|
We are currently working
to put together a brief history of the Potomac Basin. Currently
we offer to you a history of water quality in the Potomac Basin.
To view information for a particular time period, click on the dates
in the timeline below:
Or, you can view the Potomac's history by region.
1600s:
In 1608, Captain John Smith describes the Potomac as "...
frequented by otters, beavers, martens, and sables. Neither
better fish, more plenty, nor more variety for small fish
had any of us ever seen in a place."
Back to the top
|
A view of the Anacostia River near present-day Washington,
DC.
|
An American shad.
|
1700s:
Some of the Potomac's first shad and striped bass fisheries
are established by George Washington. Active fisheries also
include herring.
Back to the top
|
1800s:
1810 - First sewer system in Washington constructed
to convey wastes to nearest stream.
1830s - It was "not uncommon to pull
4,000 shad or 300,000 herring in one seine haul. One haul
of 450 rockfish with as average weight of sixty pounds was
documented. Hundreds of sturgeon were captured on a single
night near the US Arsenal in Washington" (Niles Weekly
Register).
1870 - Washington area population was 75,000.
1894 - USPHS reported "... at certain
times of the year the river is so loaded with sediments as
to be unfit for bathing as well as for drinking and cooking
purposes. It contains fecal bacilli at all times ..."
1898 -First biological survey of Potomac was
conducted.
Back to the top
|
An alewife herring.
|
A healthy bed of Submerged Aquatic Vegetation
|
Early 1900s:
1905 - USGS reports turbidity in the Potomac:
"3000 ppm during floods, 15-20 during low flow, >1000
ppm 18 days/year, 300-1000 ppm 43 days/year, 50-300 ppm 123
days/year, <50 ppm 181 days/year."
1911 - Fishery surveys of upper Potomac and
tributaries from 1898-1911 find 84 species of fish.
1914 - District of Columbia (DC) sewer system carries
wastes from 340,000 people to the Potomac. USPHS study of
pollution in the Potomac finds river in "generally good
condition" with "ample oxygen".
1916 - Potomac Estuary survey notes that submerged
aquatic vegetation (SAV) covers the Potomac, except for the
central channel, along both banks. Various reports indicate
that extensive beds of SAV were the "natural" condition
of the Potomac in the nineteenth century.
1930 - Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission
(WSSC, Prince George's and Montgomery counties) connects its
sewer system to DC's.
1932 - Untreated wastes from Metro area population
of 575,000 into Potomac. Bacterial contamination forces closing
river for swimming from Three Sisters Island to Fort Washington.
Low DO levels between Geisboro Point and Fort Foote endanger
fishery.
1938 - Blue Plains waste water treatment plant
(WWTP) is completed, with a capacity of 130 million gallons
per day (mgd) - primary treatment.
Back to the top
|
The Signing of the Compact forming the ICPRB
|
1940s:
1940 - Congress gives its consent to the states
of Maryland (MD) and West Virginia (WV), the commonwealths of Pennsylvania
(PA) and Virginia (VA), and the District of Columbia to enter into
a Compact providing for the creation of the Interstate Commission
on the Potomac River Basin (ICPRB) and the Potomac Valley Conservancy
District.
1943 - The Commission publishes its first report
on the condition of basin waters.
1945 - ICPRB adopts a pollution abatement program,
and publishes the first edition of its News Letter. Pennsylvania
passes the nation's first law that puts limits on acid mine drainage
pollution to streams.
1946 - ICPRB defines a set of "Minimum Water
Quality Criteria" by which means Potomac streams and waterways
may be judged suitable or unsuitable for several principal water
uses. VA creates a State Water Control Board. The PA State Chamber
of Commerce forms a Stream Pollution Abatement Committee, and the
state begins the planning phase of sewerage construction. ICPRB
completes an intensive survey of industrial pollution.
1947 - MD's Water Pollution Control Commission is
created.
1948 - The Congress enacts the first Federal Water
Pollution Control Act. ICPRB initiates a continuous water-quality
sampling program in the basin. Industrial wastes have made the Shenandoah
River below Front Royal a "biological desert."
