We Need Your Help Now--to get the Jordan Lake rules passed by the NC Senate
Click here to send a letter to your legislators today, and urge them to support strong water quality protections for Jordan Lake. Read more...
Posted on: Thursday May 28, 2009 EST
Recreational Opportunities on Jordan Lake
Visit the Jordan Lake website to learn about the many recreational opportunities offered at Jordan Lake State Recreation Area.
Posted on: Thursday August 17, 2006 EST
Help Us Keep an Eye on Jordan Lake!
Do you enjoy boating, fishing, paddling, hiking at Jordan Lake? If you are a frequent user of the lake, please consider joining our Lake Watch network that can notify HRA of pollution sightings. With high algae growth in the lake due to nutrient “enrichment”, there is potential for algae blooms and fish kills that we want to know about quickly. We are also interested in sediment plumes, observations of where trash is piling up, as well as nature sightings.
To sign up, please email us at info@hawriver.org, with “Lake Watch” in the subject line, or call us at (919) 542-5790. Thanks!
To report a problem, print out this Lake Watch Problem Report Form, fill it out, and mail it to us at HRA, P.O. Box 187, Bynum, 27228. Thanks for your help!
Posted on: Thursday August 17, 2006 EST
The State of Jordan Lake
The Haw River Assembly is participating in the Jordan Lake Stakeholder Project, whose purpose is to create a Nutrient Management Strategy for the Jordan Lake Watershed that will be presented as a recommendation to the Environmental Management Commission.
Read our letter to the Water Quality Committee (WQC) of the Environmental Management Commission (EMC) urging the members of the WQC to accept the recommendations of the NC Division of Water Quality for the Jordan lake TMDL, nutrient targets and nutrient management strategy for Jordan Lake and the Jordan Lake Watershed, and to recommend to the full EMC that DENR take the document to the public for comment.
“Clean Lakes” Bill Passes--Strong Jordan Lake Rules Urged
With support from citizens across North Carolina, the “Clean Lakes” bill passed the House on July 6th and has just been signed into law by Governor Easley. Senate Bill 981, the Drinking Water Reservoir Protection Act, requires the State to assess the current status of all drinking water lakes, requires more instant monitoring when a lake shows water quality problems, provides a timetable for cleaning up Falls Lake, and caps nutrient load levels in Jordan and Falls Lakes until clean up rules are issued for each water body. The bill passed unanimously in the Senate, and by a vote of 113 to 2 in the House.
The great news for Jordan Lake is that the bill as passed contains language to prevent any new or expanded Waste Water Treatment Plant discharges into the Haw River/Jordan Lake watershed while the Jordan Lake Nutrient Managment Plan and TMDL is being finalized. Read more...
Posted on: Thursday July 21, 2005 EST
Presentation Focuses on Jordan Lake
Hot summer weather on July 18 didn’t stop people from joining us for evening boat rides on Jordan Lake and a presentation at Vista Point. Haw River Assembly volunteers Lynn and Brenda Featherstone and Bob Brueckner led guided canoe tours out on the lake, with boats from the Haw River Canoe and Kayak Company. Susanne Gomolski, owner of Kayak Adventures, led a group of paddlers around to the next cove, where they saw herons and osprey. A few more folks took a longer trip on Doug Wakeman’s power boat down towards the dam, and even spotted an eagle.
After regrouping for refreshments at the picnic shelter, folks gathered for a presentation about Jordan Lake by HRA staff Elaine Chiosso, Catherine Deininger and Cynthia Crossen, and park ranger Sue McBean (shown in photo). We heard about the lake’s beginnings as a 14,000 acre reservoir, built in 1982 primarily for flood control, and how it is now a major recreational lake, wildlife habitat, and public drinking water supply. McBean spoke of the abundant wildlife, including the successful nesting populations of bald eagles at the lake. She also noted the many recreation opportunities in the total 47,000 acre site, including beaches, boating, fishing and hiking trails.
HRA speakers explained the water quality problems at Jordan Lake, and what steps are being taken to improve it. Too much nutrient pollution (excess nitrogen and phosphorus) from upstream waste water and runoff is causing too much algae growth at the lake. The excess algae is a problem for aesthetics, drinking water, and wildlife, especially when it results in the oxygen depletion and high pH conditions which can cause fish kills (as happened this March on the Upper New Hope arm of the lake, and again in July). The presentation included a look at how we can all reduce polluted runoff from our yards and communities (ask us for a copy of the Stream Steward Handbook if you would like one).
