Caney Creek Marina is the first marina on Watts Bar Reservoir to receive the Clean Marina Designation from TVA. The Clean Marina Initiative, begun in 2000 by TVA, helps marinas reduce pollution and encourage boaters to become effective stewards of water resources. Marinas must also meet all local, state and federal regulations on marina management and support education and informational efforts for boaters to reduce pollution using safe-fueling techniques and following fuel-spill prevention tactics.

TVA Honors One Marina's Cleanup
July 28, 2004

By Anne Pickering
Roane Newspapers

Saturday was a day that Caney Creek Marina harbormaster Rob Halcrow has been looking forward to for some time.
It's the day the Tennessee Valley Authority will officially designate the facility a clean marina.
"We'll run our clean marina flag up the flagpole right next to our regular flag," Halcrow said.
County officials and owner Darby Campbell will be on hand Saturday for the celebration and ceremony, where the marina will receive its certificate and flag.
"It's a big deal for us. We've been working hard for it," Halcrow said.
It's a huge investment for the marins, but it's worth it."
The marina is the first on Watts Bar Lake to receive the designation.
"We're hoping that Caney Creek getting the certification will motivate other marinas on Watts Bar Lake to get on board, said TVA Clean Marina coordinator Melinda Andres.
To receive the disignation, a marina has to meet standards set by TVA regarding sewage management, oil and gas control, marina sitting and erosion prevention.
One effective way that Caney Creek controls sewage is to provide many pump-out stations, said Halcrow.
Most marinas have a single pump-out at the fueling station, he said. At Caney Creek, the covered slips have five or six pump-outs each.
The marina is also a no-discharge marina, which prohibits the release of treated and untreated sewage within the harbor limits. The marina is connected to the county sewage treatment plant.
To prevent gasoline spills, the harbor has an employee-only fueling policy.
"People fill up their tanks to the very top, then they sit in the hot sun all day," Andrews said.
Some boats are hard to fuel, Andrews said, another reason to allow experienced staff members to handle it.
If a few drops of fuel get in the water, Halcrow said, the marina has a new nondetergent, non-phosphatic chemical that, when sprayed on the gasoline, absorbs it completely. It's expensive, but it is available for sale at the marina.
Halcrow said it was not easy to meet the clean marina requirements, but TVA is helpful with all aspects, including providing money.
The federal agency created the Clean Marina Initiative to help marina owners develop practices that protect water quality and educate boaters.
As of July 1, 36 marinas in the Tennessee Valley have earned the clean marina designation.
Every two years, these marinas have to get recertified.
Halcrow seems committed to the effort.
"Hey, we're doing our part to keep pollution out of Watts Bar," he said.
 

TVA  N E W S R E L E A S E

Caney Creek Marina Receives Clean Marina Certification

Caney Creek Marina, located on Watts Bar Reservoir, will soon fly a Clean Marina flag as a result of the marina’s actions to clean up the waterway.
A certificate and flag will be presented to Rob Halcrow, harbor master, and Darby Campbell, owner, in a public ceremony Saturday, July 31.
“To receive this designation, a marina must meet all federal, state and local regulations related to marina management,” said TVA Clean Marina coordinator Melinda Andrews. “The marina also must implement a number of recommended practices to minimize pollution and encourage boaters to become effective stewards of the water resources.”
The marina owner and harbor master voluntarily sought innovative measures to handle boat sewage. The marina is designated as a no-discharge marina, which prohibits the release of treated and untreated sewage within the harbor limits.
Other efforts include safe fuel-management techniques – including having a current Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasures plan – and providing information and learning opportunities for boaters.
“Rob Halcrow goes the extra step in training his employees by scheduling spill drills to see how long it will take them to deploy the booms in the event of a petroleum spill,” said Andrews.
Caney Creek Marina is the first marina on Watts Bar Reservoir to receive the designation. For additional information on TVA’s Clean Marina Initiative, go to www.tva.com/environment/water/boating.htm.
TVA is the nation’s largest public power provider and is completely self-financed. TVA provides power to large industries and 158 power distributors that serve approximately 8.5 million consumers in seven southeastern states. TVA also manages the Tennessee River and its tributaries to provide multiple benefits, including flood control, navigation, water quality and recreation.

Media Contact: Barbara Martocci, Knoxville, (865) 632-8632 or 632-6000

TVA Home Page: www.tva.com/newsroom

(Mailed/faxed July 23, 2004)

Caney Creek Marina Speech

The Tennessee Valley Clean Marina Initiative is a voluntary program developed and implemented by TVA to promote environmentally responsible marina and boating practices. This program is designed to help marina operators protect the very resource that provides them their livelihood: Clean Water.

In order to achieve Clean Marina status, a marina must first meet all federal, state and local regulations related to marina management. They must also implement a number of recommended practices to minimize pollution and encourage boaters to become effective stewards of the water resource. Caney Creek Marina has done this and then some. 

Rob, as Harbor Master, has gone beyond what is required under the guidelines and exceeded in several of the seven management categories of sewage management; oil and gas control; solid waste and petroleum recycling/disposal; vessel maintenance and repair; marina siting, design and maintenance; stormwater management and erosion control; and public education.

One of the really neat things he has done is to hold spill drills at this marina – what he does is tell his employees that there has been a spill, where and what it is and then he times them to see how fast they can have the booms deployed to contain the spill. I have told other TVA Clean Marina coordinators across the Valley about his drill -- they plan on sharing this idea with their marinas.

By participating in the Tennessee Valley Clean Marina Initiative, Caney Creek Marina has demonstrated its commitment to addressing water quality issues. Caney Creek Marina is working hard to keep our nation’s waters healthy not just for today’s boaters, but for future generations as well. 

Caney Creek Marina is not only an asset to TVA but also to this community—just last week I heard that Caney Creek Marina was voted Best Marina in Roane County. 

They are the first marina on Watts Bar Reservoir to be certified as a Clean Marina – it is our hope that this award will encourage other marinas on Watts Bar to become Tennessee Valley Clean Marinas.

Congratulations, Caney Creek Marina; Mr. Campbell and Rob. You run a fine operation here.

Melinda Andrews

TVA

Watts Bar-Clinch Watershed Team

865-988-2442

July 31, 2004