Join us tomorrow to protect the James!

We need your help! Tomorrow, July 6, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) will hold an informational briefing and public hearing to review a draft wastewater permit for Dominion’s Chesterfield Power Station on the James River which will include “dewatering” of coal ash ponds. Please come out tomorrow evening and tell DEQ that we need improvements to this proposal! Here are some of our concerns:

• The draft permit, as written, allows discharge of arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, mercury, nickel, selenium, silver and zinc at hazardous levels for fish and aquatic wildlife. DEQ should require Dominion to pre-treat the water at levels sufficient to protect fish and aquatic wildlife before the water is released into the river.

• The draft permit allows Dominion to release cooling water at very high temperatures that is harmful to fish and aquatic life.

• The Chesterfield Power Station is within an area of critical habitat for Atlantic sturgeon where the endangered species is known to spawn. Additional scrutiny of permit limits is required to ensure that Atlantic sturgeon are not negatively affected.

• The James River watershed is home to one-third of all Virginians, who live in its 39 counties and 19 cities and towns. The river serves as a drinking water source for millions via water intakes for public water systems including one downstream of the proposed discharge near Hopewell. 

HOW TO JOIN US: An informational briefing starts at 6:00 PM and oral comments will be received from the public during tomorrow night’s public hearing starting at 7:00PM.

Location:

Thomas Dale High School - West Campus
3900 West Hundred Road
Chester, VA 23831

In September, the State Water Control Board will hold a hearing where a final decision will be made on the Chesterfield wastewater permit. Importantly, if you wish to speak at the State Water Control Board meeting you must have either submitted oral comments during the July 6 public hearing or submitted written comments.

IF YOU CANNOT MAKE IT TOMORROW EVENING, you can still voice your opinion by submitting written comments by July 21st!

Comments can be sent to:

Joseph Bryan
DEQ – Piedmont Regional Office, 4949-A Cox Road, Glen Allen, VA 23060
Email: ChesterfieldPowerStationWaterPermit@deq.virginia.gov
Fax: (804) 527-5106

Background: Dewatering is the first step in the process to close coal ash ponds which hold millions of gallons of wastewater that contain toxic chemicals including arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, mercury, nickel, selenium, and zinc. Dewatering involves the removal of this wastewater from the ponds and then discharging the water into the James with some level of treatment. Coal ash, a byproduct of burning coal to produce electricity, has been stored for decades in water-filled ponds at locations across the country. Many of these ponds were created before modern environmental regulations were established to ensure the safe management of coal ash. The Chesterfield Power Station is one of 3 facilities on the James River where coal ash ponds are being closed. The other 2 facilities are the Bremo Power Station and Chesapeake Energy Center on the Elizabeth River.

Earlier this year, Dominion was issued a wastewater permit at the Bremo Power Station to dewater coal ash ponds. Strong public involvement was critical to achieving major modifications to that permit. While the final permit was significantly stronger than the draft permit, the final permit fell short of protecting the health of the James River. As a result, the James River Association appealed the permit and later entered into a settlement agreement with Dominion that includes an enhanced treatment system to ensure water quality standards are met before water is discharged into the James.

While the 3 facilities will require wastewater permits for the dewatering process, each facility will also require a solid waste permit that will oversee the permanent closure of these ponds. A draft solid waste permit for the Chesapeake Energy Center is currently out for public comment, and it is expected that solid waste permits for both Bremo and Chesterfield will be out for public comment later this summer.

The James River needs your help!

On Wednesday, July 6th, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) will hold an informational briefing and public hearing to review a draft wastewater permit for Dominion’s Chesterfield Power Station on the James River which will include “dewatering” of Dominion’s coal ash ponds.

On July 5 we will send another action alert to our Action Network outlining our major areas of concern with this permit so you can help us provide a voice for the river. To join our Action Network sign up at www.riveratrisk.org.

