I am not opposed to cleaner water and saving the Bay but I am concerned that the proposed regulations will hurt Virginia’s reputation as one of the best places to do business and will have multiple unintended consequences. The regulations applied across the entire state do not make sense as a one size fits all solution to a state with varied terrain, soils and environmental characteristics. The regulations as they stand today are working to control the pollutants from development in the local waterways. . The lack of regulation and enforcement in agricultural and industrial areas cause a more significant problem than development as currently regulated. The majority of the pollution into the Bay, as shown the DCR documents, comes from drainage sheds outside of Virginia

The proposed regulations will promote sprawl by forcing future developments into areas where land is more plentiful and less expensive, which is in direct opposition to new state law requiring higher densities and mixed use developments. The additional facilities ultimately required by the regulations will put a burden on the local governments to maintain, eventually draining budgets and forcing higher local taxes.

There has been no scientific evidence produced showing the current regulations do not work or that the proposed regulations will have a significant effect on the environment. There are many different options to adequately protect the environment that need to be considered before enacting regulations targeted at a struggling sector of the state and national economy.