Archived News

SCC working to develop action plan for firing range

With guidance from the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality, Southwestern Community College has instructed ECS Carolinas, LLP, to develop an action plan to address elevated lead levels downhill from the firing range that the college operates off River Road in Sylva.

In an Oct. 29 meeting, college officials met with representatives from NCDEQ, ECS Carolinas and Tuckasegee Wastewater Treatment Authority, which has a facility that neighbors the firing range, as well as Chuck Wooten, Jackson County manager, to discuss results of the most-recent round of testing that detected lead levels above what NCDEQ considers safe.

ECS will produce an action plan by Nov. 20 as requested by Robin Proctor, western area environmental chemist for NCDEQ.  While the plan is being assembled, SCC will take immediate steps to prevent further runoff from the site by installing a new sediment trap as erosion control.

The plan ECS is developing will include a strategy for completely eliminating all future runoff from the site as well as removal of lead currently on the site. 

Proctor emphasized that once preventative measures are taken, lead levels downhill from the range will immediately decrease.

“As long as SCC takes these steps to eliminate the spread, I see no reason to close the site,” Proctor said. “It’s a great site for a range … They need to stop the source of the problem and remove lead from the edge of the range and below.”

Smokey Mountain News Logo
SUPPORT THE SMOKY MOUNTAIN NEWS AND
INDEPENDENT, AWARD-WINNING JOURNALISM
Go to top
Payment Information

/

At our inception 20 years ago, we chose to be different. Unlike other news organizations, we made the decision to provide in-depth, regional reporting free to anyone who wanted access to it. We don’t plan to change that model. Support from our readers will help us maintain and strengthen the editorial independence that is crucial to our mission to help make Western North Carolina a better place to call home. If you are able, please support The Smoky Mountain News.

The Smoky Mountain News is a wholly private corporation. Reader contributions support the journalistic mission of SMN to remain independent. Your support of SMN does not constitute a charitable donation. If you have a question about contributing to SMN, please contact us.