Dewatering is the first step in the process to close coal ash ponds which hold millions of gallons of wastewater that contain toxic chemicals including arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, mercury, nickel, selenium, and zinc. Dewatering involves the removal of this wastewater from the ponds and then discharging the water into the James with some level of treatment.
The following are some key points about the coal ash pond closure process on the James River:

• Coal ash, a byproduct of burning coal to produce electricity, has been stored for decades in water-filled ponds at locations across the country. Many of these ponds were created before modern environmental regulations were established to ensure the safe management of coal ash. The Chesterfield Power Station is one of 3 facilities on the James Riverwhere coal ash ponds are being closed. The other 2 facilities are the Bremo Power Station and Chesapeake Energy Center on the Elizabeth River.
  
  
• Earlier this year, Dominion was issued a wastewater permit at the Bremo Power Station to dewater coal ash ponds. Strong public involvement was critical to achieving major modifications to that permit. While the final permit was significantly stronger than the draft permit, the final permit fell short of protecting the health of the James River. As a result, the James River Association appealed the permit and later entered into a settlement agreement with Dominion that includes an enhanced treatment system to ensure water quality standards are met before water is discharged into the James.
  
  
• While the 3 facilities will require wastewater permits for the dewatering process, each facility will also require a solid waste permit that will oversee the permanent closure of these ponds. A draft solid waste permit for the Chesapeake Energy Center is currently out for public comment, and it is expected that solid waste permits for both Bremo and Chesterfield will be out for public comment later this summer.

HOW TO JOIN US: On July 6 an informational briefing for the Chesterfield wastewater permit starts at 6:00 PM and oral comments will be received from the public during the public hearing starting at 7:00PM

On July 5 we will send another action alert outlining our major areas of concern with this permit so you can help us provide a voice for the river.

Location:
Thomas Dale High School - West Campus
3900 West Hundred Road
Chester, VA 23831

In September, the State Water Control Board will hold a hearing where a final decision will be made on the Chesterfield wastewater permit. Importantly, if you wish to speak at the State Water Control Board meeting you must have either submitted oral comments during the July 6 public hearing or submitted written comments. IF YOU CANNOT MAKE IT JULY 6th, you can still voice your opinion by submitting written comments by July 21st!

These can be sent to:
Joseph Bryan
DEQ – Piedmont Regional Office, 4949-A Cox Road, Glen Allen, VA 23060
Email: ChesterfieldPowerStationWaterPermit@deq.virginia.gov
Fax: (804) 527-5106

General Assembly Update

www.RiverAtRisk.org

We’ve made it halfway through the 2016 General Assembly Session! Thanks to your help, we’ve made our priorities clear to legislators. Below is an update on each of our key priorities:

Priority One: Support Water Quality and Land Conservation Funding

Background: Virginia has made significant investments in water quality and land conservation over the last two decades resulting in major pollution reductions and improvements to local water quality. In order to keep Virginia’s on track with meeting our restoration goals, continued investment is necessary.

Update: The budget debate is heating up on the hill. This week, legislators will vote on funding that could determine whether the Commonwealth continues to make progress towards cleaner rivers and streams — or falls short on its goals. We will be there making the case for the James River!

Priority Two: Support Proper Coal Ash Pond Closure (Senate Bill 537)

Background: The James River watershed is home to coal ash ponds capable of holding five billion gallons of coal ash. Each pond in the watershed is adjacent to the river or one of its tributaries. Coal ash, which is a waste product of the electricity generation process, contains arsenic, lead and mercury among other toxics. Simply capping coal ash ponds in place, as currently proposed, does not stop the potential of groundwater contamination or leaching in to surface waters. Every North Carolina pond that has been tested has been shown to be contaminating the surrounding groundwater. Despite this track record of contamination, Virginia’s code does not require lining, capping and long-term monitoring for these facilities. Passing this critical bill will provide that protection to Virginia’s waterways and will allow power generating companies to recover the costs.

Update: This bill spurred great conversation of the coal ash issue with Virginia legislators. Unfortunately, the coal ash pond closure bill died in the Senate Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources committee on a 7-7-1 vote. But do not fear — this conversation will not stop here. A dewatering permit to drain the ponds at Chesterfield Power Station is coming soon, as well as permits for the ultimate closure of the ponds. We still need your help in this fight!


Priority Three: Support Swifter Spill Notification (Senate Bill 581 & House Bill 977)


Background: Current law requires the spill of a dangerous substance be reported within 24 hours to the Department of Environmental Quality. We believe that this timeline leaves our waterways, citizens and economy at risk. Accelerating that timeline to 12 hours and enhancing public notification will better protect us all.

