Feds: Mine Discharges Led to Algae That Killed Creek Life

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
2 December 2009
By Don Hopey

A new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency report blames a September bloom of toxic golden algae for wiping out almost all fish, mussels, salamanders and aquatic life on 43 miles of Dunkard Creek along the Pennsylvania-West Virginia border.

The 17-page interim report released today also said mine treatment discharges high in total dissolved solids created the water conditions that allowed the algae, normally found in brackish waters in Southern and Southwestern states, to thrive and bloom.

[Click here to access a copy of the EPA report]

The EPA also confirmed that its recent stream survey found golden algae on Whiteley Creek, the watershed just north of Dunkard Creek in Greene County. No fish kills have been reported on Whiteley Creek, which also has high concentrations of total dissolved solids or TDS. The survey found no golden algae in 10 other streams or the Monongahela River.

Although the EPA report confirms an earlier finding by the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection that blamed the algae, it offers no explaination of how the algae got in the creek and said it will be almost impossible to remove. The only way to control its growth and toxicity and foster stream restoration, the study said, is to reduce mine drainage containing high TDS.

The EPA report and stream algae survey information was released as the Upper Monongahela River Association and the Greene County Conservation District prepare to host the first informational meeting on the Dunkard Creek ecological disaster from 4 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, at the Mount Morris Gospel Tabernacle Church.

"People who live in and around the Dunkard Creek watershed want to know what's going on and this is the first meeting we'll have where the agencies can tell us what they know and we can ask questions," said Betty Wiley, president of the Dunkard Creek Watershed Association. "A good ecological study of the creek needs to be done to figure out what happened and what needs done to restore it."

She said a preliminary estimate by the Greene County Conservation District put the cost of restoring the creek at $30 million.

Paul Ziemkiewicz, director of the West Virginia Water Research Institute at West Virginia University, said analysis of the creek water shows that four mine water discharges played a major role in producing the high TDS concentrations in Dunkard Creek. The discharges, high in TDS and sodium sulfates, came from Consol Energy's Blacksville No. 2 mine and its Loverage Mine, Patriot Coal's Federal No. 2 mine near the creek's headwaters and AMDRI's Shannopin Steel Shaft discharge.

"The bulk of the water with high TDS, because it was a sustained flow over many days, was coming out of the mines," said Mr. Ziemkiewicz, who is scheduled to speak at the meeting. "All of those discharges are treated to remove acidity and metals but the TDS doesn't change at all."

Robbie Matesic, executive director of economic development for Greene County, said that while the meeting will focus on Dunkard Creek it shouldn't lose sight of the bigger ecological picture.

"Specific to the Dunkard fish kill I'm not going to hold my breath on finding the responsible party for that," Ms. Matesic said. "But I want to know what the agencies are doing to protect water quality in the Mon River basin. We could hit a tipping point at any time now."

Don Hopey can be reached at dhopey@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1983.