Reedy River Water Quality Group formed to protect, preserve, and improve Reedy River

Do what on your lawn? Wash your car!

Do It On Your Lawn

Washing your car on grass or gravel helps stop pollution from flowing into our waterways.

Your Carolina – Clearing up common misconceptions about the Reedy River

RRWQG 3rd “Big Tent” Meeting

This summer, don’t worry about what your neighbors will say. Just get outside and do it on your lawn.

September 30, 2015 by rrwqg

Greenville County, SC, September 29, 2015 – Reedy River Water Quality Group (“RRWQG”) has been formed by community and conservation groups; City, County, and University partners; and State, Regional, and Federal partners to protect, preserve, and improve water quality in the Reedy River. The Group’s mission is to develop water quality improvement plans using water quality monitoring, river system modeling, public education on pollution prevention, successful practice review, and economic impact analysis.

A kickoff meeting was held in March 2015 with 75 attendees representing 29 various entities including local city and county agencies, homeowner groups, conservation groups, and area citizen that have come together and committed to developing and supporting the most efficient, equitable, and effective Watershed-Based Plans. RRWQG is composed of nine committees, which will develop the plans for taking care of the river. Committees include: Executive Committee, Best Management Practices, Economic Impact, Modeling, Monitoring, Public Outreach, Technical Steering, Allocations, and Stakeholder Advisory Group.

They key focus of the water quality improvement campaign is nutrient overload in the Reedy River. The EPA has recognized the negative impacts of nutrient overloads on river and therefore has offered their support of the RRWQG. RRWQG will base their efforts on 5R Watershed-Based Plans for Total Nitrogen and Total Phosphorus. Water quality plans are holistic and based on data, sound science, a review of proven water sector practices, and economic analysis. RRWQG will choose programs that have the highest benefit to the community and environment in the most cost effective way.

The data collected will be shared with partnering organizations as well as the general public in an effort to increase awareness of the water quality of the Reedy River and to engage citizens and groups to take part in protecting the Reedy River.

Information about RRWQG, its partners, and its programs can be found at http://cleanreedy.org. Resources about non-RRWQG programs and information concerning the Reedy River can also be found here.

For more information regarding RRWQG or to become a partner, contact Kirsten Robertson at 864-467-2755 x110 or visit http://cleanreedy.org.

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Wash your car, that is…

All innuendoes aside, the health of the Reedy River is no joke. Like most great cities, Greenville owes much of its success to the natural resources that have drawn people here for centuries. The banks of the Reedy River have seen a transformation that is hard to imagine. As the landscape has changed, so have the sources of pollution. Historically, mills, textile plants, and other industries had a lot to do with the health of the Reedy. Today, however, it’s often down to the accumulation of our individual actions. Something as simple as washing your car on lawn or gravel can stop pollution from flowing into the Reedy.

Most soap contains phosphorus, which in abundance, can impair waterways and lead to nutrient pollution. According to the EPA, too many nutrients cause algae to grow faster than ecosystems can handle, harming water quality, habitats, food resources, and decreasing the oxygen that aquatic life needs to survive. These nutrients, together with the dirt and oil washed from cars, can flow into nearby ditches or storm drains that run directly into local rivers, lakes, and streams.

We need a clean Reedy to ensure that the Upstate has a healthy environment, economy, and community! Do it on your lawn for the Reedy.

Most car washing supplies contain chemicals that harm fish and water quality.
These chemicals, together with the dirt and oil washed from your car, flow into nearby storm drains which run directly into our waterways.
Washing your car on the lawn or on gravel will allow the soil to filter out pollutants.

A news article shared on Facebook a few weeks back generated a lot of comments about the Reedy River and its current state. Lynn and Shelby are here to clear up some common misconceptions and to tell us about a group that’s working to improve the Reedy.

« September 2018 »

Officials from more than 25 local governments, conservation groups and public utilities will be meeting on November 15, 2017 to discuss the future of the Reedy River at the third “Big Tent” event. [Read More…]