DEP, EPA Search for Golden Algae in Southwestern PA Streams

West Virginia Public Broadcasting
18 November 2009
By Ben Adducchio

A golden algae bloom is believed to have wiped out the aquatic life in Dunkard Creek, near the Pennsylvania/West Virginia border. Officials are targeting at least 11 streams and the Monongahela River to see if conditions are favorable to the algae.

The Pennsylvania DEP is keeping a close eye on streams in three counties near the West Virginia border where the Dunkard Creek fish kill began.

This week, the EPA and the Pennsylvania DEP are taking water samples.

Pennsylvania DEP Spokeswoman Helen Humphreys says the agencies are trying to find out the extent of the golden algae contamination.

“We’ve looked at the streams, looked at the TDS levels in the streams, to determine if the stream is more brackish or salty, which we know is the preferred environment for golden algae,” she said.

The Pennsylvania DEP is looking at Monongahela River tributaries as far north as Washington County, 30 miles south of Pittsburgh.

The Pennsylvania DEP has not found any evidence of dead fish in the targeted streams.

They plan to conduct DNA testing of any algae found in the samples.

“This is a proactive effort,” Humphreys said, “we are looking down the line seeing what possible impacts could be out there, so we can have a chance of addressing it before there is a problem.”

The Pennsylvania DEP did not give a specific date when the samples would be ready for release.

They say 750,000 Pennsylvanians use the Monongahela River as a water source.

Humphreys says they are dedicated to eliminating all potential threats.

“There are multiple sources of TDS, so there’s not going to be a silver bullet here,” she said.

“We’re not going to find one source and be able to eliminate it,” she said. “We’re going to have to diminish it significantly across the board, and that’s going to take time.”

In September, dead fish, salamanders and mussels were found on the banks of Dunkard Creek in Monongalia County.

The creek’s water contained high concentrations of total dissolved solids.

The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection says a golden algae bloom is the primary culprit of the fish kill.

It is the first documented case of golden algae in the Mid-Atlantic states.

The West Virginia DEP says there are 20 other streams and rivers in West Virginia that have conditions prone to an algae bloom like the one at Dunkard Creek.