ARLINGTON, Va. — Some kind of petroleum-based substance spilled into the Potomac River at Gravelly Point near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Thursday, and investigators are trying to find out if there is any connection to a rainbow-colored sheen spotted on other parts of the river in recent days.
Julia Robey Christian with D.C.’s Department of Energy and Environment says it’s not clear yet what spilled at Gravelly Point or how much, but the spill has been contained with floating barriers.
“It looks like it’s a mineral oil, but we’ve taken some tests and everything … and when we get those results back, we’ll be able to share that,” she says.
She says mineral oil is not toxic to humans or animals.
The Coast Guard is going to clean it up and figure out who’s responsible.
As for the oil-looking gook spotted on the surface of other parts of the river in recent days, the Coast Guard has been doing flyovers to see how far the sheen goes, and possibly figure out its origin.
The Anacostia River has been checked as well.
“The sheen is nonrecoverable, meaning that it’s so thin and … dissipated that it’s difficult to pick up. And as it moves farther down the water body, it will continue to sort of break apart,” she says.
While the components of the swirling sheen aren’t known yet, but Robey Christian says it could be contaminants that had been stuck in the snow and were washed into the river in recent days.
“We just had a huge rainfall on top of melting snow for a few days,” she points out.
The D.C. Department of Energy and Environment urges you to report any kind of chemical spill you see, whether it’s on land or in the water.
In the District, you can do that by calling 311.
