Docket: EPA-HQ-OAR-2013-0495 

My name is Sarah Hagan. I am an organizer with the Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club but I am 

also a paddler, hiker, gardener, amateur bird watcher, and aspiring naturalist. I live in 

Fredericksburg, VA on the fall line of the Rappahannock River — the longest free flowing river 

on the east coast. As rivers go, it's a relativeiy healthy one, but every day I see the effects of 

climate related disruption in my watershed. Carbon pollution accounts for 80% of greenhouse 

gas emissions in the US. 40% of that comes from power plants. Greenhouse gases have 

numerous effects, but I want to talk about rainfall and stormwater run-off today. According to 

the EPA, we've seen 5% increase in the amount of precipitation in the United States in the last 

century and in recent years, much of our precipitation is coming from intense single-day storms 

and greenhouse gases are a major contributor to these changing patterns in rainfall. With more 

land being deveioped (which leads to more impervious surface area) and more water than ever, 

the effects of ciimate disruption on the Rappahannock River Watershed are becoming more 

and more apparent. 

The Rappahannock frequentiy looks like chocolate milk due to high sediment loads in the 

water. Dirt is picked up by stormwater as it runs overland and is carried into our streams and 

creeks. During heavy rain, water travels at a high velocity through streambeds unaccustomed to 

the amount of water. The water cuts and gauges its way downstream destabilizing the 

streambank, loosening more sediment in the process. As the water slows, the sediment settles 

to the bottom of the stream or riverbed. Overtime, we humans begin to notice. In the last 5 

years, I have seen the shape of my river change as sediment loads have increased, shifted, and 

settled. I have watched as a portion of the river narrowed, channelized, and adapted to this 
new threat. I have seen streambanks become compromised due to the increased amount of 

stormwater they have to handie, and in turn I see the natural ecosystems failing. Grasses can't 

grow in dirty water where there is no sunlight, fish lack habitat and food when the grasses die, 

and in turn water quality becomes impaired. 

An increase in stormwater runoff also means an increase in the amount of chemicals, toxins, 

and excess nutrients carried into the river. High levels Nitrogen and Phosphorous plague the 

Rappahannock. When it rains in the upper watershed, these nutrients are washed from the 

fields and yards into the river. Once they make it to the lower basin, these plant boosting 

nutrients from fieids and lawns encourage growth in the water in the form of aigae blooms. 

When the algae dies and decomposes, it sucks the oxygen out of the water creating dead 

zones. There is little to no oxygen in a dead zone so nothing can live there. No oysters, fish, or 

crabs. This affects the water quality and it affects the lives of the watermen who depend on the 

river for their livelihood. The dead zone in the Rappahannock is 7 times larger than all the dead 

zones in Virginia's other rivers combined. 

I ask that the EPA to limit the amount of carbon emissions from all new power piants buiit in 

the US. Power plants are the leading contributor of the #1 greenhouse gas in this country: 

Carbon Dioxide. With fewer carbon emissions, we'II see fewer of the extreme weather events 

that contribute to the problems of stormwater runoff in the Rapppahannock River Watershed. 

The time to act is now. Let's not wait until it's too late. Thank you. 

Sarah Forrest Hagan, 540-460-4656, 710 Lee Ave, Apt A, Fredericksburg, VA 22401