Our Mission
The Anacostia Watershed Society is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to protect and restore the Anacostia River by bringing partners and communities together to achieve a clean and safe Anacostia River for the benefit of all living in its watershed and for future generations.
Our WorkOur Impact Over the Years
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214,000+People engaged
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1580+Tons of trash removed from the watershed
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85,000Students engaged in watershed education
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38,000+Mussels released into the watershed
We offer a variety of programs designed to accelerate the Anacostia River’s progress towards swimmable and fishable as defined in the 1972 Clean Water Act. In order to pursue this goal, the Anacostia Watershed Society works towards three subgoals:
- Stop pollution now
- Restore the river’s natural systems
- Rebuild the community’s relationship to the river
Measurable Results
Impact Since our founding in 1989
- We have engaged more than 214,000 adults and youth in our programs
- We have planted more than 25,000 native trees, shrubs, and plants
- Eradicated 58 acres of invasive plant cover
- Restored more than 25 acres of wetland habitat
- Removed over 1580 tons of trash and debris from the river (and 11,575 tires)
- Created more than 2.5 million square feet of green roofs and bioretention area to annually treat millions of gallons of stormwater runoff each year
- Educated and engaged more than 85,000 watershed students and trained 1,078 teachers from Maryland and DC to present our watershed curriculum to their students
- With our partners, we have helped win lawsuits that have resulted in a significant decrease in sewage, stormwater, and trash in the Anacostia River