Update: After working with stakeholders to address opposition to this bill, we reached a compromise that removed the 12 hour timeline for notification (leaving it at the current 24 hours) but still increased spill notification from just newspapers to also include radio and television. The bill successfully made it out of the House of Delegates, but did not make it out of the Senate. We will work tirelessly to ensure that we can be successful when the House bill comes before the Senate again.


Priority Four: Support Proper Menhaden Management (Senate Bill 98 & House Bill 150)


Background: Menhaden have been called "the most important fish in the sea." Menhaden are both filter feeders and a primary food source for striped bass, bluefish, sharks, ospreys, brown pelicans, and dolphin. Beyond its ecological importance, the menhaden fishery is very important economically to the Commonwealth, supporting hundreds of jobs. JRA urges legislators to transfer management of the menhaden fishery from the General Assembly to the experienced fishery professionals at the Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC). VMRC currently manages all of the Commonwealth's fisheries except menhaden.

Update: Both bills have been defeated, due to the delicate relationship between menhaden management and jobs. This is a conversation that will continue at the General Assembly level in the future.

Court Challenge Planned to Protect the James River

The James River Association has been working with the Southern Environmental Law Center to file a notice of appeal for the permit issued by DEQ to Dominion last month to allow discharge of coal ash wastewater from Bremo Power Station into the James River. Below is the statement released by both organizations today.

We thank you for your support throughout this process. You help us give the James River the voice it deserves.

Conservation Groups Plan Court Challenge to Protect the James River from Coal Ash Pollution

On behalf of the James River Association, Southern Environmental Law Center has filed a notice with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and Dominion Power that it will appeal the permit issued by DEQ to Dominion last month to allow the discharge of over 350 million gallons of coal ash wastewater from the Bremo Power Station into the James River. The James River Association is represented in this action by the Southern Environmental Law Center. This notice of appeal is required prior to filing the actual appeal of the permit with a state court judge in Richmond.

In January, the State Water Control Board issued a permit allowing Dominion to discharge millions of gallons per day of coal ash wastewater containing heavy metals at levels exceeding the state’s own standards to protect human and aquatic life.

The conservation groups are challenging the failure of the permit to protect a high quality water body, as required by the Clean Water Act. In violation of the law, the permit does not require Dominion to fully use readily available water treatment technologies to remove enough of the toxic metals from the wastewater to meet state water quality standards before it is released into the river. Rather, it allows higher levels of pollution and relies on dilution within the river to meet water quality standards. The law prohibits this degradation in such a high quality area of the river, which is a popular small mouth bass fishery and home to endangered species of mussels.

“The James River Association is committed to ensuring that the James River is fully protected from the harmful effects of coal ash. The James River near Bremo Power Station is a biologically healthy and diverse section of the river with important resources that must be protected,” said Bill Street, CEO at James River Association. “We are deeply disappointed that the permit approved by the State Water Control Board fell short of fully protecting the James River when the technology to meet stronger water quality protections is readily available and affordable. We are filing notice of an appeal to ensure that ‘America's Founding River’ receives the same level of protection as any other waters.”

Explained Brad McLane, Senior Attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center: “The law required DEQ to set tough standards based on the availability of proven and affordable technology to treat these wastewaters and protect the high quality waters of the James River. Instead the DEQ permit sets lax standards that fail to protect the James. DEQ and the State Water Control Board clearly broke the law in issuing this permit.”

In addition to the Bremo permit, the State Water Control Board approved a permit allowing Dominion to discharge wastewater from coal ash ponds at Possum Point Power Station on Quantico Creek near the Potomac. On behalf of Potomac Riverkeeper Network, SELC will also be pursuing a permit appeal to protect the Potomac River and Quantico Creek from coal ash wastewaters discharged from the Possum Point Power Plant in Dumfries, VA.

View the full Press Release. Visit our website www.RiveratRisk.org for more information.

2016 General Assembly Priorities

The 2016 General Assembly Session kicked off last week in Richmond. The James River Association is working hard to protect our river and watershed, but we need your help! 

Below are our key priorities for this session. Join our Action Network to stay up-to-date and involved in the coming weeks.

