The Potomac Interceptor Crisis: Why Great Falls Residents Are Demanding Accountability
As a resident of Great Falls, Virginia—and as part of Citizens For Great Falls (CFGF), an all‑volunteer, non‑partisan advocacy group—I’ve spent years tracking the growing risks posed by the Potomac Interceptor (PI), the aging interstate sewer line running beneath our community. Recent failures make one thing clear: DC Water has not done enough to protect public safety, the environment, or the thousands of people who live above this deteriorating pipeline.
A Failure in 2024 That Should Have Been a Wake‑Up Call
In February 2024, a section of the PI collapsed near Odor Control Facility Site 31, creating a massive sinkhole while DC Water crews were actively working on the line. The incident damaged access roads, closed a regional trail, threatened nearby homes and drinking‑water wells, and produced overwhelming odors.
Despite the severity of the event—and the fact that the PI carries the same volume of sewage that later spilled into the Potomac in 2026—DC Water has not been forthcoming in publicizing the weakness of this critical infrastructure or its failures. Two years after a catastrophic failure in Great Falls that created a massive sinkhole along the Potomac River, work continues to mitigate the damage that was done and the odors that have plagued neighbors.
Evidence DC Water Knew the System Was Failing
Congressional oversight correspondence shows that by April 2025, DC Water the operator of the pipeline had documentation that it was at risk of failure and required emergency repairs. Yet the system remained in service, even as its Board approved a $44.7 million contract for rehabilitation planning and “emergency construction services.”
Internal engineering studies paint an even clearer picture. A 2023 technical paper co‑authored by DC Water managers reported that many PI segments carried the highest‑risk defect ratings. Instead of treating these findings as a mandate for urgent action, the authors proposed a methodology that could delay repairs to spread out capital costs—despite years of documented corrosion.
Transparency Still Missing
The 2024 failure has been largely absent from public reporting and from DC Water’s own communications about the 2026 spill. Great Falls residents still lack basic information, including inspection results, risk assessments, and long‑term plans for the PI beneath our homes and parks. Given the stakes, this lack of transparency is unacceptable.
Leadership Concerns
Community trust questions also arise by the background of DC Water’s current CEO, formerly a senior executive at Veolia North America—an engineering firm sued for its role in the Flint water crisis and later part of a $53 million settlement. This history raises understandable questions about whether DC Water’s leadership fully grasps the consequences of mismanaging critical infrastructure.
What Needs to Happen Now
After the January 2026 spill, CFGF urged Fairfax County, the largest contributor to the PI system to recognize that another PI failure—especially one occurring in Fairfax or Loudoun Counties—could directly threaten public and private wells and the safety of thousands of residents.
The CFGF correspondence offered that any resolution must include:
- Structural reform at DC Water
- Accelerated rehabilitation of the PI
- Independent oversight with real authority
- Full transparency for affected communities
Great Falls residents, and all downstream neighbors, deserve infrastructure decisions rooted in safety, environmental protection, and public trust—not deferred maintenance and opaque decision‑making.