SUFFOLK, Va. — How healthy is this the Nansemond River? A recent report says of the 23 miles of the river, half of it is severely impaired.
Beth Cross is President of the Nansemond River Preservation Alliance. She says their most recent data on the health of the river was not good.
"For us, a specific indicator is the bacteria levels. When it says increase in pollutants—it is nitrates and phosphates, and that is your basic pollution of chemicals on the lawn, chemicals from our car or oil runoff, even dog poop or pet waste."
Watch related coverage: Will Virginia meet its Chesapeake Bay goals by 2025?
Cross says as a result of that report, her group is launching a special campaign Saturday at Suffolk's Sleepy Hole Park, which overlooks the Nansemond River.
"The Suffolk Nature Project is really focused on getting people connected with nature in a meaningful way because if you know and feel like you belong in a space, you'll protect it. You'll treat it differently," she explained.
This is a story I'm following through on after first reporting on the river's health last November. I went to Mattanock Town, the Nansemond Indian Nation tribal headquarters, that sits on the Nansemond River.
Watch previous coverage: Nansemond Indian Nation fights for their namesake river
Keith Anderson, Chief of the Nansemond Indian Nation, stressed how important the health of the Nansemond River is.
"Everyday, [we] think of ways of how we can keep it as clean and pristine as we can," he explained.
Cross says working to make the river healthy is a shared mission. One of the joint efforts includes oyster restoration projects: a collaboration between the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, the Nansemond Indian Nation and her group.
"The Nansemond Indian Nation is doing the largest project on the Nansemond River in environmental stewardship and restoration, she said. "Part of that is doing oyster gardens and then releasing the oysters. They grow onto our oyster reefs here in Suffolk."
She said last year, they released almost 10,000 oysters onto local oyster reefs.
"That's going to create habitat, better oxygen, better filtering in the water," she said. "One three-inch oyster, an adult oyster... can filter 20 to 50 gallons every day."
Watch related coverage: How to become an oyster gardener and help keep the Chesapeake Bay clean
Cross says the Nansemond Indian Nation is setting a powerful example and encourages the community to contribute in any way they can.
"We know that each citizen that owns a piece of land in Suffolk can do the same thing... restoring a piece of land," she said.
Cross says making an impact can be something as simple as what people plant around their homes.
"We created a native garden here at Sleepy Hole so people could see some of the native plants that people might want to put in their backyard. The more trees and green and native plants we're putting back into our community, the more pollinators, the more growth we'll see that also creates a filter... to filter water, to filter rain, to filter anything in our backyards or on our streets before it gets to the river," she says.
Cross also says there a common lawn care item that's been negatively impacting the river: fertilizer.
"If you could take one small space in your yard and create just a natural area where you put your leaves, where you don't put fertilizer, it's going to help increase habitat.," she said. "The amount of fertilizer and nitrates we use on our lawns are creating the problems in the Nansemond River."
While Saturday's launching of the Suffolk Nature Project will focus on the Nansemond River, organizers are hoping to inspire the Hampton Roads community to be mindful of our everyday actions and how they impact our local waterways.
For more info on the Suffolk Nature Project or the Nansemond River Preservation Alliance, click here.
