Closing of Millbrook Quarry and "The" Dive Shop in Northern VA

[ScubaGirlInVA]

Our local Northern Virginia diving community is in shock after learning that "The" Dive Shop in Fairfax has closed its doors, and that Millbrook Quarry is also closed indefinitely, as of yesterday. This news has a deep impact on other local shops, instructors, students, and recreational divers who have been using Millbrook for many years.

TDS has been in operation for over 40 years, and Millbrook is the primary local dive site for this region. So this season we have seen the closing of Bainbridge Quarry up in Pennsylvania, and now our local site. We were relieved to see the re-opening of Rawlings as Lake Phoenix earlier this season, as this is likely our next closest place to dive. But for most of us, driving to places farther out will become far less feasible. This is sad news and very unexpected.

 

[Steve_C]

Given the negative vibes lots of folks have about LDS and using internet sales as often as one can one can expect to see more of this in the future.

 

[stuartv]

Our local Northern Virginia diving community is in shock after learning that "The" Dive Shop in Fairfax has closed its doors, and that Millbrook Quarry is also closed indefinitely, as of yesterday. This news has a deep impact on other local shops, instructors, students, and recreational divers who have been using Millbrook for many years.

TDS has been in operation for over 40 years, and Millbrook is the primary local dive site for this region. So this season we have seen the closing of Bainbridge Quarry up in Pennsylvania, and now our local site. We were relieved to see the re-opening of Rawlings as Lake Phoenix earlier this season, as this is likely our next closest place to dive. But for most of us, driving to places farther out will become far less feasible. This is sad news and very unexpected.

Definitely sucks. Hopefully, someone else will take over the lease quickly and get it back open. It's only 15 minutes from my house, so it would make a BIG difference to my gas budget if I have to start driving pretty much anywhere else.

I did just learn today about Hyde's Quarry up in MD. It is a bit closer than Phoenix. And, if the viz is actually as good as it looks in the video on their website, it looks better (viz) than Phoenix, too.

Any of y'all been there?

 

[ScubaGirlInVA]

The max depth at Hyde's is only 50 ft, and I'm not sure how silty that is. Not much fun for tech divers. Also they seem to have funky hours, something like 9am-1pm? But maybe that's dependent on how big a turnout they get, I'm not sure. This is just what I've heard from fellow instructors. I do know several shops use it for classes.

---------- Post added October 6th, 2015 at 03:42 PM ----------

Steve_C, I unfortunately have to agree with you. This has become a tough business to be in as a dive store. It also doesn't help that Millbrook's viz dropped to almost nothing when they eradicated the zebra mussels a number of years ago. Gone are the days of 30+ ft when new divers still found it fun to dive there because they could actually see. Now a good day is perhaps 10-15 ft at best. That's hard to excited about.

 

[CptTightPants21]

The max depth at Hyde's is only 50 ft, and I'm not sure how silty that is. Not much fun for tech divers. Also they seem to have funky hours, something like 9am-1pm? But maybe that's dependent on how big a turnout they get, I'm not sure. This is just what I've heard from fellow instructors. I do know several shops use it for classes.

---------- Post added October 6th, 2015 at 03:42 PM ----------

Steve_C, I unfortunately have to agree with you. This has become a tough business to be in as a dive store. It also doesn't help that Millbrook's viz dropped to almost nothing when they eradicated the zebra mussels a number of years ago. Gone are the days of 30+ ft when new divers still found it fun to dive there because they could actually see. Now a good day is perhaps 10-15 ft at best. That's hard to excited about.

Why would they eradicate the Zebra mussels? I thought the inside joke with all of these quarries was the Zebra mussels "slipped in" on someones BC...lol

 

[stuartv]

Why would they eradicate the Zebra mussels? I thought the inside joke with all of these quarries was the Zebra mussels "slipped in" on someones BC...lol

Supposedly, the state of VA is concerned about them spreading and getting into the cooling towers at Lake Anna (or something like that)?? My understanding is that they poison Millbrook and other places (Lake Phoenix/Rawlings) every year to keep the zebra mussels out.

 

[CAPTAIN SINBAD]

Too bad! I did my drysuit course and my nitrox from this LDS. They were very nice folks but LDS model is struggling to survive all over. They were the last shop that I thought would close.

---------- Post added October 6th, 2015 at 06:23 PM ----------

Can anyone tell me how much is it to lease the quarry and who do you lease it from?

