THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, August 3, 1995 TAG: 9508030525
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY BETTY MITCHELL GRAY, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines
Hot weather and a sudden reduction in water flowing into the Roanoke River have been blamed for a drop in dissolved oxygen late last week that led to fish kills and the temporary shutdown of the region's largest industry.
Thousands of fish along a 37-mile stretch of the Roanoke River from Hamilton to Jamesville - including striped bass, white perch, largemouth bass, sunfish, carp, American eels and suckers - have been killed in recent days, according to biologists with the Division of Marine Fisheries and the Wildlife Resources Commission.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Virginia Electric Power Co. agreed Tuesday to stabilize water going over the dam at Roanoke Rapids for a few days in an effort to increase dissolved oxygen in the river.
``We hope this additional flow will push the low dissolved oxygen water out into the sound and get it out of the way,'' said Preston Howard, director of the Division of Environmental Management. ``We hope it will raise the overall oxygen level in the river.''
Meanwhile, Weyerhaeuser Co. began to restart operations at its pulp and paper mill in Plymouth after the state gave the company permission to operate at 25 percent capacity.
``As long as the state feels comfortable that our operations will not degrade the river any further, we'll operate at the reduced capacity,'' said Marc Finlayson, company spokesman. ``We'd much rather be operating at 25 percent capacity than not at all.''
As low dissolved oxygen concentrations began working their way downriver last week, Weyerhaeuser Co.'s pulp and paper mill began closing down its operations late Friday and early Saturday, cutting off its wastewater discharge into the Roanoke River and shutting down its paper-manufacturing operations to prevent further damage to the river.
Besides Weyerhaeuser, other industries along the Roanoke River are working with the state this week to cut their wastewater discharges.
Champion, which operates a plant in Roanoke Rapids, has agreed to temporarily reduce its wastewater flow from 20 million gallons a day to five million gallons and Perdue is working to reduce its discharge by land-applying some ofits wastewater and increasing oxygen concentrations in its remaining wastewater before discharging it to the river.
``We've gotten some excellent cooperation from the big industrial dischargers to the river,'' Howard said. ``They don't want to see this situation any more than the rest of us.''
Generally, fish become stressed when dissolved oxygen concentrations drop below about 4 parts per million.
Weyerhaeuser Co. and Division of Environmental Management monitors began noticing low dissolved oxygen concentrations about two weeks ago along the Roanoke River near Hamilton, but the company and state officials became particularly alarmed on Friday when dissolved oxygen levels of about 2.5 parts per million were recorded near the mill.
Last weekend and earlier this week, concentrations in the mouth of the Roanoke River were recorded at about 2.8 parts per million and over a 13-mile distance up and downstream from Hamilton at concentrations of 0.4 to 1.6 parts per million.
On Tuesday, dissolved oxygen concentrations in the upper reach of the river ranged around 2 parts per million, according to state environment officials.
Scientists generally believe that heavy rains in June and early July that washed nutrient-laden fresh water into the region's waterways, combined with hotter than normal temperatures, a recent dry spell and light winds contribute to dissolved oxygen problems.
Excessive concentrations of nutrients nitrogen and phosphorus in the waterways can contribute to algae blooms which consume oxygen and can aggravate problems for the fish.
Scientists and environmental officials generally agree that recent heavy rains, high temperatures and low winds have combined to create low dissolved oxygen concentrations and fish kills on many coastal waterways.
But the recent phenomenon on the Roanoke River could cost Weyerhaeuser Co. and other industries along the river millions of dollars in lost income and could lead to reductions in the fall sports and commercial striped bass catch.
``I still have a lot of concerns about what I saw yesterday,'' said Harrel S. Johnson, director of the Division of Marine Fisheries regional office in Elizabeth City, on Wednesday. Johnson was on the Roanoke River Tuesday counting the numbers of dead fish in the lower reaches of the river near Jamesville. ``We saw a number of dead fish in the 18- to 24-inch size class. That's spawners.''
``And that's a size that's going to figure prominently in management decisions,'' he said. ``I'm real concerned about what we've got.'' MEMO: MORE FISH KILLS
Heat, low oxygen causing large fish kills in Pamlico. Story on Page B3a
by CNB