Yes, the small bits of plastic bottles and straws are destroying our waterways. Share on Facebook. It wasn’t just the Navy Yard dumping in and around the river. Photo by Will Parson/Chesapeake Bay Program Though it’s surrounded by parkland today, the Anacostia is severely polluted by sediment, nutrients, pathogens, toxins, and trash. The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning. Bogantes is a natural resources specialist with the Anacostia Watershed Society and recognized the potential of filter feeders to clean the river. The mussels fit into a vision of a self-sustaining river as humans do their part to keep pollution out. A: The Anacostia River and the land area that drains to the river have a long history of urbanization, industrialization, and agriculture, which has resulted in pollution, poor water quality, and contaminated sediments in the river bed. © Chesapeake Bay Media All rights reserved. He also questioned why the District doesn’t tackle the first 11 hot spots together, which he suggested would speed cleanup and reduce costs. Anacostia Riverkeeper Trey Sherard said he is “thrilled to greet the publication of the Interim Record of Decision, locking in the early action areas for the first big step towards cleaning up the toxic chemicals that have been choking the Anacostia River for over a century.”. The students gathered at a riverfront park in Bladensburg to measure and tag the mussels so that the watershed society could track their growth in the years to come. After 10 years of flunking, Anacostia River passes annual health-check with D rating. In the shadows of the Potomac River, the Anacostia River has long been known as D.C.’s forgotten river due to the effects of heavy pollution and neglect. “They like eating.”. “It’s also not a silver bullet because if we get a lot of pollution of heavy metals, the mussels are not going to survive.”. Three entities — Pepco, the U.S. Navy and Washington Gas — have already signed consent decrees pledging to clean up pollution left behind by facilities they once operated on the river. Its toxic-laced bottom is due for an initial cleanup expected to cost $35.5 million under a long-anticipated plan released Sept. 30 by the District of Columbia. 2010] The Anacostia River 71 city constructed the Blue Plains Wastewater Treatment Plant along the Anacostia River, near its confluence with the Potomac River, in the 1930s. The District has made progress reducing polluted stormwater runoff by installing trash traps, adopting innovative policies, and securing regional agreements that reduce upstream sources. NOAA has been partnering to evaluate, clean up, and restore the Anacostia watershed since the late 1990s. COMMENT THE ANACOSTIA RIVER: URBANIZATION, POLLUTION, EPA FAILURES, AND THE COLLAPSE OF THE PUBLIC TRUST DOCTRINE By: Matthew Powell I. DC Water, the District’s water and sewer authority, collects wastewater in both separate and combined pipes. With our fellow Waterkeepers in the Chesapeake Bay Region, we protect families by stopping pollution. The District is fronting the funds to launch the cleanup but is hoping to recover at least some of the remediation costs from companies and federal agencies determined to be responsible for the contamination. The Anacostia River Tunnel will help prevent combined sewage overflows Image by DC Water. … “Wouldn’t it?”, Elite private school battles to maintain access to public field after backlash, In wealthy D.C. areas, mixed reactions to mayor’s call for affordable housing, A steep sugary drink tax could be imposed in the District, Local newsletters: Local headlines (8 a.m.) | Afternoon Buzz (4 p.m.), Like PostLocal on Facebook | Follow @postlocal on Twitter | Latest local. Its toxic-laced bottom is due for an initial cleanup expected to cost $35.5 million under a long-anticipated plan released Sept. 30 by the District of Columbia. Why a D.C. water fee fight involves race and the First Amendment, “This is simply a new arrow to put in our quiver,” Kreeger said. “Our babies!” she said. Wise Jr. High School in Prince George’s County, looked at the Anacostia where the mussels would soon be dropped. All those steps may not happen in a polluted river, so the Anacostia Watershed Society instead turned to a hatchery at Harrison Lake in Virginia. The city also provides financial incentives for property owners to install green roofs or to plant trees in an attempt to reduce ­storm-water runoff. INTRODUCTION The Anacostia River is a tidal river that slowly flows for eight and four tenths miles through Prince George's County, Maryland and the Inside the water tunnel projects meant to save D.C. rivers. Three entities — Pepco, the U.S. Navy and Washington Gas — have already signed consent decrees pledging to clean up pollution left behind by facilities they once operated on the river. “The fact we are able to reintroduce them at all is a huge indicator we are making progress,” said Jeffrey Seltzer, a deputy director at the D.C. Department of Energy and Environment. Three entities — Pepco, the U.S. Navy and Washington Gas — have already signed consent decrees pledging to clean up pollution left behind by facilities they once operated on the river. What was once cutting-edge technology now fails to meet the The presence of PCBs and other toxic metals and chemicals in the sediments make it a health risk to eat many fish caught locally or to go swimming or wading. District officials stress that this interim plan is likely to be revised as work proceeds. The Anacostia River Tunnel is one phase in DC Water’s Clean Rivers Project, which aims to drastically cut down on the pollution in the area’s waterways. With recent efforts to remediate the river, the Anacostia and its surrounding neighborhoods are a site of urban development and environmental gentrification. After reviewing about 850 comments received since then, officials say they have tweaked it to do more dredging in the Kingman Lake area to allow for safer water recreation around Kingman Island, a municipal park undergoing restoration. According to the U.S Environmental Protection Agency, almost half of the country’s rivers are polluted. With our fellow Waterkeepers in the Chesapeake Bay Region, we protect families by stopping pollution. Yes, the small bits of plastic bottles and straws are destroying our … Jim Foster, president and CEO of the Anacostia Watershed Society, also welcomed the plan but cautioned that “this isn’t the whole enchilada.” He estimated there are another 14 contaminated areas this plan doesn’t address. The river is on such an exciting upward trajectory that the Anacostia Watershed Urban Waters Partnership recently partnered with the District Department of Energy and Environment and SmithGroup, a design and engineering firm, to study the feasibility of creating a space specifically for swimming in the Anacostia River. Prior to this, Will served eleven years in the Marine Corps where he did … Without commercial demand for freshwater mussels, funding for their restoration hinges on proof of their ability to save rivers. Lower turbidity levels are better for our local water quality as it allows more sunlight to reach bottom dwelling plants like submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) as well as indicating less particulate matter in the water which could be a sign of pollution. In the ensuing years, he and other scientists would snorkel and dredge the river beds to identify the native species of mussels. It was alive. Those areas have the highest levels in the river of PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls), long-banned chemicals once widely used as coolants or insulators in electrical equipment that are now associated with cancer and other health effects. The Anacostia Watershed Society is also using its work to help teach environmental awareness and biology. A: The Anacostia River and the land area that drains to the river have a long history of urbanization, industrialization, and agriculture, which has resulted in pollution, poor water quality, and contaminated sediments in the river bed. Subsistence fishing is common in Washington, D.C.'s Anacostia River. Tommy Wells, the DOEE’s director, said the plan’s release means that “District residents can look forward to a future where they can safely swim and fish in what was once a degraded urban waterway.” Officials say the remedial actions outlined in the plan are expected to yield a 90% reduction in people’s risk of exposure to PCBs from eating contaminated fish. Dennis Chestnut, now retired, was the founder and executive director of Groundwork Anacostia, a nonprofit organization dedicated to transforming the natural and built environment of the community. During rainstorms, the river receives discharges of untreated sewage due to the city's antiquated combined sewer system. Washington, D.C.'s Anacostia River has long been clogged with trash, sewage and industrial waste. The Anacostia River Partnership (DC/MD) celebrated the Year of the Anacostia Exit, ... League, and National Park Service, students learned about wildlife along the river, water quality, and impacts of pollution through land-based activities in addition to taking canoes out on the water.