James River gets B grade on report card tracking health, restoration efforts

The James River Association gives the iconic waterway a health grade of B, overall good, but the report card, released on Friday, notes continued issues.

The State of the James report tells us that the tidal James still faces heavy stress from pollution sources, including wastewater, erosion, agricultural runoff and stormwater runoff.

On the positive side, upstream indicators like stream health, smallmouth bass and riparian buffers have high scores and saw increases over the past two years

JRA credits the improvements to state investments in clean water programs – wastewater treatment, agricultural practices and stormwater management.

“The James River is a great comeback story going from one of the most polluted rivers in the nation to one of the most improved,” said Bill Street, president and CEO at the James River Association. “In order to make additional progress and achieve a fully healthy James River, we all must do our part to safeguard the river for future generations.”

The State of the James is issued every two years to examine the status and trends of 18 indicators that fall within two categories – river health and river restoration.

For each indicator, the James River Association utilizes the most current data available and evaluates it based on benchmarks set by the state or other authorities to define what is needed to achieve a fully healthy river.

“The more we invest, the better the river gets,” said Jamie Brunkow, director of advocacy and river ecology at the James River Association. “The State of the James demonstrates a clear connection between funding by Virginia in clean water programs and the health of the James River. The recent historic level of investments in wastewater and agricultural pollution controls are already paying dividends for the millions of Virginians who rely on the James River.”