Drought conditions and fires have recently impacted the nation and Montgomery County.
“We are in a fight, and at some point we’ve got to think about this like you would think about being in a war and what you need to do to win that battle,” County Executive Marc Elrich said during a media briefing Wednesday, noting recent news about drought and fires, like the Canadian wildfires.
Last week, a Code Purple air quality alert was issued for the D.C. region and officials were urging residents to be cautious as unhealthy air quality permeated the area due to remnants from wildfires in Canada.
Elrich mentioned ocean currents from Antarctica appear to be slowing, with major climate ramifications, and that Phoenix, Arizona halted construction due to low water supply.
Locally, on Monday, the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin began active drought monitoring due to low river flow.
WSSC Water announced tap water in certain service areas may have a different taste and odor because of algae activity in the Potomac River, due to an increase in Geosmin, a naturally-occurring substance that is “caused by warmer weather and low water levels in the Potomac River.”
According to WSSC, “If the low water levels in the Potomac River persist and drought conditions do not improve, the taste and odor issues will not be resolved in the short term despite treatment changes.” The water is still safe and meets EPA Safe Drinking Water Act standards, per WSSC.
“People used to talk about, ‘this is going to happen in 2050, this is going to happen in 2100,’ all those dates are creeping closer to where we are now, and it’s not that we are getting closer to 2050, it’s that the things they thought were going to happen in 2050 and 2100 look like they are going to happen sooner with greater impacts,” Elrich said.
Elrich also discussed the newly-unveiled resiliency hub powered by renewable energy microgrids at the Montgomery County Animal Services and Adoption Center (MCASAC) in Derwood.
He said the community will hear more from the county on climate.