In order to reach the James River Association’s goals for a fully healthy James River and fulfill Virginia’s constitutional commitment to protect our waterways, we urge your support of the following critical actions:

Support Water Quality and Land Conservation Funding
Virginia has made significant investments in water quality and land conservation over the last two decades resulting in major pollution reductions and improvements to local water quality. In order to keep Virginia on track with meeting restoration goals for the James, continued investment is necessary. Therefore, we will be strongly supporting Water Quality and Land Conservation funding.

Support Proper Coal Ash Pond Closure (Senate Bill 537)

The James River watershed is home to coal ash ponds capable of holding five billion gallons of coal ash. Each pond in the watershed is bordering the river or one of its tributaries. Coal ash, which is a waste product of the electricity generation process, contains toxics such as arsenic, lead and mercury. Simply capping coal ash ponds in place without a liner, as currently proposed, does not stop the potential of groundwater contamination or pollution leaking in to surface waters. Every North Carolina pond that has been tested has been shown to be contaminating the surrounding groundwater. Despite this track record of contamination, Virginia’s code does not require lining, capping and long-term monitoring for these facilities. Senate Bill 537 would require that a liner be installed which will stop the potential for groundwater contamination and provide protection to Virginia’s waterways.  The bill also allows power generating companies to recover the costs for the safe closure of coal ash ponds.

Support Swifter Spill Notification (Senate Bill 581 & House Bill 977)

Current law requires the spill of a dangerous substance be reported within 24 hours to the Department of Environmental Quality. We believe that this timeline leaves our waterways, citizens and economy at risk. This bill accelerates that timeline to 12 hours which we believe enhances public notification and better protects us all.   

Support Proper Menhaden Management (Senate Bill 98 & House Bill 150)

Menhaden have been called "the most important fish in the sea." Menhaden are both filter feeders and a primary food source for striped bass (rockfish), bluefish, sharks, ospreys, brown pelicans, and dolphin. Beyond its ecological importance, the menhaden fishery is very important economically to the Commonwealth, supporting hundreds of jobs. The menhaden fishery is also the only fishery in the Commonwealth that is currently managed by the General Assembly – all others are managed by experienced fishery professionals at the Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC).  We support this bill because it transfers management of the menhaden fishery from the General Assembly to the fishery professionals at the Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC). 

Volunteering for the James

James River Association volunteers come in all shapes and sizes. They live all over the watershed, have many different skills and can be any age.

Meet our October Volunteer of the Month, Kiersten Hines. She’s a 13 year old Richmonder who has a passion for learning new things, playing the saxophone, volunteering and of course spending time on the James. She likes to hike the trails along the river with her dogs and go swimming with her family. Kiersten took on a research project related to the Our River at Risk advocacy campaign. Here’s what she had to say about her experience:

My task was to research and inventory all of the Surface Water Discharges in the James River from 1988 to 2003 using data from the Environmental Protection Agency. I chose to volunteer because I think that the environment has provided us with so much – like food, shelter and peace – so it is only fair to give back. Saving the James is a cause I believe in, and I’m not surprised that so many other people do too.

I would encourage other people to volunteer because there is nothing more rewarding than putting time and effort into a cause you care deeply for. You could climb the highest mountain or swim the deepest sea and still not feel the happiness that you could experience working with your community to make this giant mass of dirt, water, minerals and organisms a more enjoyable place to live.

Everyone should give volunteering a chance!

Are you interested in volunteering for the James? There are all sorts of opportunities for you to get involved from planting trees, to research projects, to event volunteers and more. Sign up here to get involved today! 

A Turning Point for the James

Today marks the 40^th anniversary of a turning point in the health of the James River.  On July 24^th, 1975 Life Sciences Products in Hopewell, Virginia was closed by the Commonwealth of Virginia due to the health impacts of its product, Kepone, a toxic insecticide.

What made the pesticide so effective also caused harm to the workers and the river. In 1975, Kepone made national headlines as workers fell ill from exposure to the neurotoxin and production was halted by the state. A few months later, the state also shut down the James River to fishing for the same reason – the river ecology was also impacted.

