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District of Columbia / Sewer operators /

District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water)

Sewer utility with combined sewers · District of Columbia · Washington, Cabin John, Potomac, Bethesda

Map sources: water outlines and launches from OpenBoatLaunch and OpenStreetMap contributors (Open Database License); wastewater outlets from EPA and state records; downstream estimates by DirtyWaterWatch using U.S. Geological Survey maps and flow data. Base map: OpenFreeMap and OpenMapTiles.

No outlet locations are in our records for this operator. Square boat markers mark boat launches listed by OpenBoatLaunch.

Federal wastewater discharge permit (NPDES)
DC0021199
Wastewater outlets
None with locations in our records (the state's records list 48)
Waters listed as receiving wastewater
Anacostia River; Potomac River; Rock Creek; Piney Branch; Broad Branch; Soapstone Valley stream (NHD unnamed); Oxon Run; Watts Branch; Hickey Run; Pope Branch; C&O Canal
Tracked waters
Anacostia River, DC, Potomac River, DC, Rock Creek, DC, Piney Branch, DC, Broad Branch, DC, Oxon Run, DC, Watts Branch, DC, Hickey Run, DC, Pope Branch, DC, Potomac River, MD, chesapeake-and-ohio-canal-md, Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, DC, Piney Run, DC, Fenwick Branch, DC
Discharge records counted
47 records · latest
Total reported volume in these records
525,933,129 gallons across the 45 records that give a volume (2 without one)

These totals reflect the records we track. Missing volumes and gaps in reporting limit comparisons between operators.

Sources: EPA ECHO and the operator and state sources linked below. Counts use the discharge records on this page. Updated 2026-11-03 08:50 UTC.

Public notices and alerts

Get alerts from District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water)

Pages where District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water) or the state publishes its notices:

Source: District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water)'s public notice and alert pages and the state's notification records.

Report a missing notice or error

Wastewater outlets

Outfall: a pipe or outlet where wastewater enters a water body.

Reports and advisories

Sanitary sewer overflow (SSO): sewage spills from a sewer meant to carry sewage separately from rainwater. Combined sewer overflow (CSO): sewage mixed with rainwater spills from a shared sewer system.

Reports linked to District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water), newest first
WhenReportStatus
to Sep 23Anacostia River · SSO · volume not reported report · notice · mapended
to Sep 21Anacostia River · SSO · volume not reported report · notice · mapended
to 6:00 PMRock Creek · SSO · 1,000 gallons report · notice · mapended
to 12:31 PM“ground” · Pennyfield Lock Road · SSO · 5 gallons report · noticeended
to Jul 12, 8:30 PM“Soapstone Valley stream” · SSO · 2,000 gallons report · notice · mapended
to Aug 8, 8:30 PM“Soapstone Valley stream” · SSO · 1,500 gallons report · notice · mapended
to Jul 2, 10:45 PMBroad Branch · SSO · 1,000 gallons report · notice · mapended
to Jun 30, 1:13 AMBroad Branch · SSO · 1,000 gallons report · notice · mapended
to Jun 15, 10:18 PMBroad Branch · SSO · 100 gallons report · notice · mapended
to Jun 5, 8:00 PMBroad Branch · SSO · 1,000 gallons report · notice · mapended
to May 21, 2:00 AMPope Branch · SSO · 10,000 gallons report · notice · mapended
to May 5, 3:15 AMPotomac River · SSO · 2,000 gallons report · notice · mapended
“Storm drainage to Blue Plains WWTP. DC Water.” · 2119 University Boulevard West · SSO · 1 gallons report · noticereported
to Apr 17, 3:45 AMPotomac River · CSO · 14,767 gallons report · notice · mapended
to 2:25 AMPotomac River · SSO · 534,772 gallons report · notice · mapended
Potomac River · SSO (earlier version) · volume not reported report · notice · mapreported
to 10:25 PMPotomac River · Clara Barton Parkway · SSO · 600,000 gallons report · notice · mapended
to 7:00 PM“N/A” · Clara Barton Parkway · SSO · 3,600 gallons report · noticeended
Water not mapped · SSO (earlier version) · volume not reported report · noticereported
to 3:45 AMPotomac River · SSO · 291,667 gallons report · notice · mapended
to 1:00 AMPotomac River · SSO · 291,667 gallons report · notice · mapended
to 9:29 PMPotomac River · SSO · 19,400 gallons report · notice · mapended
to Jan 27, 10:10 AMPotomac River · SSO · 242 million gallons report · notice · mapended
Potomac River · SSO · 280 million gallons report · notice · mapreported
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, Potomac River · SSO (earlier version) · volume not reported report · notice · mapreported

