Advocate l Educate l Protect

Today would be our second attempt to complete the Tour de Neuse traveling by powerboat from just off of Union Point Park at New Bern to the mouth of the Neuse River.  We were certain of our success on this day because we had acquired the use of a boat that would make the trip, even if the weather and river were still not optimum.  Josephine and Stuart Dorsett, NRF members and long-time residents of New Bern, have offered the use of their boat, the “Trustworthy” for this final leg.  The boat is a 27foot long Phoenix with twin screws, and was well suited for the open waters of the Neuse River.  So we were set, and today we would not be denied.

The Trustworthy set off from the Eastern Carolina Yacht Club with a very distinguished crew.  On board with me for this last day were Rick Dove, NRF President and the first Neuse Riverkeeper, Dean Naujoks, Upper Neuse Riverkeeper, Bill Snyder, NRF volunteer and Tour de Neuse Support person, Jeff Aydelette, reporter for the Oriental “Pamlico News”..  We headed down the Trent River to the junction of the Neuse from where we headed for Neuse River Marker “NR” that signifies the mouth of the Neuse.  As we entered the Neuse River we passed near the Neuse River Foundation home office on Front Street. It is hard to believe Neuse River Foundation now has a full time staff of five, an office in Raleigh and New Bern, an annual volunteer base of more than 300 people including a volunteer air force and Creekkeeper program. Twenty-five years ago, five volunteers started Neuse River Foundation and for years operated out of a trailer.

The trip to the mouth of the Neuse River was an enjoyable excursion.  Jeff Aydelette used the time to get information and photos for a column he would be putting in the Pamlico Times, and the rest of us enjoyed the scenery.  The Trustworthy cut a nice wake as we headed down river.  During the trip, we talked Riverkeeper efforts both current and past; hearing about the trials and tribulations that Rick went through as the first Neuse Riverkeeper is always interesting, and give me a good sense of where we have been, where we are, and where we are going.  In fact, the basis of the Tour de Neuse was to bring all three of those aspects together and to better raise the awareness of current and future needs. While conditions in the river have improved, we continue to have annual fishkills. Some fishkills are natural, but many of the fish that die have unnatural open legions and bleeding sores linked directly to pollution that makes its way down the Neuse River, stalling out  in slow flowing waters of the Neuse Estuary. This problem was significantly worse in the 1990’s when hundreds of millions of fish died over a relatively short period of time. Some estimates exceed a billion fish lost as a result of pollution from hog farms, agricultural runoff, wastewater treatment plants, fertilizers and pet waste from yards. This is where all the upstream pollution from the headwaters in Raleigh on down becomes a serious problem for the river.

The combination of pollution and the fishkills as well as threats to human health reached such epic proportions by 1995 that a best selling novel “And the Waters Turned to Blood” was written by Rodney Barker highlighting the seriousness of this problem and the lack of accountability on behalf of the state regulatory agencies to address the pollution problems. This blatant lack of environmental enforcement is what prompted Neuse River Foundation Board Member Grace Evans (in 1991) to propose the idea of hiring a “Riverkeeper” after reading about the success of John Cronin, the first Hudson Riverkeeper. John Cronin used citizen suit provisions under the Clean Water Act and Safe Rivers and Harbors act to sue polluters who were destroying the Hudson River. The success of the Hudson Riverkeeper in cleaning up the Hudson River is now considered a model for ecosystem restoration and helped spark an economic revitalization of the Hudson River.

Several Neuse River Foundation Board Members objected to the idea because they felt the program would be too controversial. Yet, they realized their efforts to educate the public and urge elected officials to address pollution in the Neuse River had failed. It did not take much convincing that an enforcer was needed on the Neuse River, someone who would truly represent the interests of the river and patrol the river to force polluters to clean up their act as John Croinin had done on the Hudson River. Thanks to a grant by the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation that dream became a reality. 

Rick Dove, who had been a Marine Court Judge, retired to live out his life long dream of becoming a commercial fisherman. His dream was short lived because Neuse River fish and crabs could no longer safely be taken to market. He closed his fishing business and soon there after became the first Riverkeeper—not only on the Neuse River but the first in the entire South East. Rick immediately went to work, suing Kinston for dumping raw sewage into the Neuse River (which led to Kinston’s new sewage treatment plant.) as well as other polluters. He confronted the Hog Industry directly about their inadequate waste disposal methods, which has since become a national priority. Neuse River Foundation successfully sued the EPA, requiring the NC Division of Water Quality to implement a nutrient reduction strategy (called a TMDL, total maximum daily load) to control pollution problems in the Neuse Estuary.  The Neuse now has one of the only comprehensive river basin plans in the country that requires pollution reductions through out the entire river basins.

