Troubled waters

Tennessee has about 10,000 miles of streams that are impaired with pollution ranging from PCBs to E. coli to siltation, up from 9,414 in 2008.

More than 1,900 miles of those troubled streams are in Southeast Tennessee, according to a list compiled by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation.

Every county in the region is affected, but the city of Athens, with two major local streams listed, is taking action on its own to do something about it.

"Civilization has always developed by creeks for transportation, drinking water and fertile farmland -- and we messed them up," said Athens Public Works Director Shawn Lindsey.

"Now, just from the economic standpoint, we have drinking water that costs more to treat because of pollution in the water," he said. "And we have to be able to put our treated sewage back in the creeks, but if there already is too much pollution in the water, the state cuts off any sewer expansion plans. And if we can't expand our sewer systems, we can't have jobs. And without jobs, we can't grow."

With more than seven miles of Oostanaula Creek and more than 22 miles of North Mouse Creek polluted with siltation and E. coli from municipal and septic discharges, Athens has tried to be progressive, Mr. Lindsey said.

The two creeks flow to the Hiwassee River, which empties into the Tennessee River near Cleveland and Calhoun.

The city won a state award last month for its innovative and green City Hall and YMCA parking lot, built with pervious concrete and pavers and a central rain garden.

"We've also done a lot of other projects," said Mr. Lindsey, ticking off creek cleanup days, tree-planting along the creek banks, a wetlands restoration project and a partnership with the Department of Agriculture to fence cattle away the water's edge.

Greg Denton, an analyst and policy writer for TDEC's Water Pollution Control Division, compiles the state's biannual impaired waters list, known as the 303(d) list.

It shows the stream miles or lake acres in Tennessee that are "water quality limited." That means they are expected to have pollution problems that exceed water quality standards in the next two years and will need additional pollution controls.

"The list is the state of Tennessee's way of identifying impaired streams and prioritizing them for future studies so we can prioritize and fix the problems," he said.

There generally are three major ways a stream gets polluted and makes the state list:

* Habitat alteration: In rural areas, that could mean cutting trees and causing stream bank erosion; in cities, problems could come from channelization or culverts.

* Pathogens such as E. coli from failed municipal or septic waste systems, or farm-animal waste.

* Silt, often caused by construction or agricultural activities without proper silt fences or other soil-management techniques.

If the problem is bad enough, warning signs can be posted and use can be restricted.

This year, a significant segment of the upper Hiwassee River was added to the list, Mr. Denton said. That segment stretches from the Tennessee state line to the TVA power house near Reliance. From there the Hiwassee flows toward Athens.

Only one stream in Southeast Tennessee improved enough for partial delisting, Mr. Denton said. It is Ball Play Creek in Polk County.

It will be delisted for silt, but remains on the impaired list for bacteria problems, he said.

In Athens, city officials hope for better success in a few years.

"We want to see our streams and creeks look good again," Mr. Lindsey said. "We're trying to create a harmony between community and nature."