The Supreme Court last month agreed to consider Virginia's complaint that Maryland has restricted access to the Potomac. Both states, as well as West Virginia, draw water from the river. Virginia's Fairfax County wants to extend its current shoreline water intake some 700 feet to the middle of the river where it says the water is cleaner. Many Maryland officials contend Virginia has itself to blame. Behind the Fairfax water intake, expensive new houses surround a verdant golf course.
Development expands inland in the fast-growing county.
The scene is more rural, but Virginia officials say Maryland's agricultural runoff is as big a problem. Both utilities ought to try to take the cleanest water available. Raphael says the issue is quality, not quantity. This dispute runs deeper. The two states also disagree on building bridges over these same waters.