Arlington County plans to dredge stretches of the Four Mile Run and lower Long Branch Creek channels to alleviate potential flooding.
The project targets sections of the waterways near Mt. Vernon Avenue, bordering the City of Alexandria, where U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) determined soil deposit levels were “unacceptable” for stormwater management.
Some long-awaited improvements could finally be on the way for the Ballston Pond, which could help keep trash out of the waterway and help better manage stormwater in the area.
County officials are planning a community meeting to discuss the project tomorrow (Wednesday) at Arlington Central Library (1015 N. Quincy Street). The gathering is set to start at 7:30 p.m.
A group of local residents have launched a petition against an Arlington County plan to remove more than 80 trees at the Donaldson Run Nature Area.
The nature area, part of Donaldson Run Park at 4020 30th Street N. between Military Road and N. Upton Street, is set to have a section of its stream restored early next year.
Arlington marks many of its more than 10,000 storm drains as a reminder that anything going into a drain heads directly to local streams that flow into the Potomac River. The river is the source of tap water for Arlington and much of the D.C. metro area.
Nothing should be dumped into storm drains, per Arlington County Code Section 26-5, which reads: “…it shall be unlawful for any person to discharge directly or indirectly into the storm sewer system or state waters, any substance likely, in the opinion of the County Manager, to have an adverse effect on the storm sewer system or state waters.”
Update on 10/22 — The advisory has been lifted.
Raw sewage overflowing from a manhole near the Long Branch Nature Center has prompted county authorities to issue a warning about the water in the Upper Long Branch stream and in Four Mile Run from Glencarlyn Park to the Potomac River.
Did you know that all of Arlington’s storm drains empty directly into local streams and waterways? Many people do not, which is part of the reason why 50-100 cases of stream contamination are reported each year.
To help reduce that number, Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment and Whole Foods are teaming up to put “Don’t Dump” markers on neighborhood storm drains.