Because Kepone slowly breaks down in the environment, the commercial fishing ban lasted for 13 years, devastating the river’s fishing industry and contributing to the James River being identified as one of the most polluted rivers in America at the time.  Today, Kepone still rests in the sediment bed of the James, slowly being covered up year after year and reducing the risk to aquatic life, but it was still found in fish tissue until testing stopped in 2009. 

Photo Credit: Richmond Times Dispatch

In the year following the Kepone shutdown, the James River Association was formed to be a voice for the river and the people who care about it.  Over our history, we have seen tremendous improvements in the river’s health.  As a result, the James is now consistently graded as one of the healthier major tributaries to the Chesapeake Bay, and the river is a major recreation and tourist draw for the communities along it. 

With a healthier river, Richmond was named the Best River Town Ever by Outside Magazine and its award winning James River Park System is the largest tourist attraction in town.  In Hopewell, the city is now working with neighboring localities and partners to build riverfront trails, access points and amenities so that people can enjoy the very waters that were closed forty years ago. Because the river today enhances our quality of life and local tourism, in addition to supplying our drinking water and supporting commercial interests, it means that we have even more at stake in protecting it. 

But recent events remind us that toxic spills can still happen on our rivers if we are not vigilant. The Dan River coal ash spill, the Charleston, West Virginia chemical spill, and the Lynchburg oil train spill again made headlines across the country. Furthermore, in the past year we have also seen spills in Hopewell that caused fish kills and that shut down the City’s drinking water forcing businesses and schools to close.  These events clearly demonstrate that while we have made much progress, our river is still at risk.

Today, there are more than 1,100 chemical storage sites in the James River basin that hold over 80% of Virginia’s registered toxic chemicals. Billions of gallons of coal ash sit on the banks of the river in unlined storage ponds. Millions of gallons of highly volatile crude oil travel the railroads along the banks of the river every week.   

We are heartened by the recent steps taken to address these concerns, and now Governor McAuliffe and his administration have the opportunity to secure a healthier future for the James River.

Crude Oil Transport by Rail – On the anniversary of the Lynchburg oil spill, three major advances were announced:  the Governor’s Rail Safety and Security Task Force recommendations including increased rail inspections, Senators Warner and Kaine legislation to accelerate the use of safer rail cars and USDOT regulations for crude oil transport. The Governor must now ensure that his task force recommendations are fully implemented.

Coal Ash Storage – The US Environmental Protection Agency issued their first ever coal ash storage requirements while utilities in South Carolina, North Carolina and Tennessee committed to storing coal ash in fully lined and monitored facilities.  Governor McAuliffe has the opportunity to ensure that Virginia’s rivers have the same protection as rivers in our neighbors to the south.

Toxic Chemical Storage – This year, the Virginia General Assembly called for a study ensuring that chemical storage in the Commonwealth is conducted in a manner that protects human health and the environment. However, a James River watershed risk assessment, completed by Environmental Stewardship Concepts, found that there are substantial gaps in the information needed to accurately understand the risks facing our waters. Governor McAuliffe can make sure that we have the necessary data and adequate safeguards for the many chemicals stored along the river and discharged into it.

On this 40^th anniversary of the bold action taken to address one of the worst toxic contamination events in Virginia, we urge Governor McAuliffe to continue Virginia’s leadership and commitment to the health of its waters and its citizens.

Please join us in our efforts to protect Our River at Risk.

The James River: A Moving Pipeline

The path of James River through Virginia carries millions of gallons of life-sustaining nourishment daily. But are you aware that it is also a winding course for exploding toxic substances?

A now renowned region of North Dakota recognized by oil prospectors to hold a geologic formation called the "Bakken play" might conjure images of the days of the Wild West. Hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking" -- a controversial method of extracting fossil fuels deep beneath the earth's surface -- is creating boom towns in this region. An influx of fracking and oil production workers has transformed sleepy, rural Dakota villages into booming industrialized towns overnight. The industry's goal: Get the oil out of the ground...and make it snappy. 
But then what? There is not endless storage capability for oil, so the industry is anxious to transport it to refineries quickly. Adequate pipeline infrastructure to meet this desire does not exist in the Bakken region, though, so the oil industry has taken to placing this crude oil into 1.5-mile long trains and shipping it across the continent daily. Federal regulations allow the industry to use antiquated shipping cars that have been documented for decades as being likely to spill and rupture during a derailment.