Sources: ECHO NPDES Sewer Overflow and Bypass Event Dataset, retrieved 2026-11-03 08:16 UTC; MDE Reported Sewer Overflows (New for 2023), Maryland Open Data Portal (Socrata stgj-u72u), retrieved 2026-11-03 08:17 UTC; DC Water news releases and public notices (sewer overflow notices), retrieved 2026-11-03 02:40 UTC. A report's record id and times show when you hover or focus its "report" link.

Download these reports as CSV

Showing the latest 25 records of 51 records.See them all with filters.

All reports in District of Columbia by year: 2026 (23 from District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water)) · 2025 (18 from District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water)) · 2024 (3 from District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water)) · 2023 (5 from District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water))

Other sewer operators on these waters

The last 90 days

Last 90 days, hour by hour. Red: discharge or advisory reported. Amber: caution. Hatched amber: end not confirmed. Grey: no current status on the water outline. Purple hatching: source update overdue.
  • Caution: to
    1 report: Anacostia River 1
    Show records

    The records are also in the report table on this page.

  • Discharge or advisory reported: to
    2 reports: Anacostia River 2
    Show records

    The records are also in the report table on this page.

  • Caution: to
    1 report: Rock Creek 1
    Show records

    The records are also in the report table on this page.

  • Discharge or advisory reported: to
    1 report: Rock Creek 1
    Show records

    The records are also in the report table on this page.

Source: DirtyWaterWatch calculations using the reports named above and the published status rules. Updated 2026-11-03 08:50 UTC.

Reported discharges over time

  • Discharges reported by District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water), last 12 months25December 2025 to November 2026Verified reports where available, else notices; revisions and duplicates counted once.
  • Days with a discharge reported by District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water), last 12 months54December 2025 to November 2026A day counts once however many discharges were under way on it. Verified reports where available, else notices; revisions and duplicates counted once.
  • Hours with a discharge or advisory status from District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water)'s reports, last 12 months1,934December 2025 to November 2026Red hours by the map's rules: each discharge to its reported end plus the state's post-discharge period; overlapping hours count once.
  • 2026 season with a discharge or advisory status (District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water))35%May to October 2026Share of May 1 to October 31 hours with red status by the map's rules, of the hours a source covered.

Combined sewer overflow (CSO): sewage mixed with rainwater spills from a shared sewer system. Sanitary sewer overflow (SSO): sewage spills from a sewer meant to carry sewage separately from rainwater. Treatment bypass: wastewater skips one or more treatment steps. Blended discharge: wastewater that skipped some treatment is mixed with treated wastewater. Outfall: a pipe or outlet where wastewater enters a water body.

Reported discharges per month

47 reported discharges, January 2022 to November 2026.

  • Combined sewer overflow
  • Sanitary sewer overflow
  • Treatment bypass, blended or other
  • No tracked source for this period
  • Incomplete source coverage
Limited records

No tracked source covers January 2022 to April 2022. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's sewer overflow records are limited: they hold only what operators file with the agency.

Sources: dc-water-news; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sewer overflow records; md-mde-overflows. Records cover May 3, 2022 to November 3, 2026.

Show table

Hours with a discharge or advisory status per month

Hours when a water had a discharge or advisory status from this sewer operator's reports, under DirtyWaterWatch rules.

