Pollution Still Threatens Potomac River

Pollution still threatens the Potomac River, according to a Nov. 15 report from the Potomac Conservancy.

Increased development poses a serious threat to the Potomac River and could reverse gains in water quality that were made over the last 40 years, said Hedrick Belin, president of the Potomac Conservancy, a nonprofit environmental organization. He said the Potomac River will face increasing pressure from population growth during the next 20 years, due to the streets, sidewalks and houses that are associated with new development.

Rainwater that is not absorbed into the ground picks up the byproducts of human activity — oil from cars, lawn fertilizer, pet waste and other chemicals — which eventually end up in the Potomac.
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