Long Branch Fish Kill May Have Been Caused By Other Construction Sites: FCPS

Updated (May 29, 9:15 a.m.): This story was updated to include a statement from Fairfax County Public Schools.

FAIRFAX, VA — Construction at Frost Middle School in Fairfax may be the cause of a significant fish kill incident that occurred last week in the nearby Long Branch Stream, state officials said. But a representative of Fairfax County Public Schools disagrees.

The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality is investigating what killed a large number of fish found dead in the stream south of Route 236 in the Fairfax.

The cause of the fish kill remained under investigation as of 3 p.m. Monday, according to VDEQ's incident report.

Both VDEQ's Pollution Response Program and Water Quality Management staff investigated the site, and the cause of the fish kill was listed as undetermined in the incident report.

"DEQ staff did observe evidence of an E&S Control (erosion and sediment) failure at a construction near the Long Branch waterway headwaters. Sediment-laden water may have contributed to fish kill," according to the report.

The report also noted there was a construction site southwest of the fish kill. Frost Middle School is currently undergoing a renovation, and a stream runs behind the school toward the Woodson baseball field.

Patch reached out to Fairfax County Public Schools and received this statement from FCPS media relations manager Julie Moult on Tuesday morning:

"The Fairfax County Public Schools renovation project at Frost Middle School adheres to all applicable regulations as administered by the County in its regulatory capacity. The plans for the project are design, approved, and permitted by the County. The contractors and site are subject to routine inspections. Additionally, FCPS maintains a fulltime onsite presence with the contractors and is readily available to respond to any and all potential concerns. As of the time of this statement, FCPS has not been contacted by VDEQ, the County, or any entity. There are other nearby activities as well as other potential causes which may have contributed to the fish death. FCPS has rechecked its site in the meantime, and remains available should the current investigation require a response."

John Gallagher, whose property is located at the edge of Long Branch Stream Valley Park, reported the fish kill to VDEQ on Thursday. The day before, he went out to investigate after his son told him there were many dead fish in the stream behind Olde Creek Elementary School.

"We walked an entire quarter or third of a mile, and we just kept seeing more, four and five fish, as we went up," he said. "Eventually, we saw about 30 on the first day."

As Gallagher and his son continued walking toward Somerset Pool, they took photos and shot videos of the dead fish. They eventually stopped at along the stream near Laurel Street and Whitacre Avenue across from the Woodson High School baseball field.

Uncertain of what to do next, Gallagher posted photos on Facebook and NextDoor, asking for advice on whom to contact.

"The next day I went back out with my friend around three o'clock to see if there were any more and we actually saw a bunch more," he said. "I would say almost 40 fish and they were different sizes, anywhere from 3 inches up to like 6 inches."

When Gallagher returned home, he checked NextDoor. People had posted links to various county and state agencies for him to call. Within a couple of hours, he got a call back from VDEQ, telling him they would send someone out that same day.

"My older son goes to Woodson," Gallagher said. "I had gone over to watch my son play soccer and my younger son, who's 14, he walked through the woods and he said he actually saw people testing the water."

Gallagher said VDEQ had told him that a change in the water's temperature could have caused the fish kill, although he's never seen anything like this in the six years he's lived near the stream.