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Reported sewage discharges in District of Columbia
Updated . We track 12 waters in District of Columbia: 0 with a discharge or advisory status, 0 with caution, and 0 with no confirmed discharge end. 12 have no current status on their water outline. 0 discharge records dated within the last 30 days.
Source: DirtyWaterWatch statuses from the sources checked automatically, listed below. Updated 2026-11-03 02:43 UTC.
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 current status shown 12 waters
- Anacostia River
- Broad Branch
- Chesapeake and Ohio Canal
- Fenwick Branch
- Hickey Run
- Oxon Run
- Piney Branch
- Piney Run
- Pope Branch
- Potomac River
- Rock Creek
- Watts Branch
Sewer operators
Get local alerts from a sewer operator: open its page for its public alert link.
No sewer operators are listed here yet.
What this page covers
Post-discharge periods and their sources
24 hours after the reported end. DC Water's permit requires a warning light on the Anacostia and on the Potomac: one colour while a combined sewer overflow is occurring and a second colour for 24 hours after it has stopped (NPDES permit DC0021199, Part III.B.1.h.i); DC Water's own page adds that after rain over one inch the effects can last up to three days. This site uses 24 hours from the end of the overflow, the permit's light period. No District law requires public notice of overflows, and swimming in the Potomac, the Anacostia and Rock Creek is prohibited by regulation (21 DCMR 1108.1)
Source: NPDES permit DC0021199 (EPA Region 3), Part III.B.1.h; DC Water combined sewer system page; 21 DCMR 1108.1. DirtyWaterWatch applies the period described here.
District of Columbia's period on the methods page · How long each status lasts, in every state
Sources checked automatically
No source for District of Columbia is checked automatically yet.
The last 90 days in District of Columbia
- Caution: to 1 report: District of Columbia Water and Sewer… on Rock Creek 1
Show records
The records are also in the report table on this page.
- Discharge or advisory reported: to 1 report: District of Columbia Water and Sewer… on 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 02:43 UTC.
Reported discharges in District of Columbia over time
Historical charts are not available here. See the reports and sources on this page.
Discharge records dated within the last 30 days
No discharge records dated within the last 30 days appear in the sources we track for District of Columbia.
All reports in District of Columbia by year
2026 (14 records) · 2025 (14 records) · 2024 (2 records) · 2023 (2 records)
By town
Towns along the waters we track and the towns sewer operators serve, A to Z.
- Washington
- Anacostia River, Broad Branch, Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, Fenwick Branch, Hickey Run, Oxon Run, Piney Branch, Piney Run, Pope Branch, Potomac River, Rock Creek, Watts Branch
Other states we track: Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia.