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. D.C. is spending $35 million on a 77-acre underwater cleanup. “They’ll get here right in time for all the pollution.”, “That’s good!” interjected Ariel Trahan, who oversees river restoration programs at the society. The District has embarked on several strategies to clean up the Potomac and Anacostia rivers, as required by a 2005 federal consent degree. The Anacostia River suffers from heavy pollution. After 10 years of flunking, Anacostia River passes annual health-check with D rating. They are purifying the water.”. The sewage creates a public health threat because of fecal coliform bacteria and other pathogens; it also impairs water quality and can create hypoxic conditions that lead to large fish kills. The interim decision is largely unchanged from an “early action” plan originally unveiled in December 2019. The Anacostia River, once dubbed the “forgotten river” because of centuries of abuse and neglect, is forgotten no longer. “They like eating.”. The Anacostia River has been subjected to dredging, filling, contamination, and other human influences for over 200 years. The Anacostia segment of the tunnels is expected to be completed by 2023, but one segment that has been completed already has been able to divert more than 1 billion gallons of sewage in a four-month period. With recent efforts to remediate the river, the Anacostia and its surrounding neighborhoods are a site of urban development and environmental gentrification. Many of the toxic byproducts — like PCBs — ended up in the Anacostia River. Yes, the small bits of plastic bottles and straws are destroying our waterways. Then about five years ago, Jorge Bogantes spotted an eastern floater, a species of freshwater mussel, caught on a friend’s fishing line. In the ensuing years, he and other scientists would snorkel and dredge the river beds to identify the native species of mussels. “They are doing what a filtration plant or a wastewater plant would do for water. Anacostia Riverkeeper’s fight Against Microplastic Pollution The rate at which our waterways are constantly being polluted is alarming. With our fellow Waterkeepers in the Chesapeake Bay Region, we protect families by stopping pollution. NOAA has been partnering to evaluate, clean up, and restore the Anacostia watershed since the late 1990s. According to the U.S Environmental Protection Agency, almost half of the country’s rivers are polluted. “It’s a great investment, but it’s one piece of the puzzle.”. Not so long ago, the Anacostia River was the pride of the District of Columbia, flowing as a pristine ribbon for nearly nine miles from Prince George’s County in Maryland to where it empties into the Potomac. The Anacostia and Potomac rivers have been pivotal to the region for generations as sites of trade, travel, and recreation. 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.”. Subsistence fishing is common in Washington, D.C.'s Anacostia River. NOAA has been partnering to evaluate, clean up, and restore the Anacostia watershed since the late 1990s. During rainstorms, the river receives discharges of untreated sewage due to the city's antiquated combined sewer system. He also questioned why the District doesn’t tackle the first 11 hot spots together, which he suggested would speed cleanup and reduce costs. To protect and restore the Anacostia River by bringing partners and communities together to achieve a clean and safe Anacostia River for the benefit of … 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. […] 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. HOORAY!! Just the 8,700 we are releasing this fall could filter 48 Olympic-size swimming pools a year,” Bogantes said. For decades, heavy industrial pollution has infiltrated the waters of the Anacostia River, which cuts right through the heart of Washington, D.C. Sherard also serves as chair of the Anacostia Watershed Citizen Advisory Committee hosted … It was alive. But there’s a lot of potential opportunity to marshal these organisms to benefit society.”. resulted in pollution, poor water quality, and contaminated sediments in the river bed. The 507-page blueprint calls for dredging PCB-tainted sediment in some areas while capping others with clean sediment and activated carbon granules to keep the toxic chemicals from getting back into the water. “People sometimes call them environmental engineers,” said Fred Pinkney, a U.S. The volunteers paddled their canoes down the Anacostia River on a recent rainy day, the stench of trash lingering in the air as mud-caked bottles floated on the surface of the murky waters. The shellfish act as natural filters. With our fellow Waterkeepers in the Chesapeake Bay Region, we protect families by stopping pollution. 1254. The pollution in the Anacostia River sediment potentially came from multiple sources, including past industrial land uses, sewer outfalls, contaminated groundwater, runoff from rainstorms and landfills placed in the riverbed. Heavy rains send water rushing from streets and sewers into the Anacostia, dragging debris, bacteria and sediment into the river. Bibliography The important enviromenal issue around us 1st phenomenon Shot List Anacostia River Pollution 2nd Phenomenon In the heart of the nation's capital, running from Bladensburg, Md., to Washington, D.C., is a river that is a poster child for America's tragically neglected, The District’s Department of Energy and Environment posted an “interim record of decision” on its website spelling out its intent to dredge or cap and treat contaminated river sediments in 11 “hot spots” along a 9-mile stretch of the lower Anacostia before it joins the Potomac River. Bill Matuszeski - December 15, 2020. “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. CREDIT: AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin. Not far from the District, advocates have also been experimenting with mussels as a restoration tool in the Delaware Estuary. The Anacostia River Tunnel will help prevent combined sewage overflows Image by DC Water. “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.”