Poop, Pee and Petroleum in the Potomac

The Potomac River flows between Virginia and Maryland and for a few miles Washington, D.C. I have fond memories from my youth when I swam and canoed in the Potomac.

So I was disturbed and disappointed to read Inside Climate News’ report of the rupture of a major pipeline along the river’s Maryland shore. In January, 2026, the Potomac Interceptor, a major wastewater carrier, collapsed and released an estimated 243 million gallons of raw sewage into the river.

Egad, an extreme extrusion of excrement! It took at least three weeks to plug the poop. That’s a lot of pollution in the Potomac poisoning the fish and amphibians, not to mention bespoiling the drinking water for about 5 million people in the D.C. Metro area.

But that’s not all. The previous month there was a jet fuel leak at Maryland’s Joint Base Andrews where about 32,000 gallons of fuel leaked into Piscataway Creek, which flows directly into the Potomac. Base officials failed to notify Maryland state authorities for months while the leak continued.

There were warning signs for years but they were ignored, according to Dean Naujoks, an investigator with the Potomac Riverkeeper Network. For one thing, the burst pipeline was 60 years old, which was past its replacement time.

The Piscataway Indians have lived in the area for 15,000 years and they still steward the creek named after them. Some of them have traditionally fished the creek for food but for several years, the fish have been contaminated.

Dean Naujoks began tracking chemicals in Piscataway Creek around 2022. He found out from other investigators, such as an organization called Military Poisons, that PFAs, commonly known as “forever chemicals” are present in the Piscataway. When Maryland’s Department of Environment tested the creek, they found higher levels of PFAs in its fish than in any other stream in the state.

In April, American Rivers named the Potomac the most endangered river in America. That’s really saying something because a lot of rivers are being abused by public and private polluters.

In an emailed statement, the Environmental Protection Agency claimed it had accomplished its remediation goals related to the Potomac’s sewage spill. Excuse my skepticism but when fecal bacteria levels remained 2,700 times the safe limit as of February, I ain’t drinking that water. Also, scientists found unsafe levels of MRSA, an antibiotic-resistant bacteria in the Potomac. What is there to do when the bacteria can outpunch the antibiotic?

Piscataway Indian Nation Chief Mark Tayac signed a statement that described the sewage spill as a “preventable but seemingly inevitable disaster” that had since curtailed tribe members’ ability to fish, hunt, gather traditional foods, prepare healing medicines and make cultural items.

Protecting water should be a no-brainer for everyone but there is much that some humans need to learn. The Chief’s statement summed up the tribe’s wisdom: “Water is not merely a luxury or a convenience to all people but rather the most important nutrient for life itself.”

Frank Lingo, based in Lawrence, Kansas, is a former columnist for the Kansas City Star and author of the novel “Earth Vote.”

Email: lingofrank@gmail.com.

See his website: Greenbeat.world