![\"Potomac](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Photo-Jan-30-2026-8-20-12-AM-1672x1254.jpg\")
<\/p>\nBacteria levels near the break, which occurred just south of the American Legion Bridge, have soared, but on Friday morning the leaders of the Washington Aqueduct worked to reassure and explain why drinking water isn\u2019t being impacted by the spill.<\/p>\n
More than 200 million gallons of sewage have spilled into the Potomac River this month, creating an ecological disaster. Bacteria levels near the break, which occurred just south of the American Legion Bridge, have soared, but on Friday morning the leaders of the Washington Aqueduct worked to reassure and explain why drinking water isn\u2019t being impacted by the spill.\n<\/p>\n
The main pumping station that supplies water to the aqueduct, which provides the water for D.C., and Fairfax and Arlington Counties, is the Great Falls station which is several miles north of the spill.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur water quality is excellent,\u201d said Rudy Chow, the general manager of the aqueduct. \u201cWe meet and exceed all EPA environmental requirements under the Safe Drinking Water Act.\u201d<\/p>\n
Water quality testing, which is normally done five days a week, has been bumped up to seven days during this incident. Downstream of the spill sits the Little Falls Pumping Station, and it\u2019s a different story there.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe sample results are very high concentration of bacteria and fecal coliforms, as well as E. coli,\u201d Chow said. While bacteria levels have gone down a bit since D.C. Water stopped the overflow a week ago, it\u2019s still thousands of times above the normal average.<\/p>\n
But the Little Falls station is only operated when the river isn\u2019t flowing as strong into the Great Falls Station \u2014 typically in the summer \u2014 when demand is also up. Little Falls Station has been offline since before the break, and isn\u2019t expected to be needed anytime soon. He vowed it wouldn\u2019t go back online until water quality levels are back to normal either.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not taking any water from there at all,\u201d Chow said. \u201cOur water is all upstream from here, and the concentration and water quality is normal as always.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chow is confident that number will continue to drop as long as there\u2019s no more spill and the rest of the river keeps diluting the sewage as it flows south. The Army Corps of Engineers said the sewage spill also isn\u2019t affecting water treatment at the Dalecarlia plant in Northwest D.C.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The main pumping station that supplies water to the aqueduct, which provides the water for D.C., and Fairfax and Arlington Counties, is the Great Falls station which is several miles north of the spill.
\n(WTOP\/John Domen) <\/p>\n
\n WTOP\/John Domen <\/p>\n
![\"Two](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Photo-Jan-30-2026-8-37-04-AM-1672x1254.jpg\")
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Officials give an update about the Potomac River sewage spill.
\n(WTOP\/John Domen) <\/p>\n
\n WTOP\/John Domen <\/p>\n
![\"Map](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Photo-Jan-30-2026-8-37-46-AM-1672x1254.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
More than 200 million gallons of sewage have spilled into the Potomac River this month, creating an ecological disaster.
\n(WTOP\/John Domen) <\/p>\n
\n WTOP\/John Domen <\/p>\n