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Find Your Swimming Hole: MountainTrue Urges Public to Use Swim Guide App To Find Clean Swimming Areas this Independence Day Weekend

Find Your Swimming Hole: MountainTrue Urges Public to Use Swim Guide App To Find Clean Swimming Areas this Independence Day Weekend

Find Your Swimming Hole: MountainTrue Urges Public to Use Swim Guide App To Find Clean Swimming Areas this Independence Day Weekend

MountainTrue, a leading local environmental group, is encouraging the public to use the Swim Guide app before heading out onto the water to ensure a healthy and happy Independence Day weekend. MountainTrue is the home of the Broad Riverkeeper, French Broad Riverkeeper, Green Riverkeeper, Watauga Riverkeeper, and a Western Clean Water Team based in Murphy, North Carolina, that are dedicated to protecting the waters of the Southern Blue Ridge Mountains.

Each week between Memorial and Labor Day weekends, MountainTrue’s staff and volunteers collect and analyze water samples from 96 popular recreation spots across western North Carolina and Towns and Union Counties in northern Georgia. These samples are processed and analyzed, and the results are posted on the Swim Guide website (theswimguide.org) and the smartphone app in time for the weekend. This resource-intensive program is made possible by donations from MountainTrue’s members and the generosity of local businesses and organizations that sponsor one or more Swim Guide recreation sites.

Our Swim Guide Sponsors include Animal Hospital of Boone. Appalachian Veterinary Ultrasound, Asheville Fly Fishing Company, Birdies Coffee & Treats on the Fly, Blue Ridge Tourist Court, Boone Cocoon, Boone’s Fly Shop, City of Hiwassee, Fabbit Customs, Green River Cove Tubing, Joy Pharr Realty, Lake Adger Property Association, Mellow Mushroom Boone, Pink Mercury, The Purple Onion, Rivergirl Fishing Company, Rutherford Outdoor Coalition, Shelby Women for Progress, The SPOT, Trophy Water Guide Service, The Speckled Trout Outfitters, Tennessee Valley Authority, Watauga Tourism Development Authority/Explore Boone, Towns County (GA), Union County (GA), Watauga River Lodge, and Zach Hobbs.

E. coli bacteria makes its way into our rivers and streams from sewer and septic leaks and in stormwater runoff — especially runoff from poorly managed animal agricultural operations. E. coli is an indicator of the presence of more harmful microbes, such as Cryptosporidium, Giardia, Shigella, and Norovirus. Contact or consumption of contaminated water can lead to gastrointestinal illness, skin infections, respiratory issues, and other health problems.

MountainTrue tests mid-week, analyzes the samples, and posts the results in time for the weekend. These tests are a snapshot in time. If tests are conducted on a Wednesday after a dry spell, the results usually look pretty good, but conditions can change rapidly following heavy rains when stormwater runoff brings pollution into our waterways. MountainTrue encourages river recreators to take extra precautions after hard rains and not to ingest or expose any open cuts or abrasions to water.

The Swim Guide lists each testing site as either passing or failing based on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s 2012 Recreational Water Quality Criteria for primary contact of 126 CFU/100 mL. Waterways located in remote areas or near protected public lands with minimal agricultural and industrial pollution sources tend to be the cleanest and less impacted by stormwater runoff. Areas closer to development and polluting agricultural practices face greater risks, especially after heavy rainstorms that result in increased water runoff.

While the primary purpose of the Swim Guide is to inform the public about where it’s safe to swim, MountainTrue also uses the data collected to solve water quality problems, inform our advocacy, and push for science-based policy solutions aimed at protecting the health of our communities and supporting our river recreation economy.

The rivers of the Southern Blue Rigde are an important cultural, recreational, and economic resource for our region. In order to clean up the dirtiest rivers and protect the cleanest ones, Mountaintrue encourages policymakers to increase riparian buffers, encourage better building and farming practices and invest in upgrading aging sewer infrastructure to meet current and future needs.