1949 - Conditions on the Shenandoah have "radically"
improved since a year ago; credit is given ICPRB for its coordination
with local authorities. The WV Board of Health is created with responsibilities
for sewage disposal.
Back to the top
1950s:
1950 - Twenty Soil Conservation Districts
have been established to cover 98 percent of the Potomac watershed.
1951 - Low dissolved oxygen levels kill thousands
of fish during the summer. The Washington Post calls the Potomac
River "an open sewer."
1953 - The Federal Water Pollution Control
Act is extended.
1954 - ICPRB issues a major report describing the
polluted Washington area Potomac and publishes the results
of a study it sponsored on North Branch industrial wastes.
The regional WWTP concept is instituted with the signing of
an agreement between DC and the WSSC.
1955 - Congress directs the Army Corps of
Engineers (ACE) to study the North Branch. WRC-TV (Washington,
DC) telecasts the first installment of the "Our Beautiful
Potomac" series, which reveals the Potomac's poor condition.
1956 - Wastes from raw and partially treated
sewage of Washington, DC's population is double that of 1932.
Federal legislation is passed that extends and strengthens
the Water Pollution Control Act. The new Alexandria, VA, waste
water treatment plant goes into operation, and is heralded
as "the only ... plant ever built in the Washington metropolitan
area that has been adequate at the time of its completion..."
The Rock Creek Watershed Association is organized. Under the
auspices of the ICPRB, a group of citizens organizes the Citizens
Council for a Clean Potomac.
1957 - The U.S. Public Health Service declares
the Potomac River unsafe for swimming. The first Potomac Enforcement
Conference is called. The first waste water treatment planton
the North Branch is completed in Cumberland, MD. ICPRB estimates
that on the average, 60 million cubic feet of sediment is
deposited annually within the metropolitan Washington reach
of the Potomac estuary. The first National Water Quality Sampling
Station is put into operation on the Potomac at Great Falls.
1958 - The (1957-58) Potomac Federal Enforcement
Conference sets goals, among them secondary treatment for
Potomac treatment plants. MD and VA sign the Potomac River
Compact of 1958, and establish the Potomac River Fisheries
Commission. ICPRB is now gathering and tabulating information
from about 85 stream sampling stations operated by cooperating
agencies, municipalities and industries.
1959 - ICPRB publishes its first "Potomac
River Water Quality Network;" it holds a "first-of-its-kind"
silt control conference and sponsors a study of sediment sources
in the basin with US Geological Survey (USGS). DC and Fairfax
County, VA, sign an agreement for Blue Plains to treat a part
of the county's wastes. Secondary treatment is added at Blue
Plains.
Back to the top
|
A Sign at Mount Vernon advising people to "Avoid Contact
with Polluted RIver Water"
|
1960s:
1960 - The Metropolitan Washington Regional Sanitary
Advisory Board is established. Work begins on a plan to separate
DC's combined sanitary and stormwater sewers. The Upper Potomac
River Commission treatment plant in Westernport, MD, begins operation;
it is designed to clean up pollution in the North Branch Potomac.
1961 - DC installs the first fully automatic stream
sampling and recording device on the Potomac.
1962 - The Potomac River Fisheries Commission begins
operations. A comprehensive metro Washington area sewage disposal
report is issued.
1963 - ICPRB issues two reports on sediment sources
and an urban sediment control program. The ACE publishes a comprehensive
plan of development for the Potomac, which calls for 16 major dams.
1964 - The Potomac Interceptor, tying northern Fairfax
County and parts of Loudon County, VA, and Montgomery County, MD,
to the DC Blue Plains plant, is christened with its first sewage
flows.
1965 - The governors of the basin states and the
president of the DC Council establish a Potomac River Basin Advisory
Committee to coordinate views on matters affecting the watershed.
The Water Quality Act of 1965 passes, establishing a Federal Water
Pollution Control Agency and requiring water quality standards.
