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Current Status of Freshwater Mussel Populations in the Clinch River At

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Current Status of Freshwater Mussel Populations in the Clinch River At Malacological Review, 2017, 45/46: 213-225 CURRENT STATUS OF FRESHWATER MUSSEL POPULATIONS IN THE CLINCH RIVER AT THE APPALACHIA POWER COMPANY’S CLINCH RIVER STEAM PLANT, RUSSELL COUNTY, VIRGINIA (CLINCH RIVER MILES 268.3-264.2) Steven A. Ahlstedt1, Jess W. Jones2, and Craig Walker3 ABSTRACT This study involved assessing the current status of mussel populations in the Clinch River downstream from the Clinch River steam plant located near Carbo, Virginia. Two major catastrophic polluting events occurred here in 1967 (fly ash spill) and 1970 (sulfuric acid spill). Both spills are reported to have severely impacted mollusk, fish, and benthic macro-invertebrate populations downstream a considerable distance below the power plant. Mussel sampling in 1985 documented total elimination of the fauna except in an isolated area previously affected by the spill. Based on the number of mussel species found in 1985 (14) and larger size-classes of mussels measured, it was determined that mussels do not repopulate that quickly and some may have survived. Recent sampling reported 16 mussel species throughout the study area including three federally listed mussels and one fish:Fusconaia cor (live), F. cuneolus (relic), and Quadrula cylindrica strigillata (live); Noturus flavipinnis (live). Mussels are actively recruiting based on size-class information and upgrades to the power plant’s effluent waste discharge are largely responsible for mussel recovery below the plant. Key words: Clinch River, fly ash and sulfuric acid spill, mussel recovery, Unionidae, endangered species. INTRODUCTION The Clinch River is a headwater tributary of the Tennessee River located in the mountainous ridge and valley region of southwestern Virginia. The river flows south for 148 river miles (238 km) where it enters eastern Tennessee just downstream from Speer’s Ferry, Virginia. The river is nationally recognized for its rich biodiversity of mollusks and fish and at present represents imperiled seed stock that exists for faunal restoration in other streams in the Tennessee and Cumberland River drainages. In terms of the rivers high species diversity and endemism, The Nature Conservancy (TNC) lists the Clinch River as “one of its last great places.” A long list of environmental perturbations (Ahlstedt et al., 2005) and unregulated water pollution have been documented prior to the passage of the Clean Water Act of 1972, which cumulatively has had a major affect on biological communities in the river from the 1870s to the present. From a historical perspective it is perhaps surprising that these biological communities survived the extensive logging of the watershed, agricultural development, coal extraction (surface and deep mining), railroad construction, domestic and industrial waste discharges, habitat loss and habitat fragmentation from impoundment of the lower river in 1937. Studies of the Clinch River from 1964-1969 indicate that the river was considered relatively clean and productive except in localized areas where abundance of fish and invertebrates was negatively impacted by industrial and domestic pollutants below Tazewell and Carbo, Virginia (Wollitz, 1966, 1968). Raleigh et al. (1978) also listed major sources of pollution in the upper Clinch 1P. O. Box 460, Norris, Tennessee, 37828 U.S.A. 2United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Blacksburg, Virginia, 24061 U.S.A. 3Office of Surface Mining and Reclamation, Knoxville, Tennessee, 37902 U.S.A. (213) 214 Ahlstedt, Jones, and Walker River, Virginia from industry, mining and domestic wastes. Hence, the continued occurrence and recovery of mollusk and fish populations in certain reaches of the upper Clinch in regards to this study demonstrates that if the water quality is allowed to improve over time and fish hosts are present, mollusk populations will survive and re-colonize previously degraded areas. At various sampling locations in the Clinch River upstream from St. Paul, Virginia, the occur- rence and diversity of freshwater mussels are well known. A total of 44 species are documented in this reach of the river with a sampling time span dating from 1899-1985 (Stansbery et al., 1986). More recent studies of the upper Clinch River upstream from St. Paul include status surveys (Ahlstedt 1991; Church 1991; Winston & Neves, 1997; Watson, 1999; Jones et al., 2001) and site specific monitoring of freshwater mussels at TNC’s Cleveland Islands Mussel Preserve (Ahlstedt & Tuberville, 1997; N. Eckert, pers. comm. 2008). At least 25 mussel spe- cies are extant at Cleveland Islands (Clinch River Mile CRM 270.9) just upstream from the study area based on monitoring from 2002-2008 (N. Eckert, pers. comm. 2008) and at least 25 species were known to occur in the river (1981-1982) just downstream from St. Paul (CRM 253.5-254.1) (Ahlstedt, 1991). The objectives of the current study were