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Elice Holman (left) and daughters Erica and Erin play in the swimming area at Lake Anna
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How clean is the water?
It's a common question asked by the thousands of people who live on or visit Lake Anna and other area lakes--one that's especially relevant as boaters, fishermen and swimmers head for the nearest boat ramp or beach for the Labor Day weekend.
The answer, regulators say, is: It depends. It depends upon the body of water, its size, use, and location near potential pollution sources.
Lake Anna, a 13,000-acre impoundment created by Virginia Power in 1972 to cool reactors at its nuclear plant, is a good example of how state regulators and local monitoring groups are trying to get at the answer.
"In general, Lake Anna's water quality is good," said Bryant Thomas, water-resources planner and monitoring supervisor for the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality's Northern Virginia Regional Office.
"I have a friend who has a cottage there. Every time I'm invited, I'm down at the lake," he said.
He added, however, that the complete answer is not simple.
PCBs a concern
Six of Lake Anna's feeder streams show persistent bacterial contamination, according to recent tests. In addition, fish-tissue samples by DEQ showed the presence of polychlorinated biphenyls in Contrary Creek, and in two areas on the main stem of the lake encompassing a total of 3,160 acres.
Those were included in the state's 2002 Report on Impaired Waters in Virginia.
In 1994 and in 2000, DEQ found elevated concentrations of PCBs in samples of catfish, bass and striped bass. Channel catfish fillets collected in 1994 contained 114 parts per billion of PCBs. Two other samples collected in 2000 contained 97.6 and 168 ppb, while a striped bass sample contained 108 ppb.
The levels are above the DEQ's minimum threshold of 54 ppb, but below the 600 ppb level at which the Virginia Department of Health would issue a fish-consumption advisory.
The source of the PCB contamination is unknown. More PCB sampling is in the works.
PCBs are organic chemicals widely used as coolants and lubricants in transformers, capacitors and other electrical equipment. PCBs have been linked to cancer in animals and a variety of health problems, including neurological and immune-system disorders. They were banned in the late 1970s.
Lake Anna's other problems have largely to do with geography. Its Contrary Creek tributary is excessively acidic due to 19th-century gold mines in its headwaters. The defunct mines have raised concerns about heavy metals in the stream's sediment.
The 2002 Impaired Waters Report showed the presence of fecal coliform bacteria, indicating human and animal waste in the Mountain Run, Goldmine Creek, Beaver Creek, Plentiful Creek, Terry's Run and Pamunkey Creek feeder streams.
The source of that contamination is unknown. More recent tests look for the presence of E. coli, another indicator of human and animal waste.
Thomas said no bacterial contamination has been found in the main lake.
Appropriate uses
In general, DEQ examines water chemistry for the presence of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus, chlorophyll--an indicator of plant activity--acidity and alkalinity, dissolved oxygen, temperature and bacteria.
The information helps determine acceptable uses for lakes, such as swimming, fishing and the like, and whether a body of water is able to support healthy aquatic life.
DEQ monitors 13 "significant" lakes in its Northern Region, which includes the Fredericksburg area. They must be publicly accessible and at least 100 acres, or be public water supplies.
Of the 13, which include eight in the Fredericksburg area, Thomas said all are relatively clean. DEQ has found nothing unusual or unexpected.
Of those 13, all but two--Lake Anna and Burke Lake in Fairfax--are public water supplies. As such, they are subject to much more stringent monitoring by DEQ, the health department, and local public utilities departments.
"We're mandated to do a lot of different tests, some monthly, quarterly and yearly, everything from metal to pesticides," said David Raines, manager of Stafford's Smith Lake. Other water-treatment testing is done daily.
Reservoirs such as Smith and Able lakes in Stafford, Ni Reservoir in Spotsylvania and Motts Run Reservoir in Fredericksburg allow limited use for recreation such as fishing, but no swimming.
DEQ's Thomas said his office occasionally gets calls from people asking whether a body of water is safe.
Entering any water has some element of risk, from glass on the bottom to bacteria in the water, he said, "so it's hard to put in black and white."
Testing the watersUntil recently, overall water quality in Lake Anna was assumed to be good, but no one really knew for sure.
Dominion Virginia Power has been conducting fish-population surveys once a quarter since 1974, according to Richard Zuercher, spokesman for the company's nuclear operations. But the company does no water-quality monitoring per se.
"We look to make sure fish populations are healthy, and if they are, we believe the lake is fine," he said.
The utility also did some studies years ago about the effect of warm water from the reactors on the lake, and found there were no detrimental effects.
Up until two years ago, DEQ was doing the only detailed monitoring of the lake, and that was infrequent.
"It was not nearly as comprehensive as the coverage now," Thomas said.
The shortcoming was addressed in the Lake Anna Special Area Plan, a document prepared by the three lakefront counties--Orange, Spotsylvania and Louisa--and published in March 2000.
The advisory document noted: "The absence of regular sampling is of concern, particularly due to the presence of a swimming beach at Lake Anna State Park, 1.2 miles downstream from one of the impaired tributaries."
Thomas said those concerns are being addressed under a new joint testing program involving the agency and the Lake Anna Civic Association. Residents help DEQ staff collect samples.
"If you were a newcomer to Lake Anna, you'd find a lot of people involved in water-quality testing in the lake and feeder streams," Thomas said.
Working togetherCarl Groth, chairman of the civic association's water-quality committee, said that because the main lake "looks like it's in pretty good shape," the 2002 tests showing the presence of PCBs in fish tissues "was kind of a shock."
"We know we have PCBs and heavy metals in the lake and the extent of it is unknown. We're concerned about that," he said.
The 1,600-member association wants more volunteers to track impairments in the lake's many feeder streams.
"Contrary Creek is our 800-pound gorilla with impairments. It's very acidic and there are fish kills periodically," Groth said.
That water eventually winds up in the lake, and Groth believes it may be bringing heavy metals that can be toxic to fish and other aquatic life.
If that's the case, testing and remediation could be an expensive proposition. "So we're hoping the state can help us," said Groth, who lives on the Spotsylvania side of the lake and also chairs the Lake Anna Watershed Roundtable.
The association's land-use committee is working with the three lake jurisdictions to focus on water-quality issues and land use. It's also hoping for a grant from the Fish and Wildlife Foundation to buy electronic monitoring equipment that would be used next spring.
Formed in 1994, the civic association started monitoring the lake at 13 sites in 2001. Volunteers use their own boats and go to designated sites.
Water temperature, clarity, dissolved oxygen, nutrients and fecal coliform are analyzed in a lab in Fredericksburg and sent to DEQ quarterly. The joint monitoring program began last year.
Land use is another challenge, Groth said. Lake Anna is one of the most heavily used lakes in Northern Virginia and attracts thousands of visitors on a typical summer weekend.
More homes are sprouting on its shores lately. Lake property is heavily advertised in real-estate ads in the Washington area. That's a concern because of runoff from yards and leaking or faulty septic tanks.
"We're trying to get some commonality in policies between the three counties on land use, growth and development, which in the end affects water quality," Groth said.
To reach RUSTY DENNEN: 374-5431 rdennen@freelancestar.com
