Our Swimmable Potomac Report summarizing the findings of the Community Science Water Quality Monitoring program has just been published. The good news? The river is frequently safe for swimming, which is more scientific support for lifting the swim ban in DC. Help us tell Mayor Bowser it’s time! We want everyone to be able to enjoy the river!
Since the launch of our Community Science Water Quality Monitoring Program in 2019, our program has undergone significant expansion and has become an incredibly valuable public resource, notifying the public of when and where it is safe to recreate on the river. We now monitor 30 sites along the river and have over 100 trained volunteers involved in the program. According to our five years of data, the sites we monitor are usually safe for recreation, passing public-health based water quality standards 71 percent of the time.
Over the past five years, residents of the region have checked our data on SwimGuide more than 100,000 times. The sheer number of folks who are checking our water quality data reflects just how many people are already recreating along the Potomac and need accurate notification of the water quality to protect their health.
With thousands of people interacting with and recreating on the Potomac and its tributaries each year, it is essential for the public to have current information about the water quality that may directly affect their well-being and health.
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