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Cy Stober Malinda Ford Elizabeth Jernigan |
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Have an opinion? Have a problem in your back yard? We need to know! Please fill out a brief survey identifying priority conservation and problem areas. For more information on the Eden Area Watershed Restoration Plan, please contact us.
In the Eden area the Dan River is impaired due to high levels of turbidity and fecal coliform bacteria; the sources of impairment are unknown. The Smith River is also listed as impaired due to turbidity and fecal coliform of unknown sources, but is further impaired for biological habitat degradation due to impervious surface impacts. The Smith River bisects the current City of Eden, with impervious surfaces along both banks, making stormwater
runoff a significant source of impact and degradation in the Smith. Point sources of impairment along theDanRiver are currently unknown.
Key Issues/Concerns in the Dan & Smith Rivers Watershed |
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Please see below for background details on the water quality conditions in the Dan and Smith Rivers, as well as current efforts to address these issues. The Dan River Basin Association is a non-profit organization dedicated to actively addressing water quality concerns in these rivers, and frequently has opportunities for you to directly help ensure that the rivers are cleaned up and protected for future generations. The Piedmont Land Conservancy, a Western Piedmont non-profit land trust, has also developed a Dan River Watershed Protection Initiative, dedicated to protecting the valuable and rare species in the NC parts of the basin.
PTCOG is in the process of developing a local watershed plan for the Smith River and the Dan River corridor in the greater Eden area to identify pollutant sources, conservation priorities, and potential projects that will restore both of these rivers to ecological supporting status. The NC Clean Water Management Trust Fund is supporting this project with a $180,000 grant, and the project will end in 2013. PTCOG will make use of the tools and strategies it has successfully used for water restoration efforts in the Yadkin and Haw River Basins. The resulting watershed plan will be based upon the nine watershed plan elements outlined in the EPA handbook, Local Guide to Watershed Planning. This work will produce a Watershed Assessment that characterizes current and historical watershed conditions; and a Restoration Plan that features a Project Atlas with potential restoration and/or conservation projects, policy recommendations for sustainable watershed management, and an implementation plan to most effectively remediate the Smith and Dan Rivers. Perhaps most importantly, PTCOG will foster relationships with stakeholders to ensure that the rivers are restored to clean and healthy conditions, and that will continue to be clean and healthy for future generations.
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The Smith River at Island Ford Landing |
Background Information
Dan River Turbidity Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) (NC DWQ, 2005)
Smith River Fecal Coliform Bacteria TMDL (NC DWQ, 2009)
Presentation on Smith River Water Quality Concerns (VA DEQ, 2007)
Dan River Subbasin Assessment (NC DWQ, 2005)
Roanoke River Basinwide Assessment (NC DWQ, 2005)
Rockingham County Natural Heritage Inventory (NC DENR, 2005)
For more information, contact us at (336) 294-4950 or:
Elizabeth Jernigan ejernigan@ptcog.org |
Joy Fields jfields@ptcog.org |
Cy Stober |