President Lyndon B. Johnson labels the Potomac "a national
disgrace," and sets 1975 cleanup goals. Efforts are initiated
to preserve Mason Neck.
1966 - The Federal Inter-Departmental Task Force
on the Potomac issues its report to the President. It proposes the
Potomac National River and makes recommendations. The Clean Water
Restoration Act passes, increasing grants for research, state programs,
and construction of waste water treatment plants. VA undertakes
the task of defining its river basins and planning water resource
development and management. PA begins long-range sewerage planning.
1968 - Chlorination of the Washington area waste
water treatment plant effluent begins. DC engages a firm to study
Blue Plains development. The ACE issues a new report: six (instead
of 16) major reservoirs are proposed.
1969 - The earlier Enforcement Conference goals
have not been met: the river is described as "a severe threat
to the health of anyone coming into contact with it." A new
Enforcement Conference is called, mandating the degree of treatment,
capacity for growth, and regional commitments. The Mason Neck Wildlife
Refuge is established.
Back to the top
|
|
An algae bloom along the Potomac.
|
1970s:
1970 - ICPRB's Compact is amended, extending its
authority to include water supply and water-related land use. DC
passes erosion control legislation. MD enacts a sediment control
law, installs the Maryland Environmental Service, creates the Wetlands
Act of 1970, and imposes a ban on sewer extensions affecting the
five drainage basins under the jurisdiction of the WSSC. VA sets
up a state construction grant program, imposes a moratorium on new
sewer hookups in Fairfax County, and approves a Potomac-Shenandoah
water resources plan. Metropolitan Washington local jurisdictions
sign a Memorandum of Understanding, agreeing to expand Blue Plains
to 309 million gallons per day and allocating additional capacity
and local share of costs. The US Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) is established.
1971 - The DC Council prohibits water contact sports
in the Potomac, Rock Creek, and the Anacostia River. Urban sediment
is a major concern.
1972 - The Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments
(Clean Water Act, or CWA) are passed by Congress, establishing a
national goal of "swimmable-fishable" waters. PA passes
a sediment control law.
1973 - This summer, fewer algae blooms arrive later.
A suit is initiated in Federal District Court by the Virginia State
Water Control Board against WSSC for overloading the Blue Plains
plant. VA's Erosion and Sediment Control Law is passed.
1974 - A Blue Plains agreement allocates flows and
sludge disposal responsibilities; a trial program of phosphorus
removal begins.
1975 - An ICPRB conference focuses on rising dollar
and energy costs associated with DC metro area sewage treatment.
Congress authorizes a five-year study of the Chesapeake Bay.
1976 - Pleasure boaters rediscover the Potomac;
largemouth bass reappear in Washington, DC. There is a noticeable
lack of blue-green algae mats that had covered the upper estuary
a decade earlier.
1977 - The Federal Surface Mining Control &
Reclamation Act is passed. Blue Plains advanced secondary treatment
expansion is operational. Mercury is discovered in sediments and
fish in the Shenandoah River. CWA is revised to strengthen control
on toxic pollutants and to allow states to assume more regulatory
responsibilities.
1978 - The first annual Potomac Raft Race is held.
A full-time fishing guide begins working the Potomac. The USGS begins
annual submerged aquatic vegetation surveys. The Low Flow Allocation
Agreement is signed by ACE, MD, VA, DC, WSSC, and Fairfax County;
it is the first significant example of multi-level co-operation
for water resource management in the Washington area.
1979 - River improvements result in an interest
in permitting some contact sports in the metro Washington Potomac
once again.
Back to the top
1980s:
|
|
A hydrilla bloom south of Washington, DC
|
1980 - Secondary treatment is achieved at all local
waste water treatment plants. Some fish are caught below Keyser,
WV, indicating improving conditions on the North Branch. A Shad
fishing ban is initiated.
1981 - Approximately 100,000 persons attend "The
Awakening," a week-long event celebrating a cleaner, fishable
Potomac on the Mall. The first Potomac River festival in DC is held.
MWCOG recommends phosphate detergent bans.
1982 - The Potomac River Basin Consortium is established.
