The health of our streams and rivers is the best indicator of our treatment of the land. Protecting land along rivers and streams offers the biggest bang for the buck for the natural environment and for human enjoyment. Water pollution can be greatly reduced by addressing the condition of “riparian” or riverside areas.
Water quality in the Valley region is an issue not just for individual localities, but for the state and the nation because of our impact on the Chesapeake Bay. Data from state and federal reports give a measure of the health of our waterways and riparian areas. Meeting the challenge of restoring and maintaining water quality and habitat protection will rest with an evolving patchwork of incentive-based and regulatory approaches.
What’s Good or Getting Better
- Situated at the headwaters of two major rivers, VCC communities start with pristine streams and have the potential to pass excellent water quality downstream.
- The Shenandoah River is home to one of the most extensive citizen water monitoring networks in the country, thanks to the Friends of the Shenandoah, Friends of the North Fork, and many other river volunteers. Visit the Shenandoah Water Window to see how this data can be used.
- Nearly 300 miles of riparian forested buffer have been established along waterways in the region since 1996.
- Over half of those miles (152) were in Augusta County.
Concerns
A constructed pond and wetland and a well established riparian forest buffer border the Shenandoah River at the Avtex Superfund site in Front Royal, one of VCC's easements co-held with the Lord Fairfax Soil and Water Conservation District.
- The Shenandoah was named one of America’s Most Endangered Rivers in 2006 by American Rivers.
- The Valley region is the worst in the state for having little or no riparian buffer (trees, shrubs, grasses) along most streams.
- 39% of the state’s impaired stream miles are in the VCC region. Augusta County alone has 16% of the states impaired stream miles.
- Most of the main streams in the VCC service region rank high priority for nonpoint source pollution.
VCC has worked with our partners to help address this difficult issue by establishing over 29 miles of permanently protected streambanks in our service area. With local Soil and Water Conservation Districts, VCC holds 26 riparian easements on over 600 acres of land, including the unique former Avtex Fibers superfund site in Front Royal.
In our work on land use planning, VCC promotes low-impact development strategies to minimize the amount of runoff from new construction. These approaches: preserving what we have, restoring what we need, and minimizing our footprints on the land, can work together to help the Shenandoah and Upper James Rivers thrive.
