WASHINGTON, Oct. 11, 2000 (PRNewswire)—The National Wilderness Institute (NWI) has announced its intention to file a lawsuit charging that several federal agencies are violating the Endangered Species Act (ESA) through improper operation of the Washington Aqueduct.
NWI delivered notices of intent to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers ("Corps"), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). The Washington Aqueduct is used to divert and treat water from the Potomac River for use in Washington, DC, and parts of northern Virginia.
Currently, the federal government allows the dumping of tons of sediment laced with aluminum sulfate (alum) from the reservoirs in Georgetown back into the Potomac River near Little Falls. This dumping endangers the continued existence of endangered species including the shortnose sturgeon, NWI argued. Alum and other effluent from water treatment plants combine to prevent fish eggs from hatching while destroying underwater plants crucial to fish habitat.
"The agencies that allow this dumping to continue avert their gaze with regard to its effects on endangered species," said Rob Gordon, Executive Director of NWI. "How many more tons of sediment and chemicals toxic to protected fish and their eggs will be flushed into the waters of the nation's capital before federal officials realize that Washington, DC, should live by the same rules and regulations that apply 'outside the Beltway?'"
The institute said that government documents revealed other options that would safely dispose of contaminated sediment were dismissed from the outset. "If the EPA is obligated to comply with the ESA, why is the EPA extending permits that allow the Corps to continue poisoning the river?" Gordon said. "Under the provisions of the ESA, what the Corps is doing is clearly illegal because it harms endangered species. Anywhere else in the country the government would aggressively step in to halt such a practice — but apparently not in its own backyard," Gordon said.
Further information is available on NWI's website, www.nwi.org. NWI is a non-profit conservation organization, which contributes to public understanding of environmental issues through educational programs.
SOURCE: National Wilderness Institute