So what does oil from North Dakota have to do with the health & safety of James River, the protection of drinking water for many thousands of Virginians, and your community? And why has James River Association -- whose mission is to protect a river -- become so involved in this rail-based issue?
Please visit www.RiverAtRisk.org now to ensure solutions that benefit Virginians rather than the continuation of avoidable risks to our communities and irreplaceable water resources.

Unit trains carrying their hazardous and volatile cargo travel along a route that parallels, crosses and hovers over Virginia's James River for hundreds of miles over infrastructure that is minimally and self-inspected. Each month, as much as 15 million gallons or more of this highly toxic and explosive Bakken crude travels via rail line from West Virginia across the Commonwealth en route to Yorktown, Virginia. Bakken crude is not what you might typically visualize when you hear the term "crude oil". It is in fact a "light, sweet" crude oil that behaves much more like gasoline in its volatility, or likelihood to cause a dangerous explosion. Considering these similarities, I find it helpful to imagine the tankers to be loaded with millions of gallons of gasoline in forecasting possible derailment scenarios.

After reaching Yorktown, train tanker contents are offloaded onto tanker ships at a recently retrofitted transfer facility, and finally sent to refineries along the east coast. Lynchburg received national press last year for a derailment and alarming accounts of the April 30 derailment, James River oil spill and breathtaking explosion. Lynchburg, however, is by no means the only population center and resource along the oil-by-rail route. During its tour de Virginia, rail tankers travel through the heart of the towns of Covington and Clifton Forge -- along the James headwaters of Dunlap Creek and Jackson River. Upon the rail confluence with James River at its origin in Iron Gate, trains of Bakken crude make their winding, narrow path through Botetourt County, including the historic river towns of Eagle Rock, Buchanan, Natural Bridge Station and Glasgow. From the beautiful Allegheny Highlands, tankers of oil flow through the fabled Blue Ridge in full view of the James Face Wilderness Area and our National Forest lands -- through the most biologically diverse river gorge in the eastern United States. After straddling the Bedford-Amherst County line and passing through the Big Island industrial town and industrial facility, the trains roll into Lynchburg City to begin their snaking trek across the Piedmont of Central Virginia. Before approaching the fall line, Virginians can encounter black tankers of oil rolling through Galts Mill, Gladstone, Howardsville, Scottsville, the fabled Seven Islands, Bremo Power Plant, Goochland and Powhatan Counties, Richmond's James River Park System and Maymont Park. 

Bakken oil will cross innumerable creeks and tributaries on historic bridges, encountering countless public parklands, trails, schools, government buildings, hunting and fishing grounds and traversing hundreds of miles of private farmland, forest, neighborhoods, industries and businesses. If you look up while in Richmond City you may observe oil trains overhead from several vantage points, including Belle Isle, Texas Beach, Brown's Island, the Riverfront Canal Walk, Dock Street, the Virginia Capital Trail and Rocketts Landing. You can easily identify oil tankers by the bright red placards with the number "1267" aside each tanker.  Eastbound, loaded -- headed west, going back for more.

The February  2015 spill damaging the Kanawha River in West Virginia resulted in no fatalities and only a single injury. Thousands of citizens were evacuated and displaced, and two separate drinking water resources were threatened. One home was burnt to its foundation. Similarities between the West Virginia derailment to the Lynchburg derailment on April 30, 2014 include: Identical model of rail car (the "safer" CPC-1232), identical cargo (Bakken crude oil), identical rail carrier (CSX) and identical rail line (destined for Yorktown).

The Lynchburg events were not a fluke or a simple case of "bad luck". Derailments of these shipments have become routine occurrences in North America since 2013. Federal estimates forecast derailments to become exponentially more deadly, costly and frequent without intervention. As Virginians, we have the guaranteed right to waterways free of impairment. Your right to drinkable, swimmable and fishable water is unnecessarily jeopardized each time these unsafe trains are permitted to carry their cargo over and along our river.

If you share in our concern about Virginia's natural legacy and the river that will be left to our children, then please lend a voice to your voiceless river. Through JRA's Our River At Risk campaign, you will be provided with specific opportunities on how you can participate in securing a healthy James River for you, your family, your community and your future. Protections are possible and available but only with your involvement. 