To find the latest bacteria testing sites for your favorite swim area or to download the Swim Guide app, visit theswimguide.org.

Protecting the French Broad Together

Protecting the French Broad Together

Protecting the French Broad Together

I’m your French Broad Riverkeeper, Hartwell Carson, and I want to tell you why it’s going to take all of us working together to clean up the French Broad River.

 

Let me introduce you to Jim Clark (pictured below with MountainTrue’s French Broad Watershed Science & Policy Manager, Anna Alsobrook), a MountainTrue member who volunteers through our Swim Guide bacteria pollution monitoring program. The samples that Jim collects provide MountainTrue with the data we need to find the sources of pollution and fight for real solutions to stop water pollution. Jim’s volunteer work helped MountainTrue create one of the only real-time E. coli monitoring sites in the country.

“I started collecting Swim Guide samples on Hominy Creek and Pearson Bridge in 2014 and recently started taking microplastic samples. I feel like I’m part of a team that’s gathering data to build a case for improving the river’s health. I feel like I’m contributing to a bigger cause and helping to improve the quality of our river.”

-Jim Clark

You can be like Jim and protect the French Broad. Donate today.

Much of the French Broad Watershed is regularly unsafe to swim in. If we want to clean up our river, we need your support today. Winning new laws and reforms to reduce bacteria pollution requires ongoing sampling, public education and organizing, and advocacy at the local, county, and state levels.

 

Your support helps us collect more than 600 samples from 38 popular swimming sites in the French Broad Watershed between Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends. Last year, 62% of the sites along the French Broad failed to meet the Environmental Protection Agency’s safety standards for primary recreation — swimming or other activities where there is a risk of ingesting polluted water.

 

If we don’t act now, heavier and more frequent rains caused by climate change, coupled with increased development, could make our pollution problem worse.

Help me raise $5,000 by May 30 to fund this summer’s Swim Guide E. coli sampling program.

Each sample costs $30, which includes supplies, lab analysis, and travel expenses. Businesses or organizations can fully sponsor a site for $1,000/year with recognition on the Swim Guide platform and social media.

 

I want you and your family to be able to swim and paddle the French Broad River without having to worry about health risks.

 

Jim Clark is doing his part to ensure the French Broad is safe for you and me, but he can’t do it alone. Will you join Jim in supporting a cleaner, healthier French Broad now and for future generations? Take action today and help us reach our $5,000 goal.

 

Thank you for making this summer swim season the safest one yet!

Riverkeeper Float Fest 2023

Riverkeeper Float Fest 2023

2023

Riverkeeper Float Fest

Saturday, August 19. Sponsored by Appalachian Mountain Brewery and hosted by River & Earth Adventures.

Get your tix
Volunteer

About the event

This family-friendly event will take place from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at River & Earth Adventures‘ New River Outpost in Todd, NC. Appalachian Mountain Brewery will offer local craft beer, food, and live music. Riverkeeper Float Fest proceeds benefit MountainTrue’s Watauga Riverkeeper and help protect clean water in the High Country. For event-related questions, please contact Hannah Woodburn at hannah@mountaintrue.org.

Location

River & Earth Adventures New River Outpost:

6201 Castle Ford Road Todd, NC 28684

Times

Event: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Tubing: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Live music: 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Nature Walks and Talks: 11-11:30 a.m. and 2-2:30 p.m. 

Fly fishing clinic: 12-12:30 p.m. with Boone’s Fly Shop

Essentials

  • Payment options: cash or card  
  • Reusable water bottle 
  • Blanket/chair
  • For tubers: sun protection, towel, change of clothes, river shoes/sandals (please no flip flops), bag for spare clothes, dry bag for phone/keys

Shuttles

Shuttle pick-up/drop-off: Shuttles provided by River & Earth Adventures will take attendees from the tubing takeout back to the event/parking area.​ 

Tubers: a separate tubing shuttle will pick you up at the end of your tubing trip and bring you back to the Float Fest. 