Federal and state mandates to reduce the nutrient pollution in Jordan Lake mean that new rules are being developed that will affect all 8 counties, and towns and cities within the Haw River basin--from Guilford down to Chatham. Greater limits will be placed on the amount of nitrogen and phosphorus pollution from all sources--including wastewater treatment plants, agricultural lands, and new and existing development. Stakeholder discussions with the state to create these rules have been underway for almost three years, and the timetable continues to move back. Some local governments question the need for these rules and have attempted to delay the process.
We are now looking at 2007 for a public comment period and 2008 for the rules to become law--about 10 years after the state first proposed nutrient reductions. The Haw River Assembly continues to be very concerned about the health of the lake during this period of “limbo”. As we continue to urge swift passage of effective rules, more and more forested land is lost to development, and more runoff pollution and wastewater effluent is flowing towards the lake.
Posted on: Thursday August 17, 2006 EST
Jordan Lake Nutrient Rules – And First Fish Kill of 2006
Despite much opposition from Burlington and Greensboro--that discharge into the Haw River arm of the lake--the state continues to move forward, very slowly, with rules to reduce nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) into Jordan Lake. Elaine Chiosso and Amy Pickle, an attorney with Southern Environmental Law Center, made a special presentation to the Environmental Management Commission (EMC) in January countering claims by these municipalities that more study and monitoring was needed before rules are developed. In March, the EMC instructed DWQ to move the process forward, bringing a revised draft of the rules to the EMC’s July meeting. Staff have said that in a concession to the dischargers they may extend the timeline for reducing nitrogen reductions, moving forward the timeline for phosphorus reductions in exchange. We will continue to work for strong rules with no more delays.
On March 20th a fisherman up near the Fearrington Road bridge (upper New Hope arm of lake) reported seeing many dead fish–mostly catfish–to DWQ. Other bass fisherman reported this as well on a popular bass fishing website. We were alerted to the problem, and our Lake Watch rapid response volunteer, Doug Wakeman, went out on a cold windy day, and in addition to the catfish, photographed some dead crappies. DWQ investigated the original report and found 50 dead fish and evidence of a “severe algae bloom” that was the probable cause. A fish kill this early in the year does not bode well for the summer season ahead, when conditions are even more favorable to algae. The Haw River watershed is in severe drought status this spring, which means even less dilution for the nutrient pollution. We continue to urge the state to move forward with greater protections for Jordan Lake. We will send out an alert to our members when the public hearings are opened on the final rules.
Posted on: Thursday August 17, 2006 EST
Volunteers Plant Baldcypress at Jordan Lake
Baldcypresses (whose original range extended up the Haw valley well beyond Jordan) will tolerate flooding better than some existing bottomland trees--and after a few decades their buttresses will make them unattractive to beavers. They can replace historic riparian forest at the lake edges (snags in background), help stabilize shorelines and sediments, and fix nutrients in this impaired “delta” area of upper Jordan Lake. In 2005, HRA secured permission for these cypress plantings from the Army Corps of Engineers and N.C. Wildlife Commission; and in 2006 HRA helped defray seedling and material costs with a grant from REI. Twenty volunteers with the Lower New Hope Wetlands Working Group have planted 800 seedlings, with tags, collars, and stakes, in 2005-06. Group members also maintain herbivore protection of 100 fifteen-year-old cypresses planted in nearby upper Jordan by Sierra Club volunteers--remnants of more extensive plantings that have been decimated by beavers.
Posted on: Thursday August 17, 2006 EST
Thousands on Record to Support Strong Rules to Clean Up Jordan Lake--The Fight Is Not Over
The state's public comment period has ended. Over 4000 people signed petitions and postcards to support the rules to reduce nitrogen and phosphorous from all sources that contribute to Jordan Lake, including development, agriculture, and wastewater effluent. Many others also wrote letters or spoke at the public hearings. We also urged that the nitrogen reduction date of 2016 be brought forward to 2011 for wastewater treatment plants, to keep the lake from being further impaired. Chatham County, Chapel Hill, and Apex passed resolutions of strong support for this position. The NC Environmental Management Commission has postponed the vote on the rules until May 2008. The rules are opposed by many of the local governments upstream and by the homebuilder/realty lobby.
