The French Broad River

There are two sites on the French Broad River, one at Barnard Bridge and the other at Hot Springs, and both are rated poor. These are the two most downstream of twelve VWIN monitoring sites on the French Broad River from the headwaters in Transylvania County to the Tennessee border. It may not be quite fair to rate these downstream sites on the French Broad River using the same scale as other mountain streams since larger rivers will always have certain differences. However, the French Broad River is receiving all or most of the water from the four counties along its length in North Carolina and is a reflection of what is occurring in those counties. By the time the river reaches Madison County, most of the pollutants affecting water quality are already in the river, but Madison County streams also contribute to elevated pollutant levels.

Figure 9 shows the grade received at each site along the French Broad River from Rosman in Transylvania County to Hot Springs in Madison County. Elevated sediment concentrations in the most upstream area in Transylvania County cause the grades to slip rapidly from the most upstream site and traveling through Transylvania County. As most streams in Transylvania County show low median concentrations of sediment, bank erosion along the river may be a factor in creating higher concentrations in the river. Sediment levels decline somewhat through Henderson County, but nutrient concentrations change very little (Figures 10 and 11). Mud Creek and Gash Creek, with their high concentrations of nutrients, are probably the main contributors of nutrients to the river in this section, while the Mills River acts to dilute these concentrations.

Sediment concentrations fluctuate in Buncombe County, but nutrient concentrations increase greatly. Conductivity levels also increase steadily. Urban runoff is a great contributor of salts, heavy metals, and nutrients to streams. Also, some of the more heavily sedimented streams in Buncombe County enter the river in Asheville and farther north and effluent from the Asheville wastewater treatment plant (MSD) enters the river just north of Asheville. Many of the more heavily sedimented streams also carry larger concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus.

Sediment and nutrient concentrations continue to increase in the southern part of Madison County. Sandymush Creek, which flows largely through Buncombe County and forms part of the border between Buncombe and Madison County, deposits its elevated concentrations of sediment and nutrients in the river at the county border. The Ivy River deposits its sediment and nutrient load just inside the Madison County border. Sediment and nutrient concentrations decline only slightly between Barnard Bridge and Hot Springs. Madison County streams average higher concentrations of sediment and nutrients than any of the other counties along the French Broad River, so there is no significant dilution of these pollutants from the contributions of Madison County.

To improve water quality in the French Broad River it will be necessary to attack many of the problems from point and, particularly, non-point source pollution throughout the watershed. Focusing attention on specific problems such as: bank erosion in Transylvania County; nutrient inputs from various wastewater treatment systems, urban runoff, and livestock farming; and sediment loading from construction in urban areas and agricultural runoff, particularly in watersheds with steep slopes and extensively cleared land, could help greatly to improve water quality in the French Broad River.

Clean, safe water resources are important to the economy of Western North Carolina. People living in and traveling to the mountains expect mountain streams to be clear and clean. All of the counties in the French Broad River watershed must collaborate to ensure that mountain waterways maintain their beauty and cleanliness. Political boundaries are irrelevant to watersheds. The first step toward water quality improvement is to view the French Broad River watershed as a whole, to take action as a region, and be willing to work together as neighbors.