Virginia Regulatory Town Hall
Agency
Department of Environmental Quality
Board
State Water Control Board
Meeting:
TMDL Public Meeting - Blacks Run & Cooks Creek Watersheds (Rockingham County, the Town of Bridgewater, and the City of Harrisonburg)

 
Meeting Details
Date / Time 11/28/2018  1:30 pm
Location DEQ Valley Regional Office,
3000 Early Road,
Harrisonburg VA 22801 
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 Virginia Department of Environmental Quality will host a public 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. A public meeting was held on November 15, 2017 to present the draft TMDL study and initiate a 30-day public comment period on the modified study. Since this meeting, additional changes have been made to the TMDLs pertaining to the establishment of sediment and phosphorous wasteload allocations for industrial stormwater permitted facilities in the watersheds. The purpose of this public meeting is to share these modifications with the public, and to initiate an additional public comment period on the revised wasteload allocations. The public comment period will begin on November 29th, and will end on December 28, 2018. Written comments should include the name, address, and telephone number of the person submitting the comments and should be sent to contact person listed. For questions about the upcoming meeting or the project in general, please contact Ms. McRae. Notice of this meeting and public comment period is provided in the November 12, 2018 Virginia Register.
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: ()-