Please visit www.RiverAtRisk.org now to ensure solutions that benefit Virginians rather than the continuation of avoidable risks to our communities and irreplaceable water resources.

James River Association Calls for Swift Action on Heels of Proposed Consent Order against CSX

February 23, 2015

Today the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality proposed its consent order against CSX Transportation, Inc. for the April 30, 2014 train derailment and oil spill in Lynchburg, VA. The James River Association is pleased that this action will bring resolution to the enforcement case and hold CSX accountable for the pollution discharged to the James River. However, this action does nothing to prevent a future accident. Numerous key actions that could help prevent future derailments and oil spills remain unresolved at this point, specifically the National Transportation Safety Board study of the cause of the crash, the federal regulations on crude oil transport by rail and the Governor’s Rail Safety Taskforce. 

As the recent events in West Virginia show, waterways across the nation, including the James River, remain at risk. In a report issued by the US Department of Transportation, the federal government predicts that trains hauling crude oil or ethanol will derail an average of 10 times a year over the next two decades, causing more than $4 billion in damage and possibly killing hundreds of people if accidents occur in densely populated areas.  (The full US Department of Transportation Report is available here.) While the impacts of the Lynchburg train derailment fortunately were not severe, this report underscores the potential for future accidents and the much greater impacts to the environment and human life that could result.

“The James River continues to be at risk every day. Our state and federal government must take action before another derailment endangers our communities and our vital natural resources,” said Pat Calvert, Upper James Riverkeeper. “It is crucial that Governor McAuliffe’s Rail Safety Task Force issue recommendations improving safety on Virginia’s crude by rail lines. Additionally, we call on the White House to quickly complete their review of the new federal rail safety recommendations so that they may be rapidly implemented. The time for swift action is now.”

Contact:

Ryan Corrigan
Director of Marketing and Membership
(804) 788-8811, ext. 207
rcorrigan@jrava.org 

James River Association Responds to West Virginia Bakken Crude Oil Train Derailment and Explosion on Kanawha River

February 17, 2015

Yesterday afternoon another freight train carrying over 100 cars of Bakken crude oil on its way to Yorktown, VA derailed in Fayette County, West Virginia, resulting in 25 derailed tank cars – 14 of these cars exploded and one spilled into the Kanawha River. The accident prompted an evacuation of a mile and a half radius around the derailment, and two water treatment plants were immediately closed to assess impacts to drinking water. The incident is similar to the Bakken crude oil train explosion and oil spill that occurred on the James River in Lynchburg on April 30, 2014, when 17 cars derailed and one ruptured spilling its contents into the river.

“This dangerous event could have happened on the James River again,” said Pat Calvert, Upper James Riverkeeper. “This is the same rail line that runs along hundreds of miles of the James River and through many population centers in Virginia. This is an alarming reminder that our river and communities continue to be at risk every day without stronger safety requirements for Bakken crude oil transport.”

Both the Commonwealth of Virginia and the U.S. Department of Transportation are considering new safety measures to address the risks posed to communities and the environment from the 4,000% increase in crude oil transport by railroads over the last five years. According to the rail carrier, CSX, both incidents involved the newer CPC 1232 train cars and not the older DOT 111 model that has been much of the focus of safety concerns.

“The James River Association believes that this incident further highlights the need for swift action by Governor McAuliffe’s Rail Safety Taskforce to issue recommendations improving safety on Virginia’s crude by rail lines,” said Adrienne Kotula, Policy Specialist for the James River Association. “Increased inspections of the lines carrying this highly volatile material are vital to the safety of Virginians and the James River – a key drinking water supply for millions.”

“We also urge the McAuliffe administration and Virginia’s congressional representatives to call on the White House to quickly complete their review of the new federal rail safety regulations so they may be rapidly implemented, Kotula continued. “We believe that immediate implementation of the strictest tank car standards proposed (Tank Car Option 1 in the proposed regulations) is the most prudent option given this recent incident and the similar derailment that occurred in Lynchburg, Virginia.”