SAV begins to return to the tidal Potomac. Striped bass fishing
restrictions are initiated. Small beds of hydrilla are discovered
in the upper tidal river.
1983 - The EPA Chesapeake Bay Study is completed.
A Chesapeake Bay Agreement is signed. ICPRB initiates discussion
of hydrilla problem.
1984 - Northern Virginia waste water treatment plants
voluntarily impose a phosphorus limit. The Blue Plains feasibility
Study recommends the expansion of Blue Plains. MD and DC sign the
Anacostia Watershed Restoration Strategy Agreement. A metro Washington
regional sludge disposal agreement is reached. MWCOG organizes first
coordinated Anacostia watershed monitoring program. DC organizes
its first fisheries management program. VA passes a dechlorination
initiative.
1985 - MD initiates a phosphate ban and a striped
bass moratorium.
1986 - All major waste water treatment plants in
the metro Washington area have achieved phosphorus removal. DC initiates
a phosphate detergent ban. SAV distribution is now 3,600 acres.
Mechanical harvesting of hydrilla is initiated. Avtex on the Shenandoah
River is listed as an EPA Superfund site.
1987 - The Clean Water Act is revised. The second
Chesapeake Bay Agreement is signed. Anacostia Watershed Restoration
Committee (AWRC), consisting of DC, MD, Montgomery, MD and Prince
Georges, MD, Counties, and the ACE, is formed. A cooperative agreement
to develop a plan for acid mine drainage abatement is signed by
WV and MD. A basin-wide phosphate detergent ban is recommended by
ICPRB. DC fishing regulations are put into effect. Maryland declares
Savage River a Trophy Trout Stream.
1988 - Blue Plains starts removing chlorine. A survey
finds 78 species of fish in the metro Washington Potomac. VA initiates
a phosphate ban. The [second] Anacostia Watershed Restoration Agreement
is signed. The First Maryland International Canoe/Kayak Classic
is held on Savage River. DC issues fishing licenses. The DC swirl
concentrator is dedicated on the Anacostia.
1989 - MD finds dioxin in North Branch fish. Potomac
region has complete striper moratorium. PCBs are found in Shenandoah
fish. PCBs and chlordane are found in DC fish. Canoe/Kayak World
Championships are held on Savage River.
Back to the top
1990s:
1991- AWRC adopts Six-Point Action Plan for the
restoration of the Anacostia River.
1992 - 1992 is declared by President Bush as the
"Year of Clean Water". Chesapeake Bay Program sets nutrient
reduction goals for Potomac and other bay tributaries.
|
|
|
The 1993 diesel fuel spill on the Anacostia River
|
1993 - Oil pipeline ruptured and spilled over 400,000
gallons of diesel fuel into Sugarland Run, a Northern Virginia tributary
to the Potomac. Anacostia River designated by American Rivers as
fourth most endangered river in North America. Chesapeake Bay Program
designates Anacostia as "Region of Concern" for chemical
contaminants. USGS conducted Potomac basin-wide sampling for chemical
contaminants as part of National Water Quality Assessment (NAWQA)
program. MD, WV and ICPRB sign cooperative agreement on program
to restore
water quality to the North Branch.
1995 - Survey by USGS reveals that SAV have grown
in some areas of the Potomac and declined in others.
1996 - ACE, MD, and WV begin study to evaluate measures
for restoring North Branch. DC issues its Anacostia River Toxics
Management Action Plan.
1997 - The Potomac Headwaters Land Treatment Watershed
Project is initiated, providing WV farmers with federal and state
funds for implementation of water quality protection measures.
1998 - Federal Clean Water Action Plan is initiated,
emphasizing a watershed approach to restoring the nations waters.
MD passes Water Quality Improvement Act to address the problem of
nutrient pollution. Potomac River is selected as an American Heritage
River.
2000 - Chesapeake 2000 Agreement is signed. ICPRB
turns 60 years old.
2002 - The Clean Water Act turns thirty and President
Bush declares 2002 the "Year of Clean Water".
Back to the top
|
