Welcome to The Guest River Restoration Project (GRRP)
The Guest River Restoration project is a group of local citizens, county, state, and federal agencies whose aim is to bring the Guest River and its tributaries off of the Department of Environmental Quality's 303(d) impaired streams list. The Guest River is a tributary of the Clinch River, which is host to a variety of endangered aquatic life.
Nestled in Southwest Virginia (Wise County) the roaring waters of the Guest River flow. Situated in the foothills of the Appalachian mountains, resource extraction has been the economic backbone of this region. With this extraction also come environmental degradation.
Despite the Guest River’s remarkable beauty these waters are potentially hazardous to your health. The Guest River is the most polluted tributary to the biologically significant Clinch River. Guest River impairments are due to non point source pollution runoff, high sediment loads due to historic and current resource extraction methods, unstable stream banks and poor best management practices (BMPs). The Guest also suffers from severe bacterial levels due to failing septic tanks and illegal straight pipes. Because of this sedimentation and bacterial pollution, aquatic life is struggling in the Guest River.
In 1998 The Guest River Restoration Project was founded from a collective agreement of local agencies and organizations concerned with water quality issues in the Guest River. Our mission is to ultimately restore the watershed back to health, creating economic and recreational opportunities for the people of Wise County.
Guest River Project is still moving forward today with a variety of programs and events.
Nestled in Southwest Virginia (Wise County) the roaring waters of the Guest River flow. Situated in the foothills of the Appalachian mountains, resource extraction has been the economic backbone of this region. With this extraction also come environmental degradation.
Despite the Guest River’s remarkable beauty these waters are potentially hazardous to your health. The Guest River is the most polluted tributary to the biologically significant Clinch River. Guest River impairments are due to non point source pollution runoff, high sediment loads due to historic and current resource extraction methods, unstable stream banks and poor best management practices (BMPs). The Guest also suffers from severe bacterial levels due to failing septic tanks and illegal straight pipes. Because of this sedimentation and bacterial pollution, aquatic life is struggling in the Guest River.
In 1998 The Guest River Restoration Project was founded from a collective agreement of local agencies and organizations concerned with water quality issues in the Guest River. Our mission is to ultimately restore the watershed back to health, creating economic and recreational opportunities for the people of Wise County.
Guest River Project is still moving forward today with a variety of programs and events.