Parking

Free parking will be available at the event in the recently expanded gravel lot. Additional parking is located across the bridge near Todd Island Park. We encourage attendees to carpool to reduce parking pressures. We also suggest groups have an assigned designated driver to ensure safety to and from the event.

*A separate shuttle from Peacock traffic circle is no longer available for 2023 Float Fest*

A Plastic Bag Ban with a 10¢ Fee Is Best for the Environment with Limited Cost to Consumers

A Plastic Bag Ban with a 10¢ Fee Is Best for the Environment with Limited Cost to Consumers

A Plastic Bag Ban with a 10¢ Fee Is Best for the Environment with Limited Cost to Consumers

A plastic bag ban with a 10-cent fee on paper would dramatically decrease emissions of greenhouse gasses and sulfur dioxide, and the consumption of fossil fuels and fresh water at an annual cost of $3.33 per consumer — customers using EBT, SNAP, and WIC would be exempt.

Buncombe County, NC — A ban on single-use plastic grocery bags that includes a 10-cent fee on paper grocery bags would offer the highest environmental benefit to Buncombe County with limited costs for consumers, according to data assembled and analyzed by the local conservation organization MountainTrue.

Using environmental impact data provided by the American Chemistry Council — a group that lobbies and advocates on behalf of plastic bag manufacturers and the petrochemical industry — MountainTrue has calculated the environmental impacts of three scenarios: maintaining the status quo by doing nothing, adopting a plastic bag ban without a fee, and adopting a plastic bag ban that includes the 10-cent fee on paper.

 

Scenario 1 – Do Nothing: This scenario is based on current bag use multiplied by the per-bag environmental impacts as determined by the American Chemistry Council.

Scenario 2 – Post-Ban w/o Fee: This scenario assumes a conservative 50% increase in the use of paper bags after the passage of a plastic bag ban without a fee on paper bags. This is a high estimate based on data from cities that banned plastic bags without a fee on paper, which has shown increases in the range of 30%-50%.

Scenario 3 – Post-Ban w/ 10¢ Fee on Paper: This scenario assumes the passage of a plastic bag ban that includes a 10-cent fee on paper grocery bags and a corresponding 10% increase in the use of paper bags. 

While either bag ban scenario would be dramatically better for the environment than maintaining our current addiction to cheap, single-use plastic, adopting a plastic bag ban that is paired with a 10-cent fee on paper grocery bags would bring about the largest reductions in waste, pollution, and energy consumption. A bag ban with a 10-cent fee on paper bags would reduce Sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions by 43%, fossil fuel consumption by 86%, solid waste by 66%, greenhouse gas emissions by 83%, fresh water consumption by 32%, and energy use by 73.3%. 

MountainTrue supports a plastic bag ban with a 10-cent fee on paper bags at the checkout aisle and has provided model ordinances to Asheville City Council and Buncombe County Commissioners that would additionally mandate that grocers use paper bags with at least 40% recycled content. This would further reduce environmental impacts. According to the Environmental Paper Network’s calculator, using recycled paper bags would reduce fossil fuel consumption by an additional 6.7% and greenhouse gas emissions by 30% compared to virgin paper.

These environmental benefits take into account expected increases in the consumption of paper bags after either bag ban would go into effect.

Using data and case studies from hundreds of localities that have already passed similar laws, MountainTrue estimates a 30-50% increase in paper bag consumption from a bag ban without a 10-cent fee on paper bags. MountainTrue’s preferred policy option, a bag ban with the fee, would result in a much smaller increase in paper bag consumption — approximately 10%.  

Currently, Buncombe County residents use approximately 132.4 million plastic shopping bags and 8.23 million paper shopping bags each year. Passing a plastic bag ban with a 10-cent fee on paper bags would zero out the number of new plastic bags used and result in a minimal increase in the number of paper bags to 9.05 million used per year.  

