A sign in February along the C&O Canal, which is popular for recreation, warns visitors of the sewage overflow into the nearby Potomac River. (Photo by Christine Condon/ Maryland Matters)
By Kyle Cooper
Residents affected by the massive raw sewage spill into the Potomac River earlier this year shared ongoing concerns at a public meeting in Glen Echo on Monday night.
About 75 people packed Glen Echo Town Hall in person, and more joined online. Many did not give their names but raised a range of concerns.
One man described the lingering smell of sewage: “I always open the window and it’s putrid!”
“Our hometown river deserves better and our communities do as well,” he added.
Another woman raised a similar concern: “It’s really bad. I’m smelling it from my car on Clara Barton [Parkway] and on the bridge.”
The problems began on Jan. 19, when a sewage line that connects Northern Virginia and upper Montgomery County to the Blue Plains Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant in Southeast Washington ruptured. The 60-year-old Potomac Interceptor pipe had collapsed and spilled an estimated 243 million gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac River.
How long will the Potomac River suffer sewage spill impacts?
After five days, crews were able to redirect the spill into the nearby C&O Canal, where it bypassed the break and was pumped back into the pipeline south of the break to continue its journey to Blue Plains.
Repairs on the pipe were complicated by rocks that fell into it, creating a rock dam in the pipe that had to be removed, largely by hand. Crews were finally able to restore flow in the pipe and drain sewage from the canal, which now is undergoing cleanup along with the river, nearby parklands and paths.
Officials said during Monday’s meeting that part of the ventilation system designed to neutralize odors is damaged. They outlined plans for a chemical dosing system upstream intended to reduce the smell.
Others complained about the cleanup process, with one attendee saying, “We’re extremely disappointed in the product and the process.”
David Gadis, CEO of DC Water, told the crowd he knows this was a “horrific incident.”
“We have done everything we can up to this date, and we will continue to hang in here,” he said.
Zachary Schafer, assistant secretary of Maryland Department of the Environment, told the crowd conditions in the river are improving.
“Overall bacteria levels, specifically E. coli, are very very low in the water column,” he said.
D.C. Water is seeking public input on its restoration plan, which can be viewed on its website.
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Originally published at Marylandmatters.Org