It is difficult to imagine the beautiful blue waters we are looking at now as we round the bend at Minnsot Beach were not so long ago closed to swimming and a wash of dead fish. It was good to see the beaches at the summer camps once again allow thousands of kids to swim. New Bern and Pamlico County has seen a spark in economic growth because people are moving here to be on the river. Mayor Bayliss of New Bern is a loyal supporter of the Neuse River Foundation because he was here in the 1990’s and saw first hand the devastation from pollution and the work the Neuse River Foundation had done to clean up the river. He continues to support our efforts because he knows there needs to be an on going commitment to take care of this river and that our work is far from over.

Today however, we will put our concerns aside and enjoy the final 15-mile leg of this 270-mile journey.  The plan, oncewe reached the mouth of the Neuse River, was fro Dean and me to jump overboard into the river; this was a fitting conclusion to a journey that started almost a month earlier on April 7th.  We were both actually looking forward to our "plunge."  Armed with cameras and video, Rick, Bill and Jeff were anxious to see us take a cold seim in the river.  I think they thought we were a little nuts but we were more than Happy to get it on film.  They did not paddle 270 miles as we had.

So at approximately 1:00PM, Dean and I took off our shoes, made sure our PFD's were on securely and on the count of three, made our jump.  And you know what?  The Neuse River is still a bit chilly on the 2nd of May.  We were both back at the swim ladder of the boat fairly quick, but we were also a bit reluctant to get out, because that would mean this incredible journey was really in the books.  As we climbed back into the boat, the three gentlemen on board had yet another surprise for us.  They wanted us to jump again, and not just once, but two more times.  Well, if you know Dean and me at all, you will know we are not ones to turn away a challenge, so we took two more dips in the Neuse River, and remarkably, each time we went over the side, the water didn’t seem quite as cold.  But now having a number of photos, and some good video, it was time to head back.  Again, it was somewhat reluctantly.

Our trip back, though, would be just as enjoyable, with the added bonus of stopping off at the Oriental Harbor at the “Oriental Marina & Inn” to fuel up for the ride home.  Motoring, or paddling, into Oriental Harbor is almost like going a few years back in time when small seaports were very common.  Oriental is a gem to see from a car, but to come into the harbor by boat is a whole different feel.  The shrimp boats docked neatly beside one another with other sailboats and powerboats docked here and there really adds to the charm of the town.  This was Dean’s first visit to Oriental, and I think he was impressed by the charm and quaintness of the town.

“I had always heard about how beautiful the town of Oriental is.” He said Oriental, and all of Pamlico County is an area for which I have some great concern; many, and most, of the residents, share this concern.  With the widening of Rt. 55 from just past the bridge crossing the Neuse at New Bern all the way into Oriental, the growth of development will undoubtedly go through the roof.  And with that explosion in development comes concerns for the environment if things are not done correctly, or what I call Smart Growth.  Issues with the loss of buffers and wetlands due to constructing homes on the waters edge are of a major concern.  Stormwater controls become very difficult in areas like much of Pamlico County where the ground is not much above sea level.  And then there is the wastewater infrastructure, which is nowhere near in a position to handle the influx of new housing and businesses.  Much of the county is not suitable for on-site waste disposal, and the use of “package plants” is not a good option for maintaining good water quality in the rivers, both the Neuse and the Bay River.

So there will be some hard questions and some difficult issues facing Pamlico County in the near future.  But rest assured that the Neuse River Foundation and Riverkeeper will be working with the county to ensure that Smart Growth and proper stormwater management occur to maintain the integrity of the water quality.

Gassed up (without spilling a drop in the water), we left Oriental Harbor to head up river for New Bern.  Along the way, we would be stopping off at Camp Seagull to meet a reporter and cameraman from Channel 11 TV in Raleigh.  After a short interview, it was back on the river still headed for New Bern.  At about 5:00 PM, the last line was tied at the dock, and we left the “Trustworthy” after yet another great day on the Neuse River. 

The Tour de Neuse was over…for this year.  Will there be a Tour de Neuse II?  I think that is a definite, but probably not for a year or two, unless the urge to get out again gets too strong.

Our photos tell as much of the story as our journal entries, and I would encourage you to visit this website often, because as additional photos and commentary become available, we will continue to add to the information.  These journals are work in progress.  It has been a learning experience and a way for us to focus attention on the Neuse River.  The people who have been there with support, the ones who have helped our efforts through donations/pledges to the Tour de Neuse, the people who helped us organize in their own town, the people we met along the river…you are the reason we do this job.  We do it for you, and we do it for the Neuse.  May she flow clean and healthy for many, many generations to come.