Renewed Water Monitoring efforts on the South Branch

 After last week's very impressive WVU Water and Woods workshop in Weston, WV (over 200 government agency staff, nonprofits, and landowners), we're working to elevate water monitoring efforts on the South Branch of the Potomac.

With the help of river rats, property owners, the Potomac Riverkeeper Network, and others reporting fish kills, livestock in the river, unusual turbidity or off-colored plumes below problem sites, and then big improvements in waste management in campgrounds and RV parks, trailer parks, chicken farms, and water treatment plants, we'll hopefully see better results than we have in the previous 23 years.

If you see stream pollution in Hampshire, Hardy, Grant, and Pendleton counties

 If you see pollution in Hampshire, Hardy, Grant, and Pendleton counties, here are contacts:

Immediate Threats & Emergencies

If you observe an active spill, chemical dump, or an environmental emergency that poses an immediate threat to human health or wildlife, contact the emergency response lines directly: 

• WVDEP Emergency Spill Line: 1-800-642-3074 (Monitored 24/7 by the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection).

• National Response Center (NRC): 1-800-424-8802 (The primary federal point of contact for oil and chemical spills). 

Non-Emergencies & General Pollution Complaints

For ongoing or suspected environmental violations (such as muddy runoff from a construction site, suspicious pipes, or unusual water discoloration), you can file a complaint with the state regulatory authority or the federal EPA:  

• WVDEP Environmental Enforcement: File a report online via the WVDEP Electronic Complaint Form. You can choose to remain anonymous.

• US EPA: Report potential environmental law violations using the EPA ECHO Referral Form.  

Local Watershed and Health Authorities

Because these counties fall within major river basins, local advocacy and public health units can also track or act on pollution complaints:

• Potomac Riverkeeper Network: If the pollution impacts the Potomac River watershed (which covers Hampshire, Hardy, and Grant counties), you can submit photos and details directly to the Potomac Riverkeeper Pollution Hotline.  

• Local District Health Offices: For pollution affecting public drinking water supplies, you can contact the local West Virginia Office of Environmental Health Services (OEHS) district teams:

• Kearneysville District Office (Covers Hampshire, Hardy, and Grant counties): 304-725-9453.

• Fairmont District Office (Covers Randolph County): 304-368-2530.

Spotted Lanternfly Life Stages

Chinese Solar Technology for Seawater Desalination

 from GoodNewsNetwork.org

New Solar Tech Makes Desalinating Seawater Cheaper Than Producing Bottled Water

By

 Andy Corbley

 -

Jul 2, 2026

By

A team of materials scientists in China have developed a solar-powered device that can produce freshwater from seawater with better economics than bottled water.

By creating a weave of nanomaterials and organic polymers which were both durable and highly reflective, they created a device that could absorb 90.2% of incoming sunlight and use it to evaporate water with 47.5% less energy.

After it generated 5 gallons of fresh water every day for a year of testing, the scientists say that at scale it would be cheaper than producing bottled water.  

It wasn’t a coincidence that after seawater desalination plants were threatened with destruction during the recent war in the Persian Gulf, virtually all belligerents came to the negotiating table.  The some-400 desalination plants located along the Gulf’s shoreline represent most of the world’s R&D into the technology, which for decades has been stuck with an energy-intensive process known as membrane or reverse osmosis desalination.  

A team of materials scientists in China have developed a solar-powered device that can produce freshwater from seawater with better economics than bottled water.  By creating a weave of nanomaterials and organic polymers which were both durable and

Redhorse Sucker Die-off from Warm Water Temperatures

Downstream (below Springfield and Blue Ford Fisherman's access) we're seeing big die-offs of bigger fish (presumably Golden Redhorse suckers). As most will remember from HS chemistry (Henry's Law in particular), colder water holds more gases, in this case oxygen.

Suckers struggle with water temps over 85 degrees and yesterday the Springfield gauge was almost 89oF. Tuber and kayaker passersby here reported seeing 50 or more dead fish. _________________

The Golden Redhorse (Moxostoma erythrurum) is a native North American sucker fish introduced in the Potomac basin from the the Mississippi, Ohio, and Great Lakes basins. Their distinguishing characteristics include its brassy-gold metallic scales, white belly, and orange or slate-gray fins. These suckers typically measure 12–18 inches and weigh 1–2 pounds.

Between Blue Ford and Indian Rock you can sometimes see hundreds, They thrive in the clear, gravel-bottomed streams and rivers of West Virginia's New, Ohio, and Potomac river watersheds.

