Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-06-05
CONTINUED From First PaI

DeIore IL is sent into the Poto-
mac. 1t is hoped the new facil-
tiles will handle needs through
1870.
Greatest Curse Intact
That will be a great improve
ment over the present 80 to 35
per cent treatment. but it will
leave Washington's greatest
curse almost intact: the COM
bined sewers.
This combination of old and
new sewer lines sends the sewage
through the treatment plant in
dry weather, but sends both
sewage and street runoff into the
Potomac without treatment
when it rains. Even after the
construction program, almost
half Of the Districts sewage will
be handled in the combined
sewers.
Alexandria, which treats no
sewage today, will have spent
SIS million on new sewers and
a treatment plant which will
remove 30 per cent Of the harm
full solids. The new facilities
are supposed to take care of
Alexandria's needs and the needs
OF 80 per cent of the population
OF Fairfax County through 1878.
Arlington County is on a SAT-
million expansion program. Fair
fax County is spending $3.7 mil
ton, and the Washington
Suburban Sanitary Commission,
which serves nearby areas in
Prince Georges and Montgomery
Counties in Maryland. is spend
ing $17.5 million.
Other Expansion Planned
Smaller cities and towns also
have their expansion programs
When it's all finished, nearly
all sewage in the area will get
rom so to 80 per cent treatment
except on rainy days when the
District will pour out raw sewage.
Assuming, that is, that the plan
ners' projections are not upset,
as they always have been in the
past.
There are two imponderables
in assessing the effectiveness of
the present construction pro-
grams:
First, no one knows for sure
how much sewage the Potomac
can handle and not be polluted. /"
Second, no one knows for sure
what the area population will
be in a few years.
The best estimates say the
river can take from 100000 to
10000 pounds of organic waste
day. 1t now gets about 200 900
pounds. Theoretically, if the dis
charge is reduced to about 1OO.-
900 pounds. the river can purify
itself and be clean enough for
some recreational uses.
Construction for which money
now is in sight might bring the
discharge down to 100 600
pounds, according to a 1855 Ar
lington County survey. But even
If the County's estimate of popu-
lation growth in the Washing
ton area is accurate, and even
II 1t proves true that the river
can take as much as l2O.-
600 pounds a day, then the dis
charge will remain below the
danger point only three years
from 1860 to 1868.
More Spending Needed
To pull the discharge back be-
low the safety mark, Virginia
communities will have to spend
additional money and remove
at least rs per cent of the solids
by 1870. That is supposed to
work for about 70 years. Then
all communities on the river will
have to increase their removal
per centages to 80-an extreme
ly high rate of effectiveness.
That. according to the plan. will
hold back pollution until the year
1000.
After the year 1000, which is.
after all, only A years away, the
solution is anybody's guess.
And it should be borne in mind
that these estimates are from
an optimistic report. If popu-
lation figures and river capacity
figures are off. so are all bets
that the problem can be man
aged.
A Washington Board of Trade
estimate indicates the popula-
ton of the Metropolitan Area
= may reach 3 million by 1880 and
4 million by 1000 (the popula-
ton now is an estimated 1.9
Million.
What is the solution to the
sewage problems of that stead
lily growing population?
No one can say for sure. Not
enough of the facts of Potomac
pollution are known.
Enough is known, however. to
indicate that the Potomac River
can someday become Washing
toms greatest recreational asset
If solution is sought on an area
wide basis.
Piecemeal Solutions
Piecemeal solutions have been
tried in the past, but the solu-
tons have never caught UP with
the growing problem. The river
serves many communities, sew
eral counties and two States. The
asset of a clean river would be
shared by all. The problem of a
dirty river is shared by all. The
solution to the problem must be
shared by all.
There is only one logical lead
er to an area-wide attack on
Potomac pollution-the Federal
Government.
First, the District. a Federal
preserve. accounts for more than
three-fourths OF the pollution.
Second, for all practical pur-
noses. onlv the Eradarai r.o,,o,.,,