RICHMOND — A plan to dredge thousands of tons of excess sediment from two lakes in a Forest subdivision was approved Thursday by the State Water Control board.
The Forest Lakes Property Owners Association, which applied for the permit, has worked for more than seven years to come up with the plan. The lakes gradually have filled in with sediment, mostly coming from upstream development, and dredging will improve boating access and open-water habitat.
A public hearing was held last month, where nearly two dozen residents told board chairman Shelton Miles of how water quality has declined and boating access has become inhibited because the lakes have filled in.
“I think everyone in the western metro Lynchburg area are really feeling the failure of the past state policy of erosion and sediment control measures,” Miles said Thursday. “Those issues, of course, are largely out of the purview of this board.”
The proposal calls for dredging up to 33,700 cubic yards of sediment and would deepen parts of the lakes by several feet. It also would create a place where excess sediment coming in from upstream can drop out, said Jay Roberts, with the Department of Environmental Quality. However, Roberts also said last month there’s no way to tell how dredging will affect water quality or whether it will clear the water.
During a public comment period this fall, DEQ received 41 requests for a public hearing, with some residents saying the project was not economically sound and the state needed to do more to control sediment coming in from upstream. According to the association’s Web site, property owners will be assessed about $1,200 to pay for the project. DEQ said it doesn’t have jurisdiction over most concerns raised in the comments.
“I’m sympathetic with the sediment issues that both the opponents and proponents were concerned about,” Miles said. “If there weren’t sedimentation issues, they wouldn’t be needing a permit.”
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