In the figure below you can see the Native range (ochre/yellow) and that the Potomac is in a non-native range (dark red/maroon).  They have been introduced elsewhere in the U.S. too.

Su2026 Biodiversity Blogs

Adam - Dumbarton Oaks Park
Jack - Shendoah National Park
Dayton - Chincoteague, VA
Allison - Carroll County, VA
Anna - Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest
Kellen - Florida Yardening
Elizabeth - Cedar Creek and Belle Grove
Marian - Stoney Creek Farm, VA
Brendan - Washington, D.C.
Jim - South Branch Potomac
Alicyn - Harriman State Park
Zach - St. Mary's County
Joe - Nolichucky River
Brooke - Nara Park (Japan)
Christine - Buffalo Mountain
Samantha - York River Basin

Smithsonian Science Education Center Sustainable Agriculture for Educators

 Classroom teachers, informal educators, and community members who support students ages 11–18 worldwide, you're invited to apply to our new, free 12-hour virtual professional development program!

The virtual Smithsonian Science for Global Goals "Agriculture!" Academy will support educators by offering step-by-step guidance and interactive resources to implement our latest community research guide with students and facilitate activities focused on agricultural sustainability.

Through this dual approach, educators will gain insight into integrating interdisciplinary topics into their classrooms from other educators in their cohort, professionals at the Smithsonian Science Education Center, and external collaborators.

By attending this training, you will:

- Learn how to support youth in understanding how agriculture connects to the self and community, and how environmental, economic, cultural, and social systems interact locally and globally. Click Read More to see details nd schedule options.

Zillow trick for studying South Branch river property flooding risk

Flooding, fire and wind risk profiles on real estate sites are helpful beyond considering risk as you look for interesting places to live. You can use the mapping tools to identify wetlands, wildlife habitat, and suitability for certain crops and other information that require expert help the when using the otherwise excellent online NRCS WebSoilSurvey and maybe even the County Assessors pages.

West Virginia Zillow data for flood and fire risk is still spotty (and maybe being blocked?), but you can see the same information by going to a property in Maryland or Virginia, choosing the map and then going to the Lot Lines option, choosing Flood, Fire, or Wind. Then scroll into our West Virginia watershed. In many cases you can discern annual risk, 1% risk ("100 year"), or 0.2% risk ("500 year") flood zones. It's good to review this - these zones have changed a lot in the last 20 years.

But as most know, for a specific address, use the FEMA Flood Map Service Center at https://msc.fema.gov/portal/home 

Those crows know you!

 

State Record Golden Rainbow Trout from the South Branch

 This actually happened in early April.  I learned about it only today (June!) in West Virginia Magazine.  The following is an earlier April 13 article by Bob McNally I found in Outdoor Life Magazine online.

‘Too Fat to Jump.’ West Virginia Teen’s Massive Golden Rainbow Trout Is a Pending State Record

Fifteen-year old Hunter Rohr spotted the fish in a deep hole and hooked it on a dead-drifted egg

By Bob McNally

Published Apr 13, 2026 4:36 PM EDT

Hunter Rohr with the pending state-record golden rainbow trout he caught on April 2. Photo courtesy Hunter Rohr

Every spring, West Virginia anglers head out on their own “Gold Rush.” The special two-week event revolves around golden rainbow trout, a unique strain of gold-colored rainbows that are produced in state hatcheries. This year, the West Virginia Department of Natural Resources stocked 50,000 of these trout in 69 lakes and streams. One hundred trout were tagged and worth special prizes.

Fifteen-year-old Hunter Rohr was one of the anglers looking for gold this month. On April 2, during his spring break, he and his high high-school buddy Bryar Sandy were searching for fish in streams near Rohr’s home in Buckhannon.

Read Next: Palomino Trout: The Lure of the Golden Mutants

Rohr and Sandy had started fishing at 7 a.m. that morning. They’d each caught a few smaller golden rainbows and released them all as they usually do. Around noon, they found a pile of fish in a deep hole on the South Branch of the Potomac River.

“We call it the South Branch of the Smoke Hole, and we fish it a good bit,” Rohr tells Outdoor Life. “That day we were using light spinning tackle, four-pound test line and floats to try and catch a golden. We wanted one with a tag.”

The water was deep but clear, and there were some other anglers working the same stretch of water. Using a pair of quality polarized sunglasses, he spotted an especially large fish holding near a log on the bottom.

Click <more> below for more photos.