Potomac River earns “B” on latest report card

But polluted urban and suburban runoff continues to increase, according to the report. It is the only source of pollution still growing in the Potomac and the Chesapeake Bay, as more of the watershed is developed and its population grows.

I live along the Potomac near Harpers Ferry. I regularly kayak across the river to run on the C & O Canal tow-path. I find the conclusion the river is improving hard to swallow. Many of the riverside homes have septic systems that are very old and rarely, if ever, pumped. Property owners clear trees, with the exception of a few mature sycamores, down to the waterline and every heavy rain brings a new layer of rubbish, some generated by the fishermen/woman and boaters one would think would most recognize the damage they are doing. Local "outfitters" exploit the river during the warmer months by dumping thousands of "whitewater" tubers into some of the most sensitive stretches of the river (after they have trampled the river bank and discarded candy/food wrappers and beverage containers along the shore). Have years of Alice Ferguson Foundation clean-ups made a difference? I doubt it. Municipal treatment facilities are fine when they work, but too often they don't. If they are new today they will be less so tomorrow. Can they remove the chemicals used in drugs, healthcare products and cleaning aids? If Mr. Belin is interested in seeing some of the less Panglossian sides of the Potomac send me an e-mail.