistent with the watershed approach. In fact, the regulations could result in worse water quality and further diminished flows over time if pollution is not addressed by TMDL’s. Moreover, ever-shrinking flows are causing point source discharges to change treatment methods at great expense. This is unfair to industry, local governments, and others who are trying to comply with the law. Non-point sources, as well as point sources, must be incorporated into TMDL’s.

EPA needs to strengthen standards for non-point source impairment by silviculture. This would be one way to corral excessive sediment and nutrient producers where current best management practices are not doing the job. This would also increase TMDL point and non-point authority.

Finally, the regulations must require that each TMDL include an Implementation Plan that will be reviewed and approved by EPA. Implementation Plans are an essential link between the quantitative, scientifically-based analysis of the TMDL’s and the real world actions that must be developed and undertaken by state, local, and federal agencies under other authorities and incentive programs to clean up the pollution. The alternative course of requiring states to issue Implementation Plans under the Continuing Planning Process of Clean Water Act Section 303(e) would be fraught with difficulties. Such an approach holds little promise for the environment, and provides no benefit to the American taxpayer. The implementation plan needs to remain a part of the TMDL process.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment.

Sincerely, [Your Name].

Coalition threatens lawsuit against EPA

The Environmental Protection Agency hasn't been doing its job for West Virginia's rivers, according to the West Virginia Rivers Coalition (WVRC). Instead, they claim, the EPA and the West Virginia Environmental Quality Board (EQB) have buckled under pressure from business interests to ignore the continued pollution of West Virginia's waterways.

In response, WVRC has filed a Notice of Intent to sue the EPA after it has continued to ignore the mandates of the 27-year-old Clean Water Act. The Act, according to WVRC Conservation Director Pam Moe-Merritt, was designed to rehabilitate polluted waters and to prevent future water degradation. Without the efforts of the EPA and EQB, West Virginia waterways will continue to suffer minimally regulated use and abuse.

SPECIFIC RIVERS: Click to jump down to descriptions and news about:

River One.

River One:

Description: This river . . . .

To post your West Virginia river news, alerts, descriptions, opinions, or observations, click to go to the River Rendezvous--State River News, West Virginia section. The webmaster will subsequently integrate your information into the news and opinions shown above.

The National Rivers Website and the Rivers of West Virginia pages are made possible by the generosity of the members of the National Organization for Rivers (NORS.) To start or extend your membership, go to NORS Memberships.

The National Rivers Website is part of Adventure Sports Online.