Anacostia River Likely to Escape Major Impact from Potomac Spill

A massive sewage spill on the Potomac River, the largest in U.S. history, has so far had little impact on the Anacostia River.

The failure of a 72-inch pipe, the Potomac Interceptor, in mid-January led to the release of hundreds of millions of gallons of raw sewage.

The spill occurred about 9 miles upstream of the mouth of the Anacostia, but at high tide, tidal action is pushing some of the polluted Potomac water into the other river.

Still, Christopher Williams, president and CEO of the Anacostia Watershed Society, told the Hyattsville Wire that water sampling near the South Capitol Street Bridge has found that E. coli levels remain low in the Anacostia.

“The river is already closed to swimming, there is little or no fishing in the river due to winter conditions, and the Anacostia is not a source of drinking water for any local communities,” he told the Wire. “So chances of human exposure are low.”

It is too early to tell if the spill will affect fish and other aquatic species in the lower river or the Bladensburg Waterfront Park.

Although Williams said the effects of this spill are likely low, the fact that such spills occur periodically is the biggest obstacle to returning swimming in the Anacostia.

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