Department of Environmental Quality
State Water Control Board
Meeting:
Public Meeting - TMDL Modification - Cooks Creek and Blacks Run (Rockingham County, Town of Bridgewater, & City of Harrisonburg)
| Meeting Details | |
|---|---|
| Date / Time | 11/15/2017 5:30 pm |
| Location | Rockingham County Administration Building, Community Room, 20 East Gay Street, Harrisonburg, VA |
| Board Website | http://www.deq.virginia.gov |
| Agenda document | agency has not posted |
| Minutes document | minutes not taken |
| Disability Friendly? Yes Deaf interpreter available upon request? Yes | |
| Purpose of the meeting The purpose of this meeting is to present the draft TMDL study to the community, answer questions about the project, and kick off a 30-day public comment period for the TMDLs. The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality will host a community meeting for the modification of Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) for the Blacks Run and Cooks Creek watersheds in Rockingham County, the Town of Bridgewater, and the City of Harrisonburg. Blacks Run and Cooks Creek were first listed as impaired on Virginia’s 303(d) TMDL Priority List and Report due to violations of the State’s water quality standard for bacteria and the General Standard (Benthics) in 1998. The creeks have remained on the 303(d) list for these impairments since then. A stressor analysis conducted by DEQ for both creeks indicated that sediment and phosphorous are the primary stressors responsible for the benthic impairment. The impaired segment of Cooks Creek extends 13.32 miles from the headwaters downstream to its confluence with the North River. The impaired segment of Blacks Run extends 10.74 miles from its headwaters downstream to its confluence with Cooks Creek. Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act and §62.1-44.19:7.C of the Code of Virginia require DEQ to develop TMDLs for pollutants responsible for each impaired water contained in Virginia’s 303(d) TMDL Priority List and Report. DEQ completed sediment, phosphorous, and bacteria TMDLs for Cooks Creek and Blacks Run in April 2002. The TMDLs were approved by the US Environmental Protection Agency in 2004. The TMDL reports are available on the DEQ website at: http://www.deq.virginia.gov/programs/water/waterqualityinformationtmdls/tmdl/tmdldevelopment/approvedtmdlreports.aspx In order to address new and expanding discharges from permitted facilities in the watersheds since 2002, the TMDLs for these waterbodies required modification. This modification will ensure that discharge permits issued within the watersheds remain consistent with the wasteload allocations in the TMDLs. The modification process began in August of 2017, and has included a series of technical advisory committee meetings to collect input from stakeholders in the watersheds. The public comment period will begin on November 16th, and will end on December 15, 2017. Written comments should include the name, address, and telephone number of the person submitting the comments and should be sent to the staff person listed. Notice of this meeting appears in the November 13, 2017 Virginia Register. For questions about the upcoming meeting or the project in general, please contact the DEQ staff person listed below. | |
| Meeting Scope |
Public hearing to receive comment on a proposed stage
X
General business of the board
Discuss particular regulations / chapters
|
| Contact Information | |
|---|---|
| Name / Title: | Nesha McRae |
| Address: |
DEQ Valley Regional Office P.O. Box 3000 Harrisonburg, 22801 |
| Email Address: | nesha.mcrae@deq.virginia.gov |
| Telephone: | (540)574-7850 FAX: (540)574-7878 TDD: ()- |