Cost to Consumers: $3.33/year

MountainTrue and the broader Plastic-Free WNC coalition are committed to passing an economically equitable policy that is not unduly burdensome to residents with lower incomes and fewer resources. We are committed to reducing this cost by partnering with City and County staff, local businesses, civic groups, and area nonprofits to educate and distribute free reusable bags to the people and families that need them most.

Case studies from around that nation have shown that the 10-cent fee on paper bags is critical to changing behavior and encouraging people to remember to bring their reusable bags to the grocery store. Additionally, the environmental benefits accrued from the fee far outweigh the minimal costs to consumers.

Our proposed ordinance would exempt customers using EBT, SNAP, and WIC from paying the 10-cent fee on paper bags. Even without that exception, the average cost to Buncombe County consumers would only be $3.33 per year, and customers can reduce or eliminate those costs by bringing reusable bags to the store. To put this in perspective, the average North Carolina resident already pays $745 per year in sales tax. (https://taxfoundation.org/sales-tax-per-capita-2019/)

MountainTrue and the broader Plastic-Free WNC coalition are advocating for the passage of an ordinance in both Asheville and Buncombe County that would ban single-use plastic grocery bags and styrofoam containers and would include a 10-cent fee on paper grocery bags. On October 11, 2022, Asheville City Council voted to begin public engagement and is due to receive a recommendation from City Staff this year. The City fielded a public survey from March 20 to April 30. Data from this survey will inform final recommendations to the city council.

Swim Guide Sponsor Spotlight: Blue Ridge Tourist Court

Swim Guide Sponsor Spotlight: Blue Ridge Tourist Court

Swim Guide Sponsor Spotlight: Blue Ridge Tourist Court

Mira and Brian Williams made Boone, NC, their home 14 years ago after falling in love with the area over frequent trips during and after college. As Mira puts it, “We love the area, the community, and the mountains.” They are now the owners of Blue Ridge Tourist Court, a passion project they pursued after seeing the demise of many historic buildings in Boone. When they aren’t busy running the restored motel or raising their kids, Mira works as a CPA, and her husband, Brian, works as a contractor.

Supporters of MountainTrue since 2019, Mira and Brian sponsor the Brookshire Park Swim Guide site through Blue Ridge Tourist Court. “We thought it would be fun to sponsor a site near the motel. We feel that the work MountainTrue does to protect our waterways is crucial, and sponsoring a Swim Guide site ensures the safety of the waterway’s ecosystem. We watch how MountainTrue engages with our community and the wild space we want to protect, and the way they give back to the community and protect this area is really inspiring.”  

Mira and Brian, we’re so grateful for Blue Ridge Tourist Court’s sponsorship and all of your support. We couldn’t do the work we do without you! 

From Memorial Day to Labor Day, MountainTrue volunteers collect weekly water samples from popular recreational areas. The results are posted online before the weekend, so you know where it’s safe to swim. Swim Guide sponsors allow this important work to happen! Click here to learn more about our Swim Guide Program. 

If you’re interested in sponsoring a Swim Guide sampling site (sites can be sponsored by businesses OR individuals), contact adam@mountaintrue.org. If you want to become a MountainTrue member or make a general donation to support our work, please visit: https://mountaintrue.org/join/

 

2023 Western North Carolina Conservation Legislative Priorities

2023 Western North Carolina Conservation Legislative Priorities

2023 Western North Carolina Conservation Legislative Priorities

Protect Public Health – and the Jobs and Businesses that Rely on Clean Water

A recent report conducted by economists at Western Carolina University commissioned by the French Broad River Partnership found the total economic impact of the French Broad River and its tributaries is $3.8 billion annually, and river-reliant businesses create or maintain 38,554 jobs each year. In 2015, more than 55,000 people used a commercial outfitter to enjoy the French Broad, and thousands more used the river without an outfitter. 