. The Anacostia River joins the Potomac River and flows into our nation's capital. 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. Loss of habitat, erosion, sedimentation, flooding, destruction of wetlands, channelization, toxic pollution, decaying older communities and waterfront areas and loss of river-based recreational opportunities such as boating, fishing and swimming all characterize what had become of the Anacostia River and much of its watershed. A cloudy tank of water brimming with mussels cleared over several hours as the shellfish performed their filtering function. “This is a new thing, and it’s still a very rapidly evolving science and there’s a lot we need to learn. Tweet on Twitter. On patrol with the enforcer of the new D.C. plastic straw ban. For a long time, environmentalists thought the Anacostia was too polluted to support mussels. Bogantes is a natural resources specialist with the Anacostia Watershed Society and recognized the potential of filter feeders to clean the river. The result of these activities is that the river has been seriously degraded from its natural state. 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. While nitrogen is essential for plants, too much in waterways can result in algae blooms or oxygen dead zones where wildlife cannot survive. Pollution levels in the river are unjust for the District's citizens. It wasn’t just the Navy Yard dumping in and around the river. The eggs hatch into microscopic larvae in the female’s gills. Back on the river, the volunteers and staff with the Anacostia Watershed Society steered under a bridge where a plastic garbage can bobbed. COMMENT THE ANACOSTIA RIVER: URBANIZATION, POLLUTION, EPA FAILURES, AND THE COLLAPSE OF THE PUBLIC TRUST DOCTRINE By: Matthew Powell I. (Aya El Sadek/ The Wash) Grading a River. By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, Reporter covering health care and coronavirus, Local newsletters: Local headlines (8 a.m.) |. The female mussels nudge out the larvae by expelling them or extending a chunk of tissue resembling a worm to lure in fish hosts. The highway construction, numerous public housing, and majority population have caused the areas around the Anacostia River in the District of Columbia grew urbanization forest and wetland habitat, overstream flows, and constantly increasing amounts of sewage and polluted runoff into the river. “Are we going to come back and see them three years from now?”, “That would be cool,” replied Maddie Koenig, an environmental educator at the society. Sewer overflow. With eight species identified, they can get to work revitalizing their populations. Robert Boone founded the Anacostia Watershed Society in 1989. Blog Contact Events. For the first time ever, the Anacostia River has passed an annual health-check that assesses the waterway for levels of toxins, trash and other … 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. Rhonda Urlin-Knights, an environmental science teacher at Dr. Henry A. 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. Anacostia Pollution “Hot Spots” to be Dredged, Trout Fishing the Watershed’s Sweet Spots, 1st-Time Trade: Offsetting Pollution with Oyster Investments, Richmond Tree Initiative to Combat Heat, Pollution, Inequity, Fish Kill Linked to Severn Headwaters Firefighting…, Study Details Plastic Pollution's Brutal Impact on Bay Life, Bald Eagle Aerobatics Draw Photographers to Conowingo, Black Duck & Dumplings on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. The mainstem Anacostia is the third area in line for cleanup. Sometimes they would don shoulder-length gloves and crawl on all fours during low tide to find them. In an Administrative Compliance Order on Consent, EPA cited the company for failing to take … DC Water, the District’s water and sewer authority, collects wastewater in both separate and combined pipes. The mussels fit into a vision of a self-sustaining river as humans do their part to keep pollution out. CONTACT: Donna Henry (DDOE) 202.299.3338; donna.henry@dc.gov (Washington, DC) – Members of the newly-formed Leadership Council for a Cleaner Anacostia River met for the first time this week to discuss efforts to restore the Anacostia River. Prior to this, Will served eleven years in the Marine Corps where he did multiple deployments to Afghanistan, and the Asia-Pacific. 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. 