WASHINGTON, DC (WUSA9) — WASHINGTON -- Residents in the Fairlawn neighborhood of Southeast, D.C. are worried about the safety of their water after a spill at a construction site.
There is an elaborate water filtration system at site of a future Cube Smart Storage facility on 22nd Street SE. Before crews can excavate, they have to pump out the ground water. But since that water contains arsenic, iron, and other metals that could be dangerous to the Anacostia River, crews are required to filter or clean the ground water before dumping into the nearby sewer.
That didn't happen on July 16th and residents have been concerned about their water ever since.
A small but spirited group gathered in the nearby alley holding signs and chanting, “stop work now, stop work now!”
The group, led by Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner 8A01 Holly Muhammad, feels the city has kept them in the dark about the status of their water since the spill.
On July 16th, hazmat crews showed up to the construction site after ground water filled with arsenic, iron and other metals spilled from two large filtration tanks.
“Problem is the lot used to be a metal works and as a result the soil is contaminated," said resident Patrick May.
DC's Department of Energy and the Environment issued a stop work order, but a spokesperson said that stop work order was lifted a week later because the company repaired the filters but neighbors don't trust it.
"It doesn't take a degree to know you don't want lead arsenic and manganese in your water," said May.
Here's where it gets a little hazy: the DOEE said the ground water that spilled did not have a high enough concentration of the metals to harm the Anacostia River, but that spokesperson also admitted they don't know how long that metal-filled water was seeping into the local waterways.
Neighbors suspect it was spilling for at least three days prior to the call, because they heard an alarm coming from the site.
"We want a community meeting with the department of environments. We want the stop work order back until we get that just like they do west of the river,” said ANC Commissioner Muhammad. “If we're safe then come out here and tell us that. Show us the proof that we're safe."
The Commissioner is calling for a meeting to address concerns. No word on when that will happen but a DOEE spokesperson said the drinking water is safe. They insist the Anacostia River was not affected.
