Anacostia River Initiative 

The Anacostia River Watershed covers portions of the District of Columbia, Prince George's and Montgomery County in Maryland. The Watershed is approximately 176 square miles (456 sq. km.) in area and roughly 25% of its land area lies in the District. The river is entirely tidal in the District while the upstream land area in Maryland is primarily non-tidal. The Anacostia River, once a pristine river is now degraded, mainly due to its highly urbanized character. The River is the focus of large-scale restoration efforts by District Government. The District of Columbia is a partner in the Anacostia Watershed Restoration Partnership (AWRP). Together with its partners the AWRP has developed the Anacostia Watershed Network Website providing an overview of the problems facing the Anacostia and the efforts underway to address them. 

Anacostia Restoration Plan
In the Spring of 2007, the Mayor requested that the District Department of the Environment develop a roadmap for the City's efforts to restore the Anacostia. The Mayor recognized that, although restoration efforts to attain Clean Water Act goals in the Anacostia River have been ongoing for more than twenty years, there is still a long way to go before the river can be considered fishable and swimmable. Restoration work will not be accomplished all at once, but instead will take place gradually over time. The City's goal is to restore the Anacostia a fishable and swimmable river by the year 2032.
For more information read the Plan for a Fishable and Swimmable Anacostia River by 2032*.   

Map of the Anacostia
As you can see from this map, the great majority of the Anacostia River Watershed is found outside of the District of Columbia. Seventy-five percent of the watershed is located upstream of the City in Maryland. The District's portion of the Anacostia is the recipient of pollution from our upstream neighbors. For this reason, although the City must do its part to clean up the river, the District also holds its upstream partners responsible for their share of the river's pollution.

• Map of the Entire Anacostia*