Anacostia River cleanup: $1M grant to fund removal of trash, sunken boats

$1M grant to fund removal of trash, sunken boats from Anacostia River

A new million-dollar project aims to clean up the Anacostia River. FOX 5's Josh Rosenthal has the story.

WASHINGTON - A new million-dollar project aims to clean up the Anacostia River.

The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (MWCOG) announced Monday that, in partnership with Anacostia Riverkeeper, they’re receiving a grant of nearly $1 million from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Marine Debris Program. The money will be used to remove an estimated 60,000 pounds of trash and debris from the Anacostia Watershed, along with 33 abandoned or derelict vessels from Marinas along the Anacostia.

"Some of them are decent-sized boats and have sunken. Some of them are still floating on top. So, they’re in various conditions," explained MWCOG Project Manager Phong Trieu.

He added that the debris project organizers plan to remove includes car parts, appliances, electric scooters, bikes, tires, and more.

Anacostia River fails water quality test

Experts say the setback is not indicative of the Anacostia's improvement over the last 30 years.

The project is expected to run for four years.

Trieu said it’s currently in the planning stages, and actual work in the Anacostia is likely to start in 2025.

More information can be found here.