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 Polluted and neglected for decades, the Anacostia River is undergoing a renaissance thanks to years of community advocacy. The Anacostia River Tunnel will help prevent combined sewage overflows Image by DC Water. Heavy pollution in the Anacostia and weak investment and development along its banks have led to it becoming what many have called "D.C.'s forgotten river." They’ve also been heavily polluted in recent decades, but there are indications that clean up efforts are paying … 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. On September 30 the DC Department of Energy and Environment issued something called the “Interim Record of Decision and Near-Term Action Plan for the Anacostia River Sediment Project.” Now if this does not excite you to stand up and cheer, you may not be aware how long some have been waiting for this document. But despite the prestigious location, ... industrial pollution and raw sewage into the water. The mission of Anacostia Riverkeeper is to protect and restore the Anacostia River for all who live, work, and play in its watershed, and to advocate for a clean river for all its communities. The interim Anacostia riverkeeper is Trey Sherard, who has spent the past eight and a half years working with communities along our river. 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. Getting A Start on the “Hotspots” By. D.C. is spending $35 million on a 77-acre underwater cleanup. Tagged: anacostia river, dc, east of the river, environment, pollution, rivers, stormwater, sustainability, water Will Schick is an MFA student in Creative Writing at American University. 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. 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. In a good year, they can expand from an inch wide to three inches. PHILADELPHIA (April 16, 2020) -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced that Roubin & Janeiro, Inc., owner of an asphalt manufacturing facility in Washington, D.C., has agreed to several actions to protect the Anacostia River from polluted stormwater runoff. “Each mussel can filter between 10 and 20 gallons a day. In recent years, however, private organizations, local businesses, and the D.C., Maryland and federal governments have made joint efforts to reduce its pollution levels in order to protect the ecologically valuable Anacostia … The George Washington House 4302 Baltimore Avenue Bladensburg, MD 20710 phone: 301-699-6204 fax: 301-699-3317 [email protected] “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. “Bye, bye, babies,” Robinne Gray of the watershed society said as she plopped a handful of mussels into the river, their shells disappearing into the murky depths. Most of the mainstem Anacostia is known as a coastal plain river, meaning that it can often have a high amount of biological material or sediments in it. Inside the water tunnel projects meant to save D.C. rivers. The mission of Anacostia Riverkeeper is to protect and restore the Anacostia River for all who live, work, and play in its watershed, and to advocate for a clean river for all its communities. Stormwater pollution enters the Anacostia River and this video shows one location where som of the pollution is trapped. 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. Rain can thus cause violations of water standards, as fecal coliform bacteria present in sewage mixes with rainwater and flows into Rock Creek, the Potomac River, and the Anacostia River. It was often called Washington's forgotten river. The Anacostia River, once dubbed the “forgotten river” because of centuries of abuse and neglect, is forgotten no longer. Unfortunately, the river has been abused for decades, making it one of … 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. The Anacostia Watershed is approximately 170 square miles with a population of more than 800,000 people who live within its boundaries. Anacostia River to Get New “Trash Trap” By Bay Bulletin / April 2, 2020 This fall, Montgomery County, Maryland will get its first waterway “trash trap,” a surprisingly low-tech pollution fighter that’s already in use along the Anacostia River. These sources of contamination are concentrated in the Anacostia River – just as air and soil pollution are more concentrated in the southeast portion of the city than the northwest. PHILADELPHIA (April 16, 2020)-- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced that Roubin & Janeiro, Inc., owner of an asphalt manufacturing facility in Washington, D.C., has agreed to several actions to protect the Anacostia River from polluted stormwater runoff. Unfortunately, the river has been abused for decades, making it one of the most polluted rivers in the nation. The most ambitious is a $2.7 billion network of four new tunnels stretching 18 miles, designed to stop overflowing waste from city sewers from discharging into 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. © Chesapeake Bay Media All rights reserved. Our Watershed . This plan identifies the early action areas or “hot spots” in the Anacostia River, Washington Channel and Kingman Lake, where contamination from pollution is highest. The tidal Anacostia River in Washington DC has long been impacted by various sources of chemical pollution over the past 200 years. That may still be years away. The larvae eventually drop off and form new mussel beds. Washington, D.C.'s Anacostia River has long been clogged with trash, sewage and industrial waste. … Anacostia River to Get New “Trash Trap” By Bay Bulletin / April 2, 2020 This fall, Montgomery County, Maryland will get its first waterway “trash trap,” a surprisingly low-tech pollution fighter that’s already in use along the Anacostia River. With our fellow Waterkeepers in the Chesapeake Bay Region, we protect families by stopping pollution. Centuries of development around the nation’s capital rendered most of this river too polluted for fishing or swimming. He said the report card that was developed scored different parts of the river. A great blue heron flies by the bank of the Anacostia River. Share on Facebook. One of the biggest problems facing the Anacostia River is raw sewage that enters the river and its tributaries. br/>The Anacostia River and its tributaries have been the victim of more than 300 years of abuse and neglect resulting in pollution, loss of habitat, erosion, sedimentation, flooding, and destruction of wetlands. 