  • Discharge or advisory reported
  • No tracked source for this period
  • Incomplete source coverage
Limited records

No tracked source covers January 2022 to April 2022. 3 discharge reports have no end time and are not marked ongoing; under DirtyWaterWatch rules they show caution, not a discharge or advisory status, and add no hours here. 1 discharge reported to last more than 31 days is counted as 31 days. Official beach and cyanobacteria (harmful blue-green algae) advisories are counted on water pages only. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's sewer overflow records are limited: they hold only what operators file with the agency.

Sources: dc-water-news; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sewer overflow records; md-mde-overflows. Records cover May 3, 2022 to November 3, 2026.

Show table

Days with a reported discharge per month

A day counts when any counted discharge was under way on it, from its start to its reported end in Eastern Time; a report with no end counts its start day.

  • No tracked source for this period
  • Incomplete source coverage
Limited records

No tracked source covers January 2022 to April 2022.

Sources: dc-water-news; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sewer overflow records; md-mde-overflows. Records cover May 3, 2022 to November 3, 2026.

Show table

Reported volume per year

Gallons (axis: K thousand, M million), summed from the 45 reports that gave a volume as a number (2 did not).

  • Incomplete source coverage
Limited records

2 of 47 discharge reports gave no volume as a number; only numbers are summed.

Sources: dc-water-news; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sewer overflow records; md-mde-overflows. Records cover May 3, 2022 to November 3, 2026.

Show table

Hours with a discharge or advisory status per year

Hours with a discharge or advisory status each year under DirtyWaterWatch rules; 2026 to date.

  • Discharge or advisory reported
  • Incomplete source coverage
Limited records

3 discharge reports have no end time and are not marked ongoing; under DirtyWaterWatch rules they show caution, not a discharge or advisory status, and add no hours here. 1 discharge reported to last more than 31 days is counted as 31 days. Official beach and cyanobacteria (harmful blue-green algae) advisories are counted on water pages only.

Sources: dc-water-news; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sewer overflow records; md-mde-overflows. Records cover May 3, 2022 to November 3, 2026.

Show table

Share of the May to October season with a discharge or advisory status

Share of the hours from May 1 to October 31 with a discharge or advisory status under DirtyWaterWatch rules.

  • Discharge or advisory reported

3 discharge reports have no end time and are not marked ongoing; under DirtyWaterWatch rules they show caution, not a discharge or advisory status, and add no hours here. 1 discharge reported to last more than 31 days is counted as 31 days. Official beach and cyanobacteria (harmful blue-green algae) advisories are counted on water pages only.

Sources: dc-water-news; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sewer overflow records; md-mde-overflows. Records cover May 3, 2022 to November 3, 2026.

Show table

Reported discharges by calendar month, all years

Every counted discharge report, by the calendar month it began.

Months are summed over every year a tracked source covers; the table gives the number of years behind each month.

Sources: dc-water-news; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sewer overflow records; md-mde-overflows. Records cover May 3, 2022 to November 3, 2026.

Show table

Reported discharges by wastewater outlet

Wastewater outlets with the most tracked discharge records: 4 of 4, all years. Counts depend on reporting coverage and do not measure legal compliance or harm.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's sewer overflow records are limited: they hold only what operators file with the agency.

Sources: dc-water-news; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sewer overflow records; md-mde-overflows. Records cover May 3, 2022 to November 3, 2026.

Show table
How these charts are counted

We count each discharge once. Where a source publishes notices and confirmed reports, we use confirmed reports for an operator's month when available; otherwise we use notices. We combine revisions and exclude duplicate state reports copied by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Monthly and yearly totals appear separately. Status hours follow this site's rules. Shaded gaps mean missing coverage, not zero discharges.

  • dc-water-news: records from July 21, 2025 to February 9, 2026
  • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sewer overflow records: records from May 3, 2022 to the latest update (limited records)
  • md-mde-overflows: records from January 4, 2023 to the latest update