DEP reveals pollution plan for Newmyer Run
SALTLICK TWP. – State officials this week revealed a plan to reduce pollution and improve the quality of water in Newmyer Run. State Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) engineer Dana Krach said the plan will be submitted to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for review and approval, as required by federal regulations.
“In 1995, EPA was sued for not developing total maximum daily loads (TMDLs),” said Krach. “Because of that, DEP has entered into an agreement with EPA to develop TMDLs for certain specified waters over the next several years. This TMDL has been developed in compliance with the state/EPA agreement.”
Krach explained that TMDLs set a limit on how many pollutants a body of water can receive and still meet water-quality standards. She additionally said that the Clean Water Act required states to list all waters that do not meet their water-quality standards even after pollution controls required by law are in place.
“For these waters, the state must calculate how much of a substance can be put in the water without violating the standard and distribute that quality to all the sources of the pollutant on that water body,” said Krach.
Krach said the Clean Water Act sets a national minimum goal that all waters are “fishable” and “swimable.” To support that goal, states must adopt water-quality standards.
“Water-quality standards are state regulations that have two components,” said Krach. “The first is a designated use, such as warm-water fishes or recreation. States must assign a use or several uses to each of their waters.”
Krach said the second component relates to the in-stream conditions necessary to protect the designated use or uses. The criteria for this are physical, chemical, or biological characteristics, such as temperature and minimum levels of dissolved oxygen and maximum concentrations of toxic pollutants.
She said a combination of the “designated use” and the “criteria” to support that use comprise a water-quality standard. If any criteria are being overstepped, the use is not being met and the water is in violation of water-quality standards, so it is considered damaged.
DEP chose Newmyer Run in 1996 and 1998 because the stream is under the Clean Water Act and because it has metal deficiencies due to acid mine drainage, according to Krach.
“Newmyer Run has high concentrations of metals, specifically total iron, total manganese and total aluminum,” said Krach. “The proposed plan provides a way to make Newmyer Run’s water more safe.”
According to Mountain Watershed Association Executive Director Beverly Braverman, Newmyer Run was heavily mined for bituminous coal throughout the 20th century, and the effects of mining are still present even though the mine has been abandoned.
Braverman said Newmyer Run is the most adversely affected tributary in the watershed.
“A total of 2.6 miles of Newmyer Run is adversely impacted,” she said.
Krach said the TMDL sets the stage for citizens to define a way to develop the plan and, through state Growing Greener grants, will provide funds to put practices in place to correct the problems.