to: (1) determine the status and abundance of freshwater mussel populations in the Clinch River below the electric power plant near Carbo, Virginia, (2) assess for the presence or absence of mussel recruitment (i.e., small size-classes <30 mm), (3) obtain additional quantitative data to monitor water quality in the upper river, and (4) determine the habitat suitability and availability for restoring mussel populations. Background The Appalachian Electric Power Company is a subsidiary of American Electric Power (AEP) based in Columbus, Ohio. As owners of the Clinch River Steam Plant, the plant began producing coal-fired steam-electric power production on the Clinch River in 1958 with its first two generating units. A third unit was added in 1961 and total generating capability of the three units is 705 megawatts (MW). The plant uses several hundred thousand tons of coal annually from surface mining operations that are supplied by a mix of suppliers through long- term contracts and spot purchases. In terms of water usage, the plant withdraws approximately 12 million gallons per day (mg/d) from the Clinch River and approximately 7 mg/d are lost to evaporation from cooling towers, with about 5 mg/d returned to the river (J. Van Hassle, AEP, pers. comm.). The Clinch River Steam Plant is located in a mountainous region of the river near Carbo in Russell County, Virginia. Large quantities of fly ash are produced as a by-product during the burning of coal for power production and large quantities of water are needed to remove ash from furnace hoppers. The slurry produced is then pumped to settling lagoons where the ash settles and the supernatant is recycled. The power plant was responsible for two catastrophic chemical spills that severely affected biological communities in the river. The first spill occurred on June 10, 1967, when a 75-225 m section of a dike surrounding a fly ash settling lagoon collapsed and within an hour, 198 million m3 of caustic alkaline slurry fly ash and water (pH 12.0-12.7) flowed into Dump’s Creek, a tributary stream on the opposite side of the river across from the power plant (Clinch River Mile CRM 267.9) (Cairns et al., 1971). The slug of caustic water equaled 40% of the daily flow of the river and blocked normal flow for several minutes. The slug raised the normal water levels in the river several meters forcing waste upstream 0.5 miles (CRM 268.4) from the confluence of Dump’s Creek. The high pH of alkaline water was composed of 90% hydroxide alkalinity and 10% carbonate alkalinity (Cairns et al., 1971). A Freshwater mussels in the Clinch River, Virginia 215 secondary effect which may have contributed to the biological damage was a depression in the dissolved oxygen concentration caused by the decaying organic matter (Anonymous, 1967). The Virginia State Water Control Board assessed damage to benthic fish food organisms ten days after the spill (Anonymous, 1967). Their findings include 1) bottom dwelling fish food organisms appeared to have been completely eliminated for a distance of approximately 3-4 miles (5-7 km) below the spill, 2) the spill affected bottom dwelling fish food organisms in the Clinch River for 75 miles (120 km) below the spill, 3) snails and mussels were eliminated for 11 miles (18 km) below Carbo, and 4) it was predicted that the stream would recover to its former productive capacity within three months after the spill and would include fish stocking (Raleigh et al., 1978). Two years following the spill, benthic organisms had substantially recovered in a linear recovery pattern which included mollusks at sampling stations located l1 miles (18 km) downstream from the spill but sampling stations closest to the site of the spill had not recovered (Cairns et al., 1971). They further reported that the failure for mollusks to re-colonize was due to their inability to reinvade and re-colonize areas as fast as aquatic insects and sampling sites closest to the plant may be affected by the power plant’s waste discharge. A second industrial spill occurred at the power plant on June 19, 1970 involving the release of an undetermined amount of sulfuric acid into the Clinch. The acid spill lowered the pH of the river and killed approximately 5,300 fish. The spill occurred approximately 0.6 miles (1 km) below the plant and extended downstream a distance of 13 miles (21 km) to St. Paul, Virginia. Recovery was apparently rapid for all faunal groups except mollusks (Cairns et al., 1971, Crossman et al., 1973). The fly ash and sulfuric acid spills of 1967 and 1970 are reported in the literature to have eliminated snails and unionids (freshwater mussels) for 11 miles (18 km) below Carbo (Crossman et al., 1973). In terms of river mile locations where mollusks were eliminated, the spill extended in the Clinch River 0.5 miles upstream from Dump’s Creek (CRM 268.4) and downstream to St. Paul (CRM 257.2). The damage to mollusks during the acid spill of 1970 was not considered because it was determined that they had not become re-established there following the 1967 spill.
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