April 28, 2017

Council of the District of Columbia

1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington DC 20004

Dear Members of the Council:

We write to express our deep concern with the amount of FY 2018 funds in the capital budget
proposal for hazardous material remediation of the Anacostia River bottom sediments and the
contaminated land areas adjacent, particularly Ward 8s Poplar Point and Ward 7s Kenilworth
North.

As you know, Title VI of the Fiscal Year 2015 Budget Support Emergency Act of 2014 requires
that the DOEE director publish a record of decision for the Anacostia River sediment remediation
project on or before June 30, 2018. Specifically, the language says:

By June 30, 2018, the Director of the District Department of the Environment
shall adopt and publish a record of decision [ROD] in the District of Columbia
Register choosing the remedy for remediation of contaminated sediment in the
Anacostia River. The remedial choice shall be based on the remedial investigation
and feasibility study results and shall be consistent with the National Contingency
Plan set forth in 40 C.F.R. Part 300, and with section 121 of the Comprehensive
Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act, approved October 17,
1986 (100 Stat. 1672; 42 U.S.C. 9621).

We know that DOEE and its partner the National Park Service and their contractors have been
working hard to meet the Councils legislated deadline. This deadline is an important part of the
commitment the District made several years ago to start the investigation and restoration of the
river so that it can bring the federal government and other responsible parties to the table to
pay for their pollution of the river. However, it will be difficult for the District to continue its
progress on this commitment without the allocation of capital funds in FY 2018.

Moreover, it was our understanding based on publicly presented materials that DMPED and
DOEE were planning to complete a ROD in 2018 for the Kenilworth North site, which is
directed by a 2004 federal law to transfer from the National Park Service to the District, and to
begin another set of investigations for Poplar Point, which is similarly directed to transfer to the
District by a 2006 federal law. Again, it seems difficult to achieve these goals without an
allocation of FY 2018 capital funds.
Ideally, an additional $10 million should be added for FY2018FY2019 to continue progress on all
Anacostia remediation projects. At a minimum, however, the $5 million for FY 2018 should be
restored, not simply because of the statutory deadline for the ROD, but for the District to
maintain its leverage against responsible parties and begin next steps, including conducting the
detailed design of specific remedial components. The District should protect the investment it
has already made in its strategy so that responsible parties ultimately pay for their contributions
to the rivers pollution. Funding has been planned for FY 2018 since 2015, and at the very least it
should be maintained as the city continues with this strategy. Withdrawing funding at this point
will send a signal to those who are responsible for the cleanup that the District is not serious
about holding them accountable.

We ask for your commitment that you will restore the funding to this account necessary to stay
the course with the sediment remediation project and to move forward with dispatch on
Kenilworth North site and Poplar Point site. This is critical to enabling the District to capitalize on
all the investments it has made to restore the river as a valuable asset for residents.

Sincerely,

Michael Bochynski, Clean Water Action (mbochynski@cleanwater.org), on behalf of:

Members of the Anacostia Park and Community Collaborative (@anacostiarivpk)

Anacostia Business Improvement District
Anacostia Coordinating Council
Anacostia Waterfront Trust
Clean Water Action
Community Preservation and Development
Corporation
DC Appleseed Center
DC Promise Neighborhood Initiative
East River Family Strengthening
Collaborative
Far Southeast Family Strengthening
Collaborative
Friends of Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens
Georgetown University Policy Innovation
Lab
Groundswell
Groundwork Anacostia River DC
Institute for Public Health Innovation
Progressive National Baptist Convention
The Urban Institute
Ward 7 Business Partnership

Anacostia Riverkeeper
Anacostia Watershed Society
Mark Bey, Ward 7 & A Cleaner Ward 7 volunteer
Susie Cambria, Ward 7 resident
Linda Howard, former Executive Director, The Summit Fund of Washington
Natural Resources Defense Council
Potomac Riverkeeper