Jordan Lake Clean-up Big Success - But Not the Last!
About 70 volunteers picked up 3500 bags of trash - about 14 tons - from a remote cove on the eastern side of the Haw River arm of Jordan lake on Saturday, October 18. The lead organizer for the effort was Tom Colson - an amazing volunteer who put all the parts together for a successful event! A team of volunteers with power boats ferried passengers from the Robeson Creek boat docks across to the cove, and carried back this amazing amount of trash. At the end of the afternoon the cove was amazingly clean looking - and the trash filled a dumpster and 2 dump trucks at the boat docks. Thanks to Chatham County and NC State Parks for helping with staff, equipment, and trash removal; and Big Sweep for partnering with bags and gloves. Unfortunately there are still many more of these coves filled with trash that has been coming down the Haw River since the lake was built, about 26 years ago - from as far away as Greensboro and Burlington. The Haw River Assembly has been doing clean-ups along the Haw River and Jordan Lake for almost 20 years. We plan to continue this current partnership with Tom Colson, Chatham County and state and federal agencies to complete the job of removing this terrible amount of trash that is fouling Jordan Lake.
Do you enjoy boating, fishing, paddling, hiking at Jordan Lake? If you are a frequent user of the lake, please consider joining our Lake Watch network that can notify HRA of pollution sightings. With high algae growth in the lake due to nutrient “enrichment”, there is potential for algae blooms and fish kills that we want to know about quickly. We are also interested in sediment plumes, observations of where trash is piling up, as well as nature sightings.
The Haw River Assembly is participating in the 
With support from citizens across North Carolina, the “Clean Lakes” bill passed the House on July 6th and has just been signed into law by Governor Easley. Senate Bill 981, the Drinking Water Reservoir Protection Act, requires the State to assess the current status of all drinking water lakes, requires more instant monitoring when a lake shows water quality problems, provides a timetable for cleaning up Falls Lake, and caps nutrient load levels in Jordan and Falls Lakes until clean up rules are issued for each water body. The bill passed unanimously in the Senate, and by a vote of 113 to 2 in the House.
Hot summer weather on July 18 didn’t stop people from joining us for evening boat rides on Jordan Lake and a presentation at Vista Point. Haw River Assembly volunteers Lynn and Brenda Featherstone and Bob Brueckner led guided canoe tours out on the lake, with boats from the Haw River Canoe and Kayak Company. Susanne Gomolski, owner of Kayak Adventures, led a group of paddlers around to the next cove, where they saw herons and osprey. A few more folks took a longer trip on Doug Wakeman’s power boat down towards the dam, and even spotted an eagle.
Baldcypresses (whose original range extended up the Haw valley well beyond Jordan) will tolerate flooding better than some existing bottomland trees--and after a few decades their buttresses will make them unattractive to beavers. They can replace historic riparian forest at the lake edges (snags in background), help stabilize shorelines and sediments, and fix nutrients in this impaired “delta” area of upper Jordan Lake. In 2005, HRA secured permission for these cypress plantings from the Army Corps of Engineers and N.C. Wildlife Commission; and in 2006 HRA helped defray seedling and material costs with a grant from REI. Twenty volunteers with the Lower New Hope Wetlands Working Group have planted 800 seedlings, with tags, collars, and stakes, in 2005-06. Group members also maintain herbivore protection of 100 fifteen-year-old cypresses planted in nearby upper Jordan by Sierra Club volunteers--remnants of more extensive plantings that have been decimated by beavers. 
The state's public comment period has ended. Over 4000 people signed petitions and postcards to support the rules to reduce nitrogen and phosphorous from all sources that contribute to Jordan Lake, including development, agriculture, and wastewater effluent. Many others also wrote letters or spoke at the public hearings. We also urged that the nitrogen reduction date of 2016 be brought forward to 2011 for wastewater treatment plants, to keep the lake from being further impaired. Chatham County, Chapel Hill, and Apex passed resolutions of strong support for this position. The NC Environmental Management Commission has postponed the vote on the rules until May 2008. The rules are opposed by many of the local governments upstream and by the homebuilder/realty lobby.