On June 3, DEQ Water Permit Writer Alison Thompson represented the agency at the ribbon cutting ceremony for the Potomac Water Supply Project. The ceremony marks the beginning of the new water supply project that will serve Loudoun County with an intake and pump station along the Potomac. The facility will be able to withdraw water at various levels from the river, and will use low-impact development  principles. An additional perk is that the building will receive a Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) certification.

Some aspects of the project will even make use of the surrounding landscape near the river. Vacant rock quarries from past Luck Stone operations will be used as extra storage to make sure that water is available during drought and water supply emergencies. This will give Loudoun Water space to eventually store a huge amount of its water supplies in the Luck Stone quarries. Water from both the Potomac River and the Luck Stone quarries will be treated at the Trap Rock Water Treatment Facility.

Thompson attended the opening ceremony and left with high hopes for the future of the project. "This is the culmination of many years of effort to bring a reliable water supply to the citizens of Loudoun County," she says. "When the project is complete, Loudoun Water will have the ability to store over 8 billion gallons of water in several quarries."

The Potomac Water Supply Project is set to officially break ground in early 2017.

Proper stormwater management is imperative in Virginia and the responsibility of the business, municipal and residential sectors. Best Management Practices (BMPs) are a method by which the adverse impacts of development and redevelopment are controlled. Raising awareness of current stormwater BMP's can help to:

• Protect the environment
• Improve water quality
• Save money

For these reasons, the Office of Pollution Prevention is committed to promoting efficient stormwater management and has recently created a webpage devoted to the topic.

By embracing innovations in environmental efforts like stormwater BMPs, VEEP members are uniquely positioned to lead by example. DEQ and the Office of Pollution Prevention request that VEEP members lead the regulated community by voluntarily implementing stormwater BMPs and assess successes or share current efforts with the Office of Pollution Prevention. This information will be used to refine and expand stormwater outreach efforts in Virginia and support similar efforts in Chesapeake Bay Watershed states.