Watauga River Fish Kill

The Watauga Riverkeeper, Donna Lisenby, received a phone call on Saturday July 17, alerting her to a fish kill on the Watauga River in Boone, NC. Donna in cooperation with the Boone fire department was able to track down the source of the pollutant and it was from the B B&T parking lot on highway 105 in Boone, NC. It seems that the Watauga River and a tributary called Hodges Creek have suffered a great deal of damage due to the carelessness of an asphalt contractor who allowed asphalt sealer to flow into the Watauga River via a drain sewer. The seriousness of this careless spill is not fully understood at this point however, many, many, trout and other aquatic creatures are "belly up" in the river and the tributary of Hodges Creek.

Please take the time to view the video detailing this major pollution event and you are encouraged to call the Division of Environmental and Natural Resources at 336-771-5000 or 1-877-277-8642 to motivate them in pursuing this matter to the best possible conclusion. My thanks to Tyler Legg of the Tar Heel Fly Fishing blog who brought this pollution to my attention.

The Watauga Riverkeeper is Donna Lisenby. She is a full-time public advocate for the Watauga River, the Elk River, Roan Creek and the Watauga Lake watersheds. She is part investigator, scientist, lawyer, and advocate. The Upper Watauga Riverkeepers “clients” are all the users of the watershed. Donna Lisenby is veteran, award winning Riverkeeper with 10 year experience. She previously served as the former Catawba River keeper in Charlotte, NC. She came to the mountains of NC and Tennessee because she is excited and thrilled about the opportunity to partner with local communities to protect, preserve and restore the incredibly rich biodiversity of the Watauga and Elk River watersheds in North Carolina and Tennessee.