Unfortunately, bacteria pollution threatens this economic engine by making the watershed unsafe for the thousands of people who play in it every year. Contaminated water poses health problems, including gastrointestinal, skin, ear, respiratory, eye, neurologic, and infections. 

Water quality testing in the heavily-used French Broad River watershed indicates the presence of E. coli and fecal coliform at levels that are unsafe for human exposure much of the time. One of the most popular areas for recreation, a 19-mile section of the French Broad River – from the Asheville Regional Airport,  through the Biltmore Estate and the River Arts District in downtown Asheville – was added to NC’s list of impaired waterways in 2022.

To protect public health and the jobs and businesses that rely on safe recreational waters, MountainTrue supports the following initiatives to reduce bacterial pollution:

  • Increase local WNC funding to help farmers improve water quality. Agricultural waste is a significant source of E. coli and other bacterial pollution in WNC rivers and streams, especially the French Broad River which, as mentioned above, was recently listed as impaired for fecal coliform. Unfortunately, demand for state funding to help WNC farmers afford improvements that would reduce this pollution far outstrips the current budget. Expanding state funding for local Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCDs) to meet this demand is critical to improving recreational water quality in WNC. We would like to request a $2 million nonrecurring allocation to SWCDs in the French Broad Watershed, allocated through the existing Agricultural Cost-Share Program, specifically for livestock operation improvement projects.  
  • Help property owners reduce stormwater pollution. The Community Conservation Assistance Program (CCAP) allows WNC’s SWCDs to help property owners reduce stormwater pollution in impaired waters.  Like the cost share program for farmers, funding for CCAP assistance is insufficient to meet demand. Providing WNC SWCD’s with an additional $500,000 for the CCAP program will significantly reduce stormwater pollution in rivers and streams already impacted by bacterial pollution. 


Other policy and funding initiatives that MountainTrue supports:

  • Abundant Housing Legislation – Opportunities for dense, energy-efficient housing located close to jobs reduce energy demand and transportation emissions. We support legislation to address housing availability and affordability.
  • Dam Removal Fund Implementation – The NCGA previously allocated $7.5 million to remove antiquated dams on waterways across WNC. MountainTrue is committed to advancing policies that give state agencies the support they need to advance dam removal projects efficiently.
  • Expand Transportation Funding – NC’s transportation funding relies on the gas tax, which is diminishing as people drive less and vehicles become more efficient. We support legislation that creates new sources of funding and expands the use to include stand-alone bike-ped projects.
  • Stormwater management reform for redevelopment projects – Recent amendments to G.S. 143‑214.7 deny local governments the option of requiring stormwater mitigation on redevelopment projects. We support legislation to repeal those changes.
  • Safe Passage Fund – As roadway construction creates new barriers to long-established wildlife corridors, inevitably, animals are increasingly encountering humans and their vehicles. We are joining a coalition of organizations seeking $10 million to support wildlife crossing projects.
  • Agency staffing needs and pay equity – State agencies across the board are struggling to hire and retain staff due to budget constraints and competition with the private sector. MountainTrue supports maximizing investments in state agency staff positions and salaries.

WNC Public Access and Recreation Investments:

  • Expand the Blue Ridge Snorkel Trail to include one publicly-accessible site in each WNC county, along with educational materials ($150,000 nonrecurring to Mainspring Conservation Trust).
  • Improve River Walk in downtown Murphy by building a boardwalk for Fisherman’s Loop, and extending the path to a housing development ($250,000 nonrecurring to the Town of Murphy).
  • Improve public access to the Watauga River Paddle Trail by purchasing an additional access point in Watauga County ($500,000 nonrecurring to Watauga County).
  • Expand access to the Green River and adjacent lands by developing a new access point at South Wilson Hill Road ($150,000 nonrecurring to Polk County Community Foundation).
  • Enhance Chestnut Mountain Nature Park by expanding paths and trails and improving the playground and creekside park ($450,000 nonrecurring to the Town of Canton).