Mountain Xpress is a free paper for the Asheville area...distributed through all the usual outlets which still sell newspapers. And it provides a daily newspaper delivered to your email (truncated of course.)
Here's some of the last report about our French Broad River's quality of water. It's a poplular spot for summer sporting, tubing, canoeing, swimming etc. It flows from south to north, going towards the Tennessee River eventually.
Green in brief: MountainTrue report flags bacterial levels in French Broad
" ...The State of Our French Broad River report reflects hundreds of water samples gathered from across the watershed during the 2022 swimming season. Average E. coli levels in the central French Broad River basin, which includes popular recreation areas such as the River Arts District and Hominy Creek, were over 1,900 colony-forming units per 100 milliliters of water. The EPA standard for safe swimming and tubing is 235 cfu per 100 mL; if ingested, E. coli can cause diarrhea, stomach pain and vomiting.
Other parts of the river showed less contamination but still exceeded EPA guidelines. The Upper French Broad near Brevard and Hendersonville averaged about 600 cfu of E. coli per 100 mL, while the Lower French Broad near Hot Springs averaged about 400 cfu per 100 mL.
Hartwell Carson, French Broad riverkeeper for MountainTrue, told Xpress those results were somewhat better than the nonprofit’s observations in 2021. However, he noted that the 2022 swim season had seen less rain, which causes runoff and generally leads to higher E. coli measurements.
“... Sources of pollution are not a mystery,” notes the report’s executive summary. MountainTrue identifies poor agricultural practices, failing wastewater systems and poorly managed development as the main causes of river contamination. Stress on the river is expected to increase, the report continues, as climate change drives heavier, more frequent storms and their resulting runof
The full report is available at avl.mx/crj.
Also of interest to visitors to the Blue Ridge Parkway this summer...
- Multiple road projects are taking place along the Blue Ridge Parkway this summer, which may lead to road closures throughout the season. Parkway officials encourage visitors to plan ahead and check the latest closure information at avl.mx/7tw.
- Invest Appalachia, an Asheville-based impact investment organization, released a new report regarding climate resilience in WNC and other parts of central Appalachia. The analysis, which cites previous Mountain Xpress reporting on climate migration, notes that the region will likely serve as a “climate receiver place” for people from other parts of the U.S. The full report is available at avl.mx/cqy.
- Three local projects got backing as part of the NCDEQ’s inaugural Food Waste Reduction grant cycle. CompostAVL, an Asheville-based curbside compost service, received $14,000 to increase its food waste hauling capacity and to add new customers. Buncombe and Henderson counties received $30,000 and $20,000, respectively, to expand their composting capacities.
Learning opportunities
- In honor of National Pollinator Week, the Botanical Gardens at Asheville hosts a bumblebee survey training on Friday, June 23, 10-11:30 a.m. Bryan Tompkins with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will train participants how to identify different bees and contribute to the newly launched Southeast Bumble Bee Atlas. More information and registration are available at avl.mx/cqx.
- Buncombe County’s Extension Master Gardeners continue to offer a full lineup of classes through the growing season at their Asheville Learning Garden, 49 Mount Carmel Road. Upcoming options include Foodscaping Edible Plants in Flower Beds on Thursday, June 29; Kid-Friendly Gardening on Thursday, July 13; and Disbudding Dahlias for Better Blooms on Thursday, Aug. 3. All programs start at 10 a.m.; more information is available at avl.mx/ckn.
Save the date
- Greenway advocacy group Connect Buncombe partners with the nonprofit RiverLink for a cleanup of the Swannanoa River on Friday, June 23. The cleanup area, in East Asheville along Azalea Road, runs parallel to the planned AVL Unpaved trail network and Swannanoa River Greenway. More information and registration are available at avl.mx/cri.
Hello,
ReplyDeleteClean water is so important, it is great to see action and clean up on the rivers. Take care, enjoy your day and happy weekend!
Hi Eileen, thanks for commenting. I usually post environmental things on my other blog, but it's full of other stuff, so this seemed related well to life in Black Moutain.
DeleteSome years back Madison County outlawed straight-piping (where sewage was piped straight into streams or outhouses were located over or on the bank of streams. Septic tanks were required and, in many cases, financial aid was given to those who couldn't afford septic tanks. Things got a lot better but, obviously, there's still a lot of pollution in the water.
ReplyDeleteI was surprised the French Broad is still so high in pollutants. It got high before the pandemic, and I didn't pay attention to it during those years. It's got to be industry, my guess.
DeleteA lot to consider.
ReplyDeleteAnd yet many people don't ever think about polluted rivers.
DeletePretty comprehensive article!
ReplyDeleteThanks...I read one thing, and it has good information, then another pops up on the same topic, and then before you know it I'm combining lots of quotes. That's the editor in me.
DeleteOur local river suffers heavily from agricultural pollution. There are ongoing efforts to prevent this, but so far, they can’t keep up. That’s why my tap water is toxic with chlorine byproducts. The town draws water from the river, chlorinates it until the bacteria are gone.
ReplyDelete