Department of Environmental Quality
Department of Environmental Quality
Meeting:
NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING AND PUBLIC COMMENT – CLEANUP STUDY- Horsepen Creek, Little Roanoke Creek, and an unnamed tributary to Spencer Creek in Charlotte County
| Meeting Details | |
|---|---|
| Date / Time | 1/15/2025 1:00 pm |
| Type | Physical Location Only |
| Location | Charlotte County Administrative Building, 250 LeGrande Ave., Suite A, Charlotte Court House, VA 23923. In the event of inclement weather, the meeting will be held on January 22nd, 2025 at the same time and location. |
| Board Website | http://www.deq.virginia.gov |
| Agenda document |
Meeting Agenda
12/9/2024
(27k)
|
| Minutes document | agency has not posted |
| Purpose of the meeting PURPOSE OF NOTICE: The Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) seeks public comment on the development of a cleanup study, also known as a Total Maximum Daily Load report (TMDL), for Horsepen Creek, Little Roanoke Creek, and an unnamed tributary to Spencer Creek in Charlotte County. These streams are listed as impaired waters and require a cleanup study since monitoring data indicates that the waters do not meet Virginia’s water quality standards for Aquatic life (Benthics). Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act and §62.1-44.19:7.C of the State Water Control Law requires DEQ to develop cleanup studies to address pollutants responsible for causing waters to be on Virginia’s 303(d) list of impaired waters. A component of a cleanup study is the Waste Load Allocation (WLA); therefore, this notice is provided pursuant to §2.2-4006.A.14 of the Administrative Process Act for any future adoption of the WLA into the Water Quality Management Planning Regulation (9VAC25-720) after completion of the study. The adoption of the WLA may require new or additional requirements for entities holding a Virginia Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (VPDES) permit in these watersheds. At the meeting, DEQ will introduce the community to the process used in Virginia to improve stream water quality and invite the public to participate in the study by attending community engagement meetings or through a TMDL Advisory Group (TAG). Additionally, a benthic stressor analysis has been conducted on these streams to help identify potential pollutants causing the impairments. A draft of that benthic stressor analysis and its results will be presented at the upcoming meeting. CLEANUP STUDY LOCATION: The cleanup study addresses the following impaired stream segments: Horsepen Creek, Little Roanoke Creek, and an unnamed tributary (UT) to Spencer Creek are all located in Charlotte County, Virginia. All three drainages eventually enter Roanoke Creek, which feeds into the Roanoke River. Approximately 5.32 miles of Horsepen Creek is considered impaired for the aquatic life use water quality standard. This impairment comes from various sampling events that have indicated the community of aquatic macroinvertebrates present in that segment of the creek is unhealthy and lacks the diversity and abundance that is to be expected there. Horsepen Creek is impaired from Route 47 to its confluence with Little Horsepen Creek. Approximately 10.16 miles of Little Roanoke Creek and 2.9 miles of the UT to Spencer Creek are considered impaired for the aquatic life use water quality standard as well. Little Roanoke Creek is impaired from its headwaters to its confluence with Dunnavant Creek. The UT to Spencer Creek is impaired from its headwaters to its confluence with Spencer Creek. TMDL ADVISORY GROUP (TAG): DEQ invites public comment on the establishment of a TAG to assist in development of this cleanup study. A TAG is a standing group of interested parties established by the department for the purpose of advising the department during developing of the cleanup study. Any member of the public may attend and observe proceedings. However, only group members who have been invited by the department to serve on the TAG may actively participate in the group’s discussions. Persons requesting the department use a TAG and those interested in participating should notify the DEQ contact person by the end of the comment period and provide their name, address, phone number, email address, and their organization (if any). If DEQ convenes a TAG, all individuals who wish to participate on the TAG will be considered on a case-by-case basis. TAG members will be expected to attend all TAG meetings. Notification of the composition of the panel will be sent to all individuals who requested participation. If DEQ receives no requests to establish a TAG, the department will not establish a standing group but will still solicit public feedback by conducting community engagement meetings during cleanup study development. At these community meetings, which are open to the public and any person may participate, DEQ will present its progress on the cleanup study and solicit feedback from those present. PUBLIC MEETING: The first public meeting on the development of the cleanup study will be held at the Charlotte County Administrative Building, 250 LeGrande Ave., Suite A, Charlotte Court House, VA 23923, on January 15th, 2025, at 1 p.m. In the event of inclement weather, the meeting will be held on January 22nd, 2025 at the same time and location stated above. PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD: January 15th, 2025 to February 14th, 2025 HOW TO COMMENT: DEQ accepts written comments by e-mail or postal mail. All comments must be received by DEQ during the comment period. Submittals must include the name, organization they represent (if any), mailing addresses and telephone numbers of the commenter/requester. CONTACT FOR PUBLIC COMMENTS, DOCUMENT REQUESTS AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Aerin Doughty; Blue Ridge Regional Office, 901 Russel Drive, Salem, Virginia 24153; Phone: (540) 988-3684; E-mail: aerin.doughty@deq.virginia.gov. | |
| Meeting Scope |
Public hearing to receive comment on a proposed stage
X
General business of the board
Discuss particular regulations / chapters
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| Contact Information | |
|---|---|
| Name / Title: | Aerin Doughty / Blue Ridge Regional Office |
| Address: |
901 Russel Drive Salem, 24153 |
| Email Address: | aerin.doughty@deq.virginia.gov |
| Telephone: | (540)988-3684 FAX: ()- TDD: ()- |
| Reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities, such as sign language interpreters and/or real-time captioning services, are available upon request. Please send accommodation requests to the meeting contact as early as possible but no later than seven business days before the date of the meeting. | |