The Shadow
William “Bill” T. Wilson, a personal injury lawyer located at 228 N. Maple Avenue in Covington, is involved in a lot more than practicing law. He is also President of the Jackson River Preservation Association or JRPA. The JRPA is a nonprofit organization whose mission is just as it sounds: to protect and preserve the Jackson River.
The Jackson River is a huge asset to Alleghany County, running 96 miles from Highland County and flows south through Back Creek Mountain, Jack Mountain, Bath County, and Alleghany County. It is also sequestered by the Gathright Dam to create Lake Moomaw and flows out of Clifton Forge, merging with the Cowpasture River to become the James River.
Over recent years, several issues have been raised which have threatened the health of the Jackson River. Around 2018, CSX spilled oil in Clifton Forge which ended up in the river and, about three years later, a tanker turned over in Highland County, dumping a large quantity of gas into the Jackson River, according to Wilson. “Some members [of the JRPA] and I went up to look at that and find out why it happened,” Wilson said. “… It was reported to DEQ (Department of Environmental Quality) …and they were all over it.”
Most recently, the concern over Jackson River has been the “pulses” that are released, causing damage and erosion to the riverbank. Wilson explained, “DEQ and the game department, DWR (Department of Wildlife Resources), and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers got together and came up with a plan to release 3,500 cubic feet per second of water from the Gathright Dam… I think there are five releases [pulses] of that volume of water, once a month beginning in June, and the purpose of the ‘pulses’ is to wash out some of the pollution discharge remnants on the rocks down below West Rock.”
Locals have echoed Wilson’s concerns and said their riverbanks, too, have seen erosion caused by the “pulses.” One citizen who lives along the Jackson River and requested anonymity, said to the Virginian Review, “When we [herself and husband] first purchased our property on Dunbrack Circle, there was a huge tree along the Jackson River bank that we had to mow around. Now, most of the roots are exposed and it’s almost ready to fall into the river. Then, at each pulse release, our yard gets flooded. We’ve contacted everyone we can think of to get assistance or at least get riprap provided to protect the riverbank, but have been told it’s on the property owner.”
While erosion remains a heavy concern among citizens in Alleghany County, Attorney Bill Wilson also noted that there doesn’t seem to be much pollution or uncleanness in the river, due to the recurrent testing of the water by the DEQ once or twice a year. Wilson shared the “fun” process with the Virginian Review, which includes testing for macroinvertebrates. Macroinvertebrates are small creatures —most of whom look similar to small cockroaches— without a backbone which are attracted to wet areas. They are also known to crawl beneath large rocks found in the river.
Wilson said. “…To determine whether the river is healthy or not, we have a program called ‘Stream Monitoring.’ …When we go down to the stream, we take a net, wade out into the ripples, and get somebody to stand above the net who turns over the rocks. When we turn over the rocks, that releases the critters [macroinvertebrates] that are up under the rocks and so you catch them in the net. Then we take the net up, we have a table where there is a sheet —just like a bed sheet— and we dump our catch onto that table. Then we have a plastic box, which is segmented, and we put like bugs into one compartment and so on around the table. When we get through, we know that we have 10 of these, 15 of these, 20 of these. And then we send that information to the Department of Environmental Quality… The DEQ then makes an evaluation to determine the health of the river.”
The JRPA is currently made up of about 100 members, but they are always looking for more. Wilson stated that anyone can be a member, so don’t hesitate to reach out. The cost to join is $20 a year and —because it’s a nonprofit organization— that money is tax deductible. The JRPA does not meet on a regular basis, but they do hold an annual meeting and other meetings whenever an issue arises that may threaten the health of the Jackson River. Please contact William “Bill” Wilson at 540-962-4529 for questions or to join the JRPA.
