CONTACT: Donna Henry (DDOE) 202.299.3338; [email protected]
Washington, DC – The District of Columbia has begun work to “daylight” 1,600 linear feet of stream in northwest Washington, DC, the District Department of the Environment (DDOE) reports today. This is the first time that stream daylighting, the act of uncovering waterways previously piped in an effort to restore natural habitat, has been undertaken in the District.
The stream that is being restored originates from a spring on National Park Service land off Connecticut Avenue and flows to a bridge near the intersection of 36th Street, NW and Nevada Avenue, NW. At this point, the stream enters a pipe which flows beneath Broad Branch Road until the water comes again to the surface as Broad Branch, a tributary to Rock Creek.
DDOE Director Keith A. Anderson noted that it is not clear why the stream was piped out of its historic channel in the 1940s. “However,” said Director Anderson, “DDOE will be happy to have it back at the surface because, unlike piped streams, streams at the surface have many environmental benefits.”
Surface steams improve water quality in comparison to piped streams by exposing water to sunlight, air, soil, and vegetation, all of which help process and remove pollutants. Furthermore, the restoration will reduce nutrient and sediment pollution from erosion caused by fast flowing stormwater by creating meanders and floodplain wetlands which will have wider cross-sections and a greater channel depth than the pipe it will replace.
Additionally, the project will slow down and clean stormwater coming from adjacent streets, alleys and rooftops by directing it into bioretention cells (landscaped areas that slow, cool, and filter dirty stormwater). This clean stormwater will add to the base flow of the newly daylighted stream – ensuring that it has flow during hot, dry summer months.
The stream daylighting project will help meet several goals laid out in the District’s Sustainable DC Plan. Among them are increasing wetland area, restoring streams and rivers, and treating stormwater runoff from roads and alleys. Specifically, the project will create new rain gardens treating about 1.8 acres of impervious area; add at least 5,418 square feet of new wetlands; plant hundreds of new trees to shade the stream; and provide new habitat for fish and wildlife.
For more information on the stream daylighting project, visit Habitat Restoration or contact Steve Saari, Watershed Protection Specialist, at 202-535-2961.
###