Reporting Pollution to VA DEQ
VA SOS monitors are the eyes and ears of their chosen sites and are often the first to discover and report pollution events. If you find evidence of a significant pollution event like a sewage or oil spill, please do not go into the water and notify the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality immediately.
If you have a pollution incident to report, follow the information below provided by VA DEQ.
Emergencies
If you observe a significant pollution incident that presents an imminent threat to human health or the environment, report the pollution incident to the Virginia Emergency Operations Center at 1-800-468-8892. Do not use the online reporting tool.
Citizens and regulated entities may report pollution incidents by submitting a report online or by contacting a regional office.
If you observe a pollution incident, take note of details that will help the agency investigate or follow up on the report and provide the information when submitting a report.
- Who is responsible for the incident
- What is the issue (e.g., illegal disposal of waste, discharge of pollutants to surface water)
- When did the incident happen and if it is on-going
- Where it happened
- What has been impacted (e.g., soil, surface water, groundwater)
- Other information (e.g., weather conditions, site conditions)
The information you provide will be forwarded to a Pollution Response Coordinator for investigation and follow up.
NOTE: If you would like to make an anonymous complaint, please do not provide your name or contact information. However, if you do not provide sufficient or accurate information, the agency may not be able to follow up on or investigate the complaint. If you have any questions, please contact the Pollution Response Program in one of our six regional offices.