Virginia DEQ recently partnered with the City of Waynesboro Public Works Department on a water quality improvement project that began construction last week. The project plans include planting wetland grasses, shrubs, and trees, and converting a former detention facility into a wetland channel with pools to collect sediment and reduce the amount of phosphorous and nitrogen that reach the river and bay. According to the two departments, the project is part of a comprehensive plan to reduce pollution in the South River and Chesapeake Bay, both of which are listed as impaired bodies of water by state and federal agencies. [McAleer]