Past Issues & Effects

Certus 1998

On August 27, 1998, a tanker truck overturned on U.S. Route 460 in Tazewell County, Virginia. (Final Restoration Plan, Summary). The truck released approximately 1,350 gallons of Octocure 554-revised, a rubber accelerant, into an unnamed tributary about 530 feet from its confluence with the Clinch River (Final Restoration Plan, Summary). The spill turned the river a snowy white color and caused a significant fish kill.

http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/awcc/freshwater-mussel-restoration/

The spill material quickly turned the Clinch River milky-white and caused a major kill of aquatic life for over seven miles downstream (Freshwater Mussel Restoration). It was estimated that 18,000 mussels and untold numbers of fish, snails, and other aquatic organisms perished in the event (Freshwater Mussel Restoration). It destroyed one of the last two known remaining reproducing populations of the endangered Tan Riffleshell mussel (Final Restoration Plan, Summary). The ages of some of the mussels killed were estimated to be over 80 years (Freshwater Mussel Restoration). Prior to the spill, the Clinch River at the town of Cedar Bluff had the most diverse mussel assemblage in the upper reaches of the river (Freshwater Mussel Restoration). At least 16 mussel species, including 3 federally endangered species, occurred there (Freshwater Mussel Restoration).

http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/awcc/freshwater-mussel-restoration/

The most significant loss was that of approximately 750 individuals of three federally endangered mussel species, the tan riffleshell, purple bean, and rough rabbitsfoot (Freshwater Mussel Restoration). In fact, the spill is considered the most significant kill of endangered species in the history of the U.S. Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Freshwater Mussel Restoration). Furthermore, the last viable population of tan riffleshell in the Tennessee River basin occurred in the Clinch River from at Cedar Bluff, and in the lower reach of Indian Creek (Freshwater Mussel Restoration). The loss of the Clinch River population was a major setback to the recovery of this species (Freshwater Mussel Restoration). .Endangered species recovery is contingent upon protecting and enhancing the remaining populations in Indian Creek (Freshwater Mussel Restoration). To recover damages for the lost resource, the Department of Interior (DOI) entered into a consent decree with the U.S. District Court of the Western District of Virginia on April 7, 2003 (Freshwater Mussel Restoration). The consent decree required the trucking company to pay $3.8 million to the Department of Interior Natural Resource Damage and Assessment and Restoration (NRDAR) fund. Monies from this fund are to be used to "plan, perform, monitor and oversee native, freshwater mussel restoration projects with in the Clinch River watershed" over a 12-year period (Freshwater Mussel Restoration). Specific actions for restoration include freshwater mussel propagation, public outreach and education, riparian area protection, and restoration monitoring (Freshwater Mussel Restoration).

A consent decree was entered with the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia, Abingdon Division by the United States and Certus, Inc. on April 7, 2003, to address natural resource damages resulting from the 1998 release (Final Restoration Plan, Summary). The decree required that Certus Inc., pay $3,800,000 to the Department of Interior Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration (NRDAR) Fund (Final Restoration Plan, Summary). The consent decree stipulates that these funds are to be“...managed by the DOI for the joint benefit and use of the Federal and State Trustees to plan, perform, monitor. Funds to accomplish such actions were collected as natural resource damages for injuries, pursuant to the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA). (Final Restoration Plan, 1).

         

The large tanker truck spill was the largest kill of endangered species since The Endangered Species Act of 1973 was put in place.  This is one of the bigger goals they are hoping for is to increase the population of the 750 some individuals of Tan Riffleshell, purple bean, and the rough rabbits-foot.  These three were endangered species.

Also affected were organisms such as mayflies, stoneflies, caddisflies, flies, dragonflies, damselflies, alderflies, beetles, tree bugs, and moths; these organisms were found in great number and diversity prior to the spill( Final Restoration Plan, 4). Fish were also found in good numbers and diversity prior to the spill (Final Restoration Plan, 4). Fish are an extremely important component of the food chain, feeding on most other biological organisms in the aquatic community (Final Restoration Plan, 4) Fish are also a vital component in the life cycle of freshwater mussels, acting as an intermediate host. Mussels are important because they stabilize river and stream bottoms (Final Restoration Plan, 4) They also act as natural filters by straining out suspended particles from the water as they feed (Final Restoration Plan, 4) In addition, mussels are a vital link in river food webs, serving as prey for wildlife such as the muskrat, otter, raccoon, mink, and fish (Final Restoration Plan, 4)

AEP-Carbo, VA 1967

In 1967, a coal-fired power plant which sits on the Clinch River at Carbo in Russell County, Virginia had a coal ash slurry spill (Coal Combustion Residue Impoundment,3-1).  A failure of the lower dike of Ash Pond 2 occurred. SourceWatch documented that approximately 130 million gallons of coal ash slurry spilled into Dumps Creek (Sourcewatch).

It is alleged that the spill affected fish and benthic fauna on Dumps Creek and

Clinch River as well as aquatic insects, snails and mussel populations (Coal Combustion Residue Impoundment,3-1). Dewberry requested information from the Owner regarding the failure but after further research by the Owner, no additional documentation was found regarding the incident(Coal Combustion Residue Impoundment,3-1).

 AEP- Carbo, VA 1970

In June of 1970, another spill came from the Appalachian Power Company in Carbo, Virginia. This time the spill contained sulfuric acid, which was released when a unit in a cooling tower, malfunctioned (Kilgore, 38). While harmful, the river had not recovered from the first spill. Fish and aquatic insects had recovered; since mussel populations were not fully reestablished they suffered dramatically.

EFFECTS

            Viable populations of the dromedary Pearly Mussel now occur only in the Clinch and Powell rivers (Life history) Historically, the species was abundant throughout the Cumberland and Tennessee river from its headwater tributaries: Powell, Clinch, Holston, and French Broad rivers (Life History, 2003).

The Dromus were listed as endangered by the US fish and Wildlife Service in 1976 (Life History, 2003). Dams, channel dredging, gravel mining, coal mining, and sewage wastes caused drastic declines in population (Life History, 2003).

Pollution from mining in the region has caused great concern among environmentalists because several rare species inhabit the river. Consider the coal-fired power plant located in Carbo, Virginia discussed above. Some mussels have been reintroduced to the Cleveland, Virginia, area from outside the state the early 2000s after pollution in the 20th century wiped out much of the population.

Similarly, of the 81 freshwater mussel species recognized in Virginia, 37 (46%) are listed as threatened or endangered, with 32 occurring in the Clinch, Powell, and Holston river watersheds of Virginia’s upper Tennessee River drainag (Eckert & Pinder, 2007). In 2002, the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) developed a strategy to restore freshwater mussels in six reaches within the upper Tennessee River drainage. These reaches include four on the Clinch River, and one site each on the Powell and North Fork Holston rivers (Eckert & Pinder, 2007).