Evening star., 1925-05-01
SURVEY Of RIVER
ORDERED TO SEEK
BATHING BEACHES
Pollution of Potomac Now
Renders 1t Unfit for
Swimming.
CUMMING SEES VITAL
NEED OF FACILITIES
Public Health Service Seeks Means
of Making River Itself
Available.
BY G. GOULD LINCOLN.

! BY G. GOULD LINCOLN.
| A survey of the Potomac River
| and its banks in the vicinity of Wash
| ington by the Public Health Service.
| in cooperation with the Health De
partment of the District of Columbia,
was announced today by Surg. Gen.
| Hugh S. Cumming, for the purpose
| of:
]. Ascertaining the state of the wa
ter with regard to bathing.
2. Determining whether practical
! and feasible steps may be taken to
| render the river safe for bathing pur-
! poses.
! The survey now planned should
prove of great value, particularly If
| it is found that through sewage dis
posal and regulation it will be pos
| sible to provide bathing beaches in
parts of the Potomac River itself ac-
| cessible TO the residents of Washing
| ton. Since the ban placed by Con-
| sress on the bathing beaches in the
! Tidal Basin, the people of Washing
! ton have been left without bathing
| and swimming facilities, except the
| small municipal pools and such pri-
vate pools as are located in Wash.
| ington.
! VIII Urge New Pools.
| Lieut. Col. Clarence o. Sheriff., su-
| perintendent of public buildings and
grounds, under whose charge came the
/ bathing beaches in the Tidal Basin,
| has declared that survey of the Po-
| tomac River TO determine what steps
| might be taken to minimize pollution
| should be made. Col. Sheriff. said that
! he was heartily in favor of the survey
| n he hoD hNrf ho
! Service. He is convinced, he said, that
| the Potomac River, under present con-
ditions, is not safe for bathing because
| of the polluted condition of its waters.
| For that reason he is planning to sub
| nit estimates for large bathing
beaches or pools, filled with filtered
water, TO the Budget Bureau and
| through it to Congress.
| DR.. William G. Fowler, health officer
| of the District, has declared his will
ingness to cooperate with the Public
| Health Service in the proposed survey
! of the river. DR.. Fowler said emphat-
| ically, however, that the Potomac
River in the vicinity of Washington is
now not fitted for bathing purposes
| because of pollution.
VIII Make New Tests.
Surgeon General Cumming in an
nouncing plans for the survey said
| that it would be begun in the near fu-
| ture and would be completed about
/ September !.
The Surgeon General said:
The Public Health Service. with
| the cooperation of DR.. w. c. Fowler.
health officer of the District of Co
| lumbia, is planning to make a sani-
tary survey of the Potomac River in
the vicinity of Washington to make
| meteorological examinations of the
river water, with a view to determin-
| ing whether it is safe and practicable
| to use any part of the river in this vi
tcinity for bathing purposes. The work
| will continue throughout the sum-
mer months, and it is expected that
the report of the findings will be is
sued early in September"
May Divert Sewage.
The survey of the Potomac River
will have two aspects. One will deal
with the engineering side of the ques-
ton involved, the other with the
| psychological content of the river
during the months in which open-air
bathing and swimming is possible in
| Washington. Under the first will come
methods of handling sewage through
interceptors and disposal plants and
regulatory measures to prevent pollu-
tion through some of the sewage
which now empties into the river. The
analysis of the water during the sur
vey will be very complete.
| AS a result of the survey 1t should
be possible to determine finally
whether steps can be taken which will
make it possible for the people of
Washington to make use of the great
river which flows past their doors for
bathing and swimming. The hope is
expressed, of course, that it will be
possible to devise plans which will
make swimming in the river reason
ably safe.
But if the survey shows conclu-
sively that the river cannot be used
for bathing purposes, it will have
served a useful purpose, both as a
warning to the hundreds and thou
| sands who use the river for swim
ming now and as an indication to
the authorities that steps must be
| taken to provide municipal bathing
and swimming facilities entirely
| apart from the river.
Know River Is Polluted.
! The Public Health Service. under
an act of Congress approved hu-
gust Il, 1912, is authorized to study
| the pollution, direct or indirect, of
the navigable waters of the United
States" This action was taken by
! Congress in recognition of the i'm
portance of the pollution of navi
gable waters in certain sanitary
problems which are really national
/ in scope. Pursuant to this act, the
!, Public Health Service made a very
comprehensive survey of the pollu
ton and sanitary conditions of the
| Potomac watershed, at the request
| Of the Governors of Virginia and
Maryland and the Commissioners OF
| the District of Columbia. This in
vestigation was begun in June, 1918.
and continued until May, 1914. II
was under the direction of the then
| Surgeon Hugh S. Cummings, now
surgeon general.
The Public Health Service, there
fore, is already in possession of very
| complete data about the Potomac
River. 1t is in position to bring this
data up to date, so far as the waters
and banks in the vicinity of Wash
| ington are concerned, with the least
| effort and expenditure.
| After the survey has been completed
| it is probable that Surgeon General
| Cumming will assemble in Washing
| ton a board of leading sanitary en-