Since the impact of Hurricane Helene, DEQ has been supporting the Virginia Emergency Support Team in response and recovery efforts across affected Virginia localities. Teams of DEQ staff conducted early assessments of impacts to wastewater treatment facilities, affected communities and to Claytor Lake, South Holston Lake, and their tributaries. Immediately after the storm, DEQ leveraged state contractors to assist the Virginia Department of Emergency's Hazmat program with recovery of oil and hazmat tanks and containers from Claytor and South Holston lakes. Virginia Tech has provided fixed-wing plane assistance to collect high-resolution imagery to map debris fields in the lakes for cleanup. DEQ staff also coordinated with wastewater treatment plants to assess damage to their facilities and to track restoration progress. DEQ continues to support recovery operations by participating on a Debris Management Task Force and providing technical and regulatory support to partner agencies, including, but not limited to the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, FEMA, EPA, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

After 30+ years of project planning, the now-obsolete Ashland Mill Dam across the South Anna River has been removed. The removal of the dam opened 38 miles of upstream spawning habitat for the American shad, 440 miles of upstream river network for the American eel, and more than 108 miles for alewife, blueback herring, and hickory shad. 

Three annual reports are now available online for public viewing. The PFAS Assessment and Source Reduction Activities 2024 Annual Report details activities related to PFAS assessments, self-reporting, and discharge monitoring. The Air Quality and Air Pollution Control Policies of the Commonwealth of Virginia details the status of Virginia’s air quality, provides an overview of the air division programs, and briefly summarizes federal and state air quality programs. Finally, the Virginia Annual Water Resources Report focuses on water quantity and supply, summarizes reported water withdrawals for the 2023 calendar year, identifies water withdrawal trends, and provides an update on the Commonwealth’s water resources management activities. 

Recently, DEQ hosted its first in a series of advisory committee meetings on Sewage Collection and Treatment regulations. This committee, compiled of various subject matter experts, is tasked to make recommendations concerning policies, procedures, and programs for regulating sewerage systems and treatment works. As a result of this first successful meeting, DEQ may incorporate committee suggestions in its review of regulatory language updates and addition of any new technologies and methods. The next meeting is Nov. 4 at DEQ Piedmont Regional Office in Glen Allen. Future meetings will be posted on Town Hall and the DEQ website, and can be attended by members of the public.