Clean Water News

As the new home of NCPIRG's environmental work, Environment North Carolina can be contacted with any questions regarding this news release. 

RALEIGH—Over Memorial Day weekend, thousands of people visited Jordan Lake. Jordan Lake is one of North Carolina's treasured resources—a favorite place for hiking, fishing, swimming and boating. The lake also provides drinking water to thousands of North Carolinians, including the communities of Cary, Apex, Morrisville, and portions of Research Triangle Park. Unfortunately, the exploding growth occurring in the lake's watershed is threatening the health of the lake and citizens statewide are calling for the cleanup and protection of the lake.

The North Carolina Public Interest Research Group (NCPIRG) and Haw River Assembly (HRA) have collected over 2,250 comments from citizens supporting efforts by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources' (DENR) management strategy aimed at controlling pollution in the lake.

"We all value Jordan Lake-last year one million people visited the lake for fun and relaxation," says Christine Wunsche, NCPIRG Environmental Attorney. "The fact that thousands of people are calling for the protection of the lake shows how concerned people are about having clean water. North Carolinians want to ensure that we have safe places for fishing and swimming and clean drinking water for generations to come."

DENR's management strategy has been developed in response to the lake's impaired status resulting from excessive nutrient pollution. The upper ends of the lake routinely violate state and federal standards for chlorophyll a, a sign of too much algae from excess nitrogen and phosphorus. Data shows that the entire lake is now polluted by excessive nitrogen and phosphorous. This nutrient pollution threatens aquatic life and increases the costs of treating drinking water. The pollution impacting Jordan Lake is due in large part to the rapid growth occurring around the lake.

In the past 3 years, 20 new developments, housing at least 20,000 new residents, have started or are applying to start construction in the area. Around the rivers and streams that flow into Jordan Lake, and the lake itself, the population has jumped 37 percent, and development more than 100 percent, in the last 10 years. The most recent development to win approval: a 577 acre gated community, which will add over 450 houses and 1100 people to the lake's imperiled shores.

Rapid growth harms our lakes in two ways. More paved surfaces serve as a conduit for oil, dirt, fertilizer, and other toxins, funneling pollution straight into our waters. Additionally, more development means more people, increasing the amount of wastewater that communities must discharge into the lake. Growth around Jordan Lake will only continue to increase. Chatham County is already the 62nd fastest growing county in the nation and the second fastest growing in the state. New developments in Cary's planning district are also crowding the upper part of the lake.

The new rules the state is proposing for better protection of Jordan Lake will affect all the municipalities and counties whose waters flow into the Lake—including Greensboro, Burlington, Chapel Hill, Durham and Pittsboro.

"The longer we wait to put new protections in place, the harder they will be to do," says Elaine Chiosso, the executive director of the Haw River Assembly, a citizens group working to protect the Haw River and Jordan Lake since 1982. "The first attempt to reduce pollution in Jordan Lake was in 1997, and after 8 years we now have the whole lake about to be put on the federal "impaired waters" list."

Jordan Lake is just an example of the effect pollution can have on our lakes--the impact of pollution in our lakes is a statewide concern. Legislation introduced at the General Assembly this year addresses pollution in lakes that provide drinking water across the state. The "Drinking Water Reservoir Protection Act," taken up by the Senate this week, examines the condition of North Carolina's lakes, and requires the clean up of lakes that are already seeing signs of pollution, such as Falls Lake before they become as polluted as Jordan Lake. Today in the Senate Agriculture, Environment, and Natural Resources Committee it received a favorable report, and will be voted on by the Senate in the coming days. The legislation gets a jump start on protecting our lakes by requiring action before expensive cleanup is mandated.

"With the state growing rapidly, and with pollution from development the fastest-growing threat to our lakes, rivers, and streams, it's time to get a handle on pollution in our reservoirs and protect the waters that need it most," concludes Wunsche.

NCPIRG is a statewide public interest advocacy group, working to protect the environment, stop consumer rip-offs, and improve our democracy. www.ncpirg.org

The Haw River Assembly is a grassroots organization working to restore and protect the Haw River and Jordan Lake through education, advocacy and monitoring projects. www.hawriver.org