June 26, 2026
For questions about the health advisory, contact:
Brian Stanley, Environmental Health Manager, Sr., Cumberland Plateau Health District
276-415-3370 brian.stanley@vdh.virginia.gov

For questions about the repairs, contact:
Wise County Public Service Authority, www.wisecountypsa.org

Virgina Department of Health Lifts Pound River Recreational Advisory
Public may resume recreational activities in the waterway

POUND, Va.- Effectively immediately, the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) lifts the advisory for the Pound River, from the Town of Pound treatment plant and its collection system to the Skeetrock Bridge on Skeetrock Road (State Route 619) on the Pound River Branch of Flannagan Reservoir.

The advisory was issued May 6, 2021, after the Town of Pound reported that infiltration and flows from the Pound River, due to a recent storm event, exceeded the treatment plant’s capacity, resulting in the discharge of untreated raw sewage into the Pound River. The Wise County Public Service Authority has completed repairs to the system. The Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) bacteria samples on the Pound River below the plant outfall, confirms the treatment facility is working properly and are meeting their discharge permit outfall limits for bacteria.

For more information on recreational water safety visit Swim Healthy, Virginia!