The University agreed this week to work to protect nearby streams from chemical leaks from the football field at Scott Stadium.
The agreement came almost two months after a toxic pesticide used on the field washed into a nearby creek and killed all the aquatic life residing there, University environmental compliance manager Jeff Sitler said.
The University submitted a short-term plan to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality detailing how it plans to prevent spills in the future, Bill Hayden, a spokesman from the department said.
In early May, the football field was overwatered, and a fumigant called Basamid washed into the storm sewers of the stadium and then into a nearby stream, a violation of state environmental law.
The chemical killed about 600 fish, which included minnows and eels, Sitler said.
He said state representatives actually came to Charlottesville to count the dead wildlife.
No big game fish, which are generally more expensive to replace, were killed, he said.
The University had to pay $64.85 to replace the dead fish, and $365 to pay the department's administrative costs.
"The athletics department is very upset this happened," Sitler said.
In the plan the University submitted, it pledged to keep the storm drains covered when applying chemicals to the field, to refrain from spreading hazardous materials near drains, and to train personnel working on the field in environmental laws.
The University is also required to submit a long-term evaluation to the Department for Environmental Quality by Sept. 15 stating whether there are further changes that need to be made to the drainage system or the fertilizing system, Hayden said.
Basamid is a pesticide used to purge soil of impurities and kill weeds.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Basamid is slightly to highly toxic to fish, moderately to highly toxic to birds, moderately toxic to mammals and slightly toxic to honey bees.
The University did not have to pay a state fine, which the Department of Environmental Quality usually imposes, because the University is a state agency.
The Department of Environmental Quality is a state agency that enforces environmental regulations.
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