GREENING ROCK CREEK DRAINAGE AREA IN WASHINGTON, DC: Re-engineering the city to reverse the damage done by engineers of generations past, using modern technology to imitate how nature handles rainwater and stormwater runoff

View of Washington, DC from an airplane departing Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, with the P Street Bridge over Rock Creek at the center (Wikimedia Commons. Photo credit: Famartin)

How D.C. Is Keeping Raw Sewage Out Of Rock Creek By ‘Greening’ The City

“Each year, some 50 million gallons of raw sewage, mixed with stormwater, discharge into Rock Creek. It makes the creek inhospitable to aquatic life, and dangerous for humans to wade in,” wrote Jacob Fenston. environment reporter for radio station WAMU in Washington, D.C.

“The source of the sewage problem dates back to the early 20th century, and for the past two decades local officials have been working with regulators at the EPA on a plan to end the pollution. Now, they’ve just completed one of the first projects to stop sewage overflows/

“(T)he water utility is installing dozens of small projects that look like glorified landscaping, in neighborhoods many blocks away from Rock Creek.

“It’s called green infrastructure. It’s a way of re-engineering the city to reverse the damage done by engineers of generations past, using modern technology to imitate how nature handles stormwater.”

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To read the complete article as posted on American University Radio, download a copy of How D.C. Is Keeping Raw Sewage Out Of Rock Creek By ‘Greening’ The City

Examples of some of the types of green infrastructure DC Water is installing.