Washington’s water utility is taking “immediate” steps to protect drinking water for the capital region after identifying another degraded section of its massive sewer line that failed earlier this year.
The revelation that the same DC Water pipe — the Potomac Interceptor — that caused one of the nation’s worst sewage spills is on the brink of failure again comes less than a month before the nation’s capital is scheduled to host a series of major events in celebration of the country’s 250th anniversary. It underscores the vulnerability of aging water infrastructure such as the interceptor, which was built in 1960s and slated for repairs prior to the catastrophic spill on Jan. 19.
“What we’re trying to do is making sure we can address the issue as quickly as we can,” said Matt Brown, DC Water chief operating officer, said Wednesday during a news conference. “In the event that there is a rupture — obviously that’s not something that we want — but in the event that there is, we can address it as quickly as we can.”
The spill this year sent more than 240 million gallons of untreated waste into the Potomac River. It prompted a congressional investigation and lawsuits from the Justice Department and Maryland, but it did not affect drinking water supplies because it occurred on a part of sewer pipe downstream of drinking water intakes.
