Area residents are knowledgeable about the Anacostia River, are very supportive of efforts to improve its health, and are quite aware of the role they play in making it healthy, according to results of a recent survey.
More than 500 residents of Montgomery County, Prince George’s County, and the District of Columbia responded to the survey, which was administered by the counties’ departments of environment and the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) to better understand what is known about the Anacostia River and attitudes toward it.
Results showed that the majority of respondents know they live in the Anacostia Watershed, they know what a watershed is, they support their local government’s efforts and investments to clean it up, they understand their actions can affect its health, and are aware that the Anacostia is in the midst of a revitalization.
- 70 percent reported knowing which watershed they live in.
- 52 percent considered the Anacostia to be less polluted than it was five to 10 years ago.
- 87 percent were supportive of their government’s efforts to clean up the Anacostia.
- More than 80 percent knew that applying chemicals like weed or bug repellent in their yard could impact the health of the river, even if they lived far from the river.
“These survey results are great news because it means local investments are noticed and appreciated by our citizens,” said Joe Gill, Anacostia Watershed Restoration Partnership Chair and Prince George’s County Department of the Environment Director. “It also means we can focus on our progress and encouraging people to get out and enjoy the Anacostia, rather than making the case for our investments. We hope that upon reading this news, more residents will safely take advantage of the Anacostia’s many recreational opportunities, bolstering their support of our work, and hopefully encouraging them to join us in it, enabling us to continue to restore the Anacostia River and its watershed to the treasure it truly is.”
Prince George’s County, Montgomery County, and the District of Columbia continue to provide significant financial investments to improve conditions in the Anacostia River. This is in addition to major investments by DC Water and WSSC Water to dramatically reduce sewer overflows through the construction of tunnels and proactive sewer maintenance and reconstruction programs. Key goals of all their efforts are to reduce the pollutants that make their way into the river and improve the habitat for the wildlife who rely on the river to live. These efforts have already helped reduce the amount of chemical pollutants like fertilizers (nitrogen and phosphorous) by more than 20 percent, and they’ve reduced trash by more than 50 percent. More statistics are available at www.anacostia.net.
About the Anacostia Watershed Restoration Partnership
The Anacostia Watershed Restoration Partnership at COG, is a consortium of local, state, and federal agencies, environmental organizations, and private citizens working toward a cleaner, healthier watershed. The Anacostia Watershed restoration began in the mid-1980's and the Partnership was formalized in 2006. Learn more about the restoration plan and ways to get involved: www.anacostia.net.
MORE: Anacostia Watershed Survey Results