Contact:

Adrienne Kotula, Policy Specialist

James River Association

804-788-8811, ext. 206

akotula@jrava.org

Our River at Risk: Why Should I Be Concerned?

by Shawn Ralston, Program Director

In our last blog we spoke of the three incidents that occurred within the last year that serve as emphatic illustrations of the risks associated with toxic chemicals being transported and stored in the James River watershed.  But if we look back into history to 1976, the James River Association was formed by a group of concerned citizens living along the Lower James who witnessed firsthand the devastating effects of irresponsible disposal of Kepone that shut down fishing on the James River from 1975 to 1988. While the James River has resiliently rebounded from conservation efforts, recent events remind us that there are still significant risks that threaten the health of the river and the drinking supply for many.

The events that occurred in January 2014 in West Virginia are perhaps the most illustrative of how a toxic spill can personally affect us.  The spill was first noticed by residents who began smelling something different in the air.  Meanwhile, West Virginia American Water – the source of drinking water for 300,000 people including the capital city – had not picked up the chemical in their routine screening since it was not one that they routinely tested for. 

Shortly after the odor was reported, drinking water was deemed unsafe and residents were advised not to drink, bathe or cook with the water.  Area businesses and restaurants were forced to close and residents stood in long lines to purchase bottled water over the course of the next 5 days before water was ultimately declared safe to use.  

A year after the incident, many residents still will only allow their families to drink bottled water as the event from last year has diminished their confidence in the water flowing from their kitchen sink.  In order to protect the James River and the citizens who drink from it, the storage of toxic chemicals must be properly managed. Our River is at Risk.      

Stay tuned to learn more about the threats to the James River watershed and the specific goals of the “Our River at Risk” campaign. To take part in the campaign, please join our Action Network.

An Introduction to “Our River at Risk”

The James River on fire after the
April 30th train derailment.

In the fall of 2014, the James River Association launched a new campaign entitled “Our River at Risk.” This is the first in a series of blogs that will help educate our readers on the various aspects of the campaign and its goals.

On April 30, 2014, a train carrying crude oil derailed and caught fire in Lynchburg, Virginia. Three rail cars fell in to the James River. One caught fire and completely lost its contents, either by burning up or spilling into the river. 

On February 2, 2014 a stormwater pipe burst sending 39,000 tons of coal ash and 24 million gallons of wastewater into the Dan River in Eden, North Carolina.

On January 9, 2014 a chemical storage tank in Charleston, West Virginia leaked 10,000 gallons of a chemical into the Elk River shutting down access to drinking water for the capital city and nine surrounding counties.

These incidents served as a wake-up call for the James River Association – they are emphatic illustrations of the risks associated with toxic chemicals being transported and stored in the James River watershed.

We have learned from these events and want to take immediate action to protect public safety, the environment, the economy that the river supports and its recreational value.  Our safety requirements and procedures need to be up to date to address current threats and to prevent a crippling event from happening in the future. Now is the time to begin the conversation on how to protect our waterways and our citizens from the threats posed by the storage and transport of hazardous materials. “Our River at Risk” campaign is designed to achieve all of these goals.

Stay tuned to learn more about the threats to the James River watershed and the specific goals of the “Our River at Risk” campaign. To take part in the campaign, please join our Action Network.

Protect your water

Many aspects of our world today threaten the safety and health of the James River. Help us protect this incredible feature for future generations to continue using the James for drinking water and recreation.

Drinking water is the most vital purpose that the James River serves to the communities along its course. Today, 37 counties and 18 cities rely on the James River as a major source of their water supply. The James River, and thousands of Virginians’ drinking water is at risk from 1,100 toxic storage sites.

Last week, another unfortunate example of how our river can be at risk occurred in West Virginia. A diesel spill shut down drinking water for 12,000 people.

Now is our chance to make sure the same thing doesn't happen here.

Tomorrow, January 29th, Virginia's Senate Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources Committee is considering several bills which could vastly improve the management of toxic chemicals and help prevent these accidents in Virginia. We need your help to support them!

These bills have the potential to protect the river from future toxic spills, enhance toxic spill notification to the public, increase fines for violators and inventory toxic waste sites in the Commonwealth. Each of these bills will help us to protect the James River moving forward.

In order to protect the James River and all of its citizens, changes must be made.

Please click here to help us in our efforts to make these bills successful. Tell the committee that you want to see the James River protected.