 

[Pedro Burrito]

The lease was for about $1,500 per month, every month, whether you used it or not. No improvements were allowed because the county didn't even have a record of it being used for diving. TDS tried to have pavilions installed but could not get a permit from the county. The owner inherited the property from his mother and is more interested in the loads of dirt that he has delivered to the site daily. That dirt gets washed into the lake after every rain causing the visibility to drop.

Regarding the zebra mussel issue:

Zebra Mussel Eradication at Millbrook Quarry

Why is eradicating zebra mussels important?

Elsewhere in North America and Europe, zebra mussel populations that colonize open or large water bodies are merely managed to reduce economic and ecological impacts, usually at great financial cost and accompanied by long-term loss of natural resources. Numerous water treatment and power facilities must regularly treat their systems to keep them clear of zebra mussels, beaches must periodically remove decaying masses of dead zebra mussels, and bottom-dwelling organisms are often covered by this exotic mussel.
In the United States, congressional researchers estimated that zebra mussels cost the power industry alone $3.1 billion in the 1993-1999 period, with their impact on industries, businesses, and communities exceeding $5 billion. If zebra mussels had not been eradicated from the quarry, and had escaped into adjacent waters, Fairfax Water estimated that they would incur an initial cost of $2-4 million for chemical feed facilities, in addition to $500,000 - $850,000 per year for chemicals and system maintenance. The City of Manassas would likely incur similar expenses to treat zebra mussels at its facility on Lake Manassas, and other private and public facilities throughout the Commonwealth would be at risk.
Many freshwater mussel populations (as well as other aquatic species) have been completely wiped out from areas that zebra mussels now colonize. Fifty-four percent (54%) of the native freshwater mussel species in Virginia are currently listed as endangered, threatened, or of special concern. If zebra mussels become widely established in this state, the effect on native freshwater mussel populations could be devastating.
Given the proximity of Millbrook Quarry to Broad Run and its extensive use as a dive location, it is highly unlikely that the zebra mussel population could simply have been forever isolated. Broad Run has historically flooded the bank separating it from Millbrook Quarry (1972, Hurricane Agnes), and unintentional transport of larvae, or veligers, by divers from the quarry to other state waters would be likely.
Diving in Millbrook Quarry could have been prohibited, restricted, or subject to additional costs or regulation if the infestation of zebra mussels was not eradicated.

 

[tursiops]

And Mt Storm in WV has now been closed for a while.
It is getting tough.

 

[ScubaGirlInVA]

OK, respectfully, to clear up some misconceptions about Millbrook Lake:
1) The lease is, in fact, around $1,500/month and also increases by a percentage every year. That does not include any services out there.
2) The owner did not "inherit" the property from his mother, as she is alive and well. The site has been in the same family for several generations.
3) The site was managed by "The" Dive Shop in Fairfax, on a contract lease. With TDS going under, new management would have to be established on a new contract, if the owners agree to keep the site open.
4) The lake does not get "poisoned" every year. Potassium chloride was used to kill the mussels and the solution was estimated to be effective for a period of up to 18 years. The pH has been re-tested several times since then to make sure levels were still in the effective range, by the state.

The reason given for the eradication was that Millbrook could overflow into Broad Run, theoretically transferring the mussels elsewhere, into areas like Lake Manassas or around the Lake Jackson Dam, etc. Ironically, since the eradication, the flow has been deliberately reversed at the south end of the lake, near the "dirt farm", so basically every time it rains, a huge amount of dirt gets washed directly into the lake. Hence, the terrible visibility. It's really a shame, as it was never proven that mussels were ever in Broad Run. This was all done based on a hypothetical future situation.

You gotta love the part of that official report that stated that "Broad Run has historically flooded the bank separating it from Millbrook Quarry" -- and then cited 1972 as the last time, during Hurricane Agnes. As though this establishes an historical pattern.

As for Mt. Storm, I think they prohibited shore diving, because of their volume of traffic, but were still permitting diving if you were diving off a boat/pontoon. Not sure if this has again been revised.
"Prior to this area being leased to WVDNR, scuba diving was allowed in an area adjacent to — but part of — this parcel. For some years, diving was allowed from shore, but as steadily increasing traffic created higher risks, it became necessary to revise the regulations. Scuba diving is still allowed, but divers must access the scuba diving area via a launched pontoon or other suitable boat, away from the boat launch area. Diving directly from the shore is not permitted."
This is the link to Dominion Power's Mt. Storm page, which outlines what you are allowed to do there:
https://www.dom.com/corporate/what-...eled-power-stations/mount-storm-power-station