From Staff Reports

HOT SPRINGS, N.C. — Recent water quality testing by Mountain True following the devastation wreaked upon the area by Tropical Storm Helene indicated the threats are varying — and that the Lower and Upper French Broad River sections were a grade cleaner than  the Middle French Broad, according to Anna Alsobrook, the French Broad riverkeeper, a program run by Mountain True.

Specifically, Alsobrook discussed the group’s most recent report — and the status of the river — in a Jan. 30 address in Pine Hall at Hot Springs. She was hosted by Ike Lassiter and the Friends of the Hot Springs Library.

Her address focused on MountainTrue’s State of Our Rivers Report (released in March 2025), which is performed every two years in conjunction with the state Department of Environmental Quality and nonprofit Environmental Quality Institute.

The Lower French Broad, in which Hot Springs and Marshall are situated, received a “B” grade in the March 2025 water quality report, Alsobrook stated. “The Lower French Broad, around (Madison County) — it steps up a grade. There’s a lot of forest, and water quality improves because there’s more forested areas. This is a good example of watershed impact by urban development.”

She added, “Around Asheville, it becomes a ‘C,’ as it flows north downstream. There are a lot of water quality impacts there,” including urban development, aging infrastructure and higher E. coli concentrations.

The Upper French Broad River also was rated as generally good quality as it passes through Brevard, Alsobrook noted.

Elsewhere in the watershed, the river basin grades included Nolichucky River, “A;” and Pigeon River, “B,” she said.

Regarding a Daily Planet question about the current trend on water quality in the French Broad River, AI Overview stated the following on Feb. 15: “The water quality trend of the French Broad River is currently defined by a ‘post-storm’ recovery following the historic flooding of Tropical Storm Helene in late 2024. While the river has largely returned to its baseline condition, it continues to face chronic issues with E. coli, sediment and urban runoff.”

Alsobrook listed the four biggest threats to the French Broad River as bacteria from sewage and agriculture, sediment erosion, stormwater runoff and emerging contaminants like microplastics

Alsobrook said one of the primary duties of her job as riverkeeper is to find sources, including taking data or collecting samples to push for better regulation on an industry, while other times it is to push for a legislative policy.

What’s more, the ACT noted that “the most common bacteria harming river quality is E. coli, which commonly inhabits the intestines of livestock, pets and wild animals, and makes humans sick if it enters the body. E. coli comes from three main sources: aging sewer and septic infrastructure, agricultural runoff and living in the sediment of the river.

“A big rain event will make bacteria levels higher,” Alsobrook stated.

The ACT also quoted Alsobrook as saying, “If you look at the river and it’s a chocolate milk and it’s just rained, you may want to rethink your decision.

“When you ingest water that has high levels of e. Coli in it, you risk GI problems, ear infections, skin infections, skin rashes and things like that.”

MountainTrue, formed in the early 1980s, works across the Southern Blue Ridge Mountains to protect forests, safeguard clean water and build healthier communities, according to its website. 

It serves 28 counties in WNC, Northern Georgia and Eastern Tennessee, and employs five riverkeepers on the Catawba, French Broad, Green, Upper New and Watauga rivers. 

The organization works on a wide range of issues, including clearcutting, coal ash, invasive species and data mining/cryptocurrency.)

A watershed is an area of land where water converges on a central point and is directed to different rivers, basins or seas. The French Broad Rivershed, spanning 16 counties — eight in both WNC and Eastern Tennessee — is governed by the region’s mountains.

Believed to be the third-oldest river in the world, the French Broad predates the mountains in WNC, and shaped the way the mountains were formed, according to Alsobrook. The river is estimated to be 260-325 million years old.

The French Broad River basin is a 213-mile-long river system flowing north and west from headwaters near Rosman to Tenn., ultimately joining the Mississippi River. It was “named by settlers for flowing toward French-held territory,” AI Overview noted.