Dougherty County portion of Flint River declared impaired
By David Dixon
ALBANY — The Georgia Environmental Protection Division's Water Protection Branch recently added the section of the Flint River from the Lee County line to the Mitchell County line to the GAEPD Impaired Streams List (Section 305(b)/303(d)). In 2022, that portion of the Flint was designated as impaired for mercury in fish tissue and in 2024 for the human pathogen indicator bacteria E. coli.
To meet the requirements of the U.S. Clean Water Act, Georgia assesses a percentage of its waters approximately every two years and publishes the 'Water Quality in Georgia' Integrated Report. This report describes the quality of all the waters in the state and contains a list of waters in good condition and those impaired/polluted, along with fish consumption guidelines.
'Due to the impaired listing, Dougherty County is required to begin monitoring the Flint River as part of our NPDES Stormwater Permit as a Phase I medium Municipal Stormwater System (MS-4) and submitting those results to Georgia EPD,' according to Dougherty County Public Works sources.
The Dougherty County Public Works Department is in the process of finalizing a sampling and testing protocol to meet the requirement from GAEPD.
The GAEPD has approved total suspended solids sampling as a substitute for mercury testing, a once-a-year requirement. The sample would be required to be taken at the upstream end of the defined urbanized area at the Marine Stormwater Canal (Marine Ditch) near Radium Landing and the downstream end at the discharge point at the Radium Spring Run (Skywater Creek).
For bacteria testing, the GAEPD is requiring that four grab samples be collected within a 30-day window four times a year at these two sites. This will require collecting 16 total samples per calendar year. The requirement also stipulates that two groups of four samples be collected from May-October and the other two sets from November-April. These samples must be put on ice immediately after they are collected. DCPW will send these samples off for certified laboratory testing.
Even though Dougherty County will not be required to test for mercury in this section, Georgia Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Resources Division Fisheries Supervisor Rob Weller said, 'Mercury in fish tissue will still be tested by the DNR. In the case of the Flint River and other water bodies, the DNR will sample fish tissue for mercury and other parameters every 10 years. The next routine scheduled sampling date for the Flint River is 2031.'
The mercury in fish tissue designation has been caused by accumulation of that toxic material in upper predatory fish like largemouth and striped bass. Mercury is released naturally into the atmosphere through volcanic eruptions and wildfires. It is also produced through human activities such as combustion of coal to produce electricity. Wind transport from far away sources of mercury also can contribute to the accumulated load.
In the case of Dougherty County, the majority of this toxin would have been produced from the nearby legacy coal burning plants that have now discontinued burning coal. These sources were Plant Mitchell on the banks of the Flint River downstream of Albany, MillerCoors (now MolsonCoors) in Dougherty County, and the Crisp County Power Commission plant beside Lake Blackshear at Warwick. Unfortunately, mercury takes a long time to work its way out of the environment, so testing and publishing guidance on fish consumption is needed to inform the public of the potential danger of eating certain species.
The designation of E. coli bacteria is directly caused by the city of Albany's Combined Sewer Overflow system. Although much work has been completed on eliminating the raw sewage that goes into the Flint River, until it is completely separated from the stormwater, issues with high bacterial loads, after even small rainfall amounts, will continue.
'We are, of course, interested in seeing this section of the Flint delisted by GAEPD,' Flint Riverkeeper Gordon Rogers said. 'I have personally been working on the mercury issue as Riverkeeper for first the Satilla, then the Flint, since 2005. We have seen improvements due to better emissions controls and closures, and expect to see more.
'Regarding E. coli, the work that the city is doing is the key to major success. We are pleased with their progress and expect to see bacterial levels drop in the next few years. Even now, there are many times when the river is perfectly safe to be in. Indeed, we have a couple of 'tube floats' coming up on May 30-31 that are open to the public.'
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