Evening star., 1922-06-30
D. c. SEWER DELAY
BLAMED FOR ROCK
CREEK POLLUTION
Maryland Commission Cites
Delay in Completing Dis
trict Interceptor.
SHERRILL ACTS AT ONCE
TO SPEED UP PROJECT
! Confers With Commissioners on
Proposal to Get Funds to Fin
ish Mile and Half.

Ism Mile ana dau. q
Completion of the District inter-
ceptor sewer to connect with sewer
mains from Maryland towns Is the
only solution of the pollution OF Rock
creek and other streams flowing into
the District Of Columbia. the Wash
ington suburban sanitary commission
informed Lieut.. Col. Clarence o. Sher-
rill, officer In charge Of public build
ings and grounds.
The Maryland commission has been
and Is now ready and willing to con-
meet with the District sewer system
as soon as the latter is brought up to
the District line. Until the act of
Congress authorizing this connection
is carried out, Maryland sewerage will
be dumped into Rock creek. the board
indicated.
Conference to Be Held.
BY this frank statement of the fact
the Maryland commission started
things rolling today In the offices of
with the following action:
Col. Sheriff. is to have a conference
today with the District Commission
ers to see what can be done imme-
diately to get funds with which to
complete .he last mile and a half of
the interceptor sewer in Rock creek
valley from Pinehurst to the District
line.
]. B. Gordon. sanitary engineer of
the District. is working on estimates
for completion of the sewer. to be in
cluded in the estimates for the fiscal
year 1924.
Agreement Being Worked Ont.
The District Commissioners are
having worked out an agreement be-
tween them and the Washington
Suburban Sanitary Commission. under
which the latter would be permitted
to use the sewers, in accordance with
authority of Congress. There never
has. been an ssresmsnt before. al
though Congress has authorized the
Commissioners to enter into one.
Another development. broueht out
during an inquiry into the natter by
a reporter for The Star. is that some
of the pollution problem can be
obviated by a connection with the
District sewer system at this time
and that the District Is ready to fur
nish this service as soon as the agree
ment is entered into.
Section Can Connect Now.
There is quite a well developed Sec
tion of Chevy Chase near the District
line which oan receive District sew
erage service at this time, without
awaiting the completion Of the main
interceptor sewer. This section now
dumps its sewage into one OF the
lateral streams flowing into Rock
creek. The District sewer main to
which this section Of Maryland could
be connected ends at Beech street,
and is ready for connection at any
time that the Maryland commission
gives the authority and the agree
ment is completed.
Nothing has been done in the mat
ter since 1917, until recently, accord
of the District, but up until that
time, he said. both the District and
the Maryland commission had been
working gradually toward a sewer
connection at the District line. It
was necessary to build the inter-
a little has been included in each
years estimates up to 1917. until the
sewer Is now within a mile and
half of the line. He said that the
Maryland authorities also had been
building a little at a time. Both the
District and Maryland have been
working in close touch on the whole
matter.
Never Working Agreement.
One of the matters that has been
delaying the whole affair, Mr.. Gordon
pointed out, was the fact that there
never had been working agree
ment between the two territories, by
which the connections would be made
and the service furnished, as author
lied by Congress. The matter has
been q subject Of conference between
the District authorities and the COM
mission in Maryland. but the first
concrete action looking to drawing
up of the agreement was not taken
until a short time ago. and it was
said that 1t will be ready for sub
mission within a short time.
Now that the matter has been put
clearly up to the federal government
and the District authorities by the
Maryland commissions latest commu-
nication on the subject, 1t is the belief
that the matter will be pushed to 4
final conclusion.
Sheriff. to Push Action.
Col. Sheriff. said that he had
1Continued on Pa1e , ToI1;nn1