[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 59 (Thursday, May 8, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E890]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    THE POTOMAC--AN ENDANGERED RIVER

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                     HON. RANDY ``DUKE'' CUNNINGHAM

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 8, 1997

  Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Mr. Speaker, this morning the Congressional 
Sportsmen's Caucus held its monthly information briefing. This 
morning's briefing was on fishing in the Washington, DC area. Each 
month these breakfasts focus on different aspects of wildlife 
conservation. This morning's breakfast hit home with many of the 
Members because it highlighted the area where many of us live and fish. 
I have attached an article written by Charles Verharen that highlights 
the threats to the Potomac fishery. I hope that my colleagues will read 
this article and work to restore and protect our local fishery.

                   The Potomac--An Endangered River?

                        (By Charles C. Verharen)

       Imagine standing at the base of Little Falls on a brilliant 
     spring day on the Potomac, just above Chain Bridge in 
     Washington, D.C. Flocks of black cormorants stream north. 
     Thousands of silver and black hickory shad fight their way up 
     the surging rapids. Sparkling emerald water breaks against 
     black granite. This wilderness-like setting in the Capital's 
     city limits takes your breath away--until you look 
     downstream.
       Just below the falls what looks like gusher of Texas crude 
     oil jets into the crystalline water. A hundred yards below 
     the falls, green and black merge into dismal gray. A motorist 
     on Chain Bridge can look upstream and see a Potomac that's in 
     ``better shape today than it has been in a century,'' 
     according to Bill Matuszeski, director of the Chesapeake Bay 
     Program (Post, 4/17/97, D8).
       That same motorist can look downstream and see a Potomac 
     that deserves its place on the list of America's endangered 
     rivers. Beth Norcross, a director of the American Rivers 
     group that maintains the list, admits that the ``Potomac is 
     in fabulous shape.'' Maybe she doesn't know about the black 
     filth surging into the Potomac at Little Falls. She thinks 
     the primary threat is bacteria-laden run-off from poultry 
     farms in West Virginia. The U.S. and West Virginia 
     Departments of Agriculture acknowledge the problem as well.
       In an ironic twist of fate, bacteria are the indirect cause 
     of the gouts of black ooze. A by-product of the Washington 
     Aqueduct water treatment plant, the black goo is sediment 
     from the plant's holding basins, containing such chemicals as 
     aluminum silicate, copper, chlorine, and heavy metals from 
     Potomac run-off.
       The treatment plant discharges its waste into the Potomac 
     above and below Little Falls. On some days Little Falls creek 
     above the falls runs milky white like a glacial stream with 
     aluminum silicate discharge from Washington Aqueduct. On the 
     other days it runs a bright fluorescent green with copper 
     silicate discharge.
       Fishermen on the Potomac downstream of the falls report 
     that discharges from the treatment plant have increased since 
     the EPA found evidence of contamination of drinking water in 
     the Washington area last year. They claim that the discharge 
     endangers the spawning fish. The fish simply disappear during 
     the discharge period.
       Thomas P. Jacobus, chief of the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers 
     division that runs the Washington Aqueduct, said he's 
     discharging heavily in the period from March to June to help 
     the spawning fish. He said he thought the spawning season was 
     from June through August.
       When he learned that the spawning season is on right now, 
     he said he couldn't stop the discharge in any event. His 
     regulatory agencies, including the Environmental Protection 
     Association, forbid discharge during summer's typically low 
     river flow to protect fish habitats.
       The American Rivers group, the EPA, and the Army Corp of 
     Engineers need to get together with the Atlantic Marine 
     Fisheries Commission and sport fishing associations to settle 
     on a water treatment discharge schedule that will protect the 
     spawning fish.
       And politicians and residents of the Washington area need 
     to figure out a way to purify Potomac water without polluting 
     it.

     

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