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. The Anacostia River, which runs through Maryland and the District of Columbia, has suffered from decades of pollution, mainly from runoff and hazardous waste sites. Based on early estimates, Kreeger projects a full-size mussel hatchery could end up reducing nitrogen at dramatically less cost than other measures such as wetland restoration. 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 are essentially as hard as the sole of your shoes,” said Matt Ashton of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, who helped identify the freshwater mussels native to Anacostia. The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning. Restoring shellfish as a method for river restoration is not a new idea. 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. 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 … With more time needed to issue contracts and get permits, Wells said at a meeting previewing the plan that work likely won’t begin until 2023. Anacostia River Sediment Project Overview. 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. … But funding for freshwater mussel research is harder to come by than money for oysters and clams that can both clean water and serve as a delicious meal, scientists say. The presence of PCBs and other toxic contaminants in the sediments make it a health risk to eat many fish from the river. (Aya El Sadek/ The Wash) Grading a River. Photo: Dave Harp. A recent inventory of species, called a BioBlitz, counted 522 unique species, including rare and endangered species, birds, fish, mammals, amphibians, insects and many more. 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. Not so long ago, the Anacostia River was the pride of the District of Columbia, flowing as a pristine ribbon for nearly nine miles from Prince George’s County in Maryland to where it empties into the Potomac. But mussels can also remove bacteria such as E. coli, while trapping microplastics and other sediment clouding up the river. Anglers on the Anacostia River. Centuries of development around the nation’s capital rendered most of this river too polluted for fishing or swimming. 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. But now this once-vibrant recreational spot is better known for being one of the most polluted rivers in the nation. “The improvement of our technology to propagate and grow them to a large size so we can tag and release them has paved the way for this new way of thinking to release mussels for actual river cleanup,” said Rachel Mair, a Fish and Wildlife Service biologist at the hatchery. 32 The city's sewage problem, however, quickly outgrew the plant's capacity. The Anacostia River: Making Connections from Stone Soup Films on Vimeo. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist who has researched mussels. District officials stress that this interim plan is likely to be revised as work proceeds. Anacostia Riverkeeper’s fight Against Microplastic Pollution The rate at which our waterways are constantly being polluted is alarming. To explore more recent inputs of various chemicals, six sediment cores were collected for dating and chemical analysis in the downstream section of the tidal Anacostia River. Tucked inside the canoes was the latest hope for turning this river crystal clear: Hundreds of two-inch mussels, piled up in baskets and nestled in gobs of thick mud. HOORAY!! The Anacostia River, which runs through Maryland and the District of Columbia, has suffered from decades of pollution, mainly from runoff and hazardous waste sites. After promising results from a pilot program, the D.C. government in August announced a $400,000 grant to the Anacostia Watershed Society to reintroduce 35,000 mussels into the river. “Our babies!” she said. But they require a third party — a fish — to host the larvae. Our River: The Anacostia. Microplastics are among the largest contributors to this kind of pollution. Bogantes snorkeled in the Anacostia in search of pregnant mussels. Thousands of people consume fish from Washington, D.C.'s highly polluted Anacostia River, despite safety warnings. At the time, it was the largest advanced treatment plant in the world. 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. 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. Freshwater mussels are edible but not as desirable as their saltwater cousins, which are often served with butter and beer at restaurants. Or as Bogantes put it recently, “They taste like mud.”. It was banked by an estimated 2500 acres of wetlands that inundated and dried according to the tides and the seasons. The primary contaminants of concern for the cleanup project include: The pollution in the Anacostia River sediment potentially came from multiple sources, including past industrial land uses, sewer outfalls, contaminated groundwater, runoff from rainstorms and landfills placed in the riverbed.