Dozens Decry Caroline Water Plan During DEQ Hearing

October 2, 2024

By Erin Kelley, Rappahannock Times

A crowd estimated at nearly 300 people gathered in the Caroline County Community Center Auditorium on September 25 for the Department of Environmental Quality’s public hearing concerning Caroline County’s planned water project, which if approved would remove up to 13.9 million gallons of water a day from the Rappahannock River.

One by one, dozens of people, from elected officials and Native leaders to farmers and average citizens, came forward to decry the plan that, if approved, would pump water from the Rappahannock, propel it nearly 35 miles to residential centers in the Carmel Church area, and then dump excess water into the Mattaponi River.

The hearing came as the latest step in what has become a contentious effort for Caroline County to meet water demands that some say are driven by potential commercial interests, like the future construction of data centers, but county officials maintain are largely residential in nature.

Virginia Senator Richard Stuart, who represents the area in question expressed the concerns of many who believe efforts to woo data centers are at the heart of this need for such large amounts of water.

“If this permit was about drinking water for the citizens of Caroline County, I don’t think you would have garnered nearly the concern that you have,” Stuart said.

“Our County Board of Supervisors has an affinity to consider these data centers,” said Caroline resident Mark Sander, who further described the Supervisors as “grasping for applications” from potential data center interests.

Data centers have proven to be a controversial addition in several localities, bringing the promise of high tax revenue, along with an outsized use of both water for cooling and electricity to power their systems.

Not one person who spoke during the hearing expressed any support for the water plan. Concerns ranged from the potential for increased salinity in the Rappahannock to the potential for causing damage to the Mattaponi by introducing a large influx of water artificially.

Leaders of the Rappahannock and Mattaponi Tribes were vehement in both their opposition to the project itself, and also the way it has been introduced.

“Caroline County has very clandestinely planned and executed this,” Rappahannock Chief Anne Richardson said.

While the DEQ maintains that the Tribes were consulted throughout the process, Richardson said that at least one notification letter was never received and what is being presented as “meaningful consultation” seemed like it was just notification after the decisions had already been made.

‘The Tribe is not merely another stakeholder,” Upper Mattaponi Chief Frank Adams said. “We have relied on the Mattaponi River for generations.”

Adams spoke of plans to build fish hatchery on the river, as well as continuing to use the surrounding areas for cultural religious activities – all things that would not happen if the Mattaponi was inundated with water transferred from another basin.

Neither Tribe wants to see the river that bears their name face such potential changes.

“We ask you to deny the permit for reasons of our sovereignty,” Richardson said. “The Rappahannock River is the mother of our nation.”

Richardson agreed that the conflict is not over drinking water.

“We are happy to have people have drinking water, but we oppose any commercial use,” Richardson said. “We oppose it and we will fight it with everything we have.”

In addition, there was much concern expressed about the unknown cumulative effects of removing water from several locations along the Rappahannock.

“Amazon already has a withdrawal permit on the other side of the site,” Stuart said. “What is the maximum amount of water that can be drawn from the Rappahannock River before affecting salinity?”

While DEQ has pointed to studies suggesting that the effect of removing water in the area surrounding the Caroline County site will be negligible, Hill Wellford expressed concern that there was no cumulative analysis done of the aggregate effects of removing water in these various locations.

“Here we are dealing with the cumulative impact,” Hill Wellford said. “Amazon will be pulling 6.6 million gallons from the same stretch of river. DEQ is looking at this intake in Caroline in isolation.”

“Water supply modeling is incomplete,” said Brent Hunsinger of Friends of the Rappahannock.

“DEQ should not issue a permit until modeling data can be updated.”

Furthermore, the models didn’t necessarily account for effects to be felt elsewhere.

“Your model said there would only be minor changes in Caroline, but it did not say anything about Westmoreland and Essex,” said Rafe Parker, a farmer from Leedstown.

And studies cannot necessarily anticipate all possible outcomes, some argued.

“Studies say we do not anticipate problems,” Essex resident Mac Garrett said, “but life is filled with unintended consequences.”

Garrett listed a host of individuals and industries that he felt could suffer harm, including farmers and commercial fishermen, individuals and the tourism industry.

“How is Caroline County and the State going to remediate that?” Garrett asked. “Do you want to mess with Mother Nature?”

Many comments came back to one overriding idea.

“The county government has been evasive,” said Caroline resident Kevin Collins.

Collins complained about what he described as “the misleading narrative that this is about public health.”

“This is not about public health. This is about data centers,” Collins said. “These corporations are not here to serve the public. They are here to turn a profit.”

Collins and others expressed a fundamental distrust in local government officials and what they are trying to accomplish.

Jason Sklute agreed with Collins’ skepticism of the process.

“I would like everybody to note the profound absence of our Board of Supervisors,” said Sklute, pointing to the empty seats behind the dais where the supervisors usually sit during public meetings. “The idea that the county supervisors have signed documents to hold secrets from us would indicate they are not serving us. They have been bought and watch out when they are sold.

Sklute said he had only learned of the water plan a few days before the hearing.

“This whole thing has been fast and loose,” Sklute said. “It is a rancid process.”

Local resident Ishmael Irvegas took the observation that the Board wasn’t present even farther.

“These cowards don’t care about you or your opinions,” Irvegas shouted, while waving his hand at the empty seats.

Irvegas strongly encouraged Caroline residents to find new representatives to replace the current board, who he repeatedly referred to as “cowards.”

“Jeff Sili, if I can’t find someone else to take your place, I’m not afraid to do it myself,” Irvegas said, to the cheers of those gathered.

Donald Ray Skinker implored the DEQ to take what he suggested would be the moral path.

“It’s just morally wrong to take that much water from the Rappahannock and ship it 35 miles to Carmel Church to enrich a small group of people,” Skinker said to the DEQ representatives. “I don’t know that you make decisions based on what is morally wrong, but this is just wrong.”

This article originally appeared in the Rappahannock Times. Click Here for Original Article