I'd planned to write about something else today until I read this morning's newspaper. The opinion page was inundated by readers responding to last week's front-page article on the pollution-plagued blighted jewel that is the Anacostia River. (I ‘slogged' about this last week.)

A letter from Michele Leonardi correctly noted that untreated human waste is a public health threat that needs to be fixed now, not on the 20-year time frame laid out by the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority. "We are not a Third World country," Ms. Leonardi pointed out. "It is incomprehensible that in 2007 a major waterway in the nation's capital would still be contaminated with raw sewage."

She offered an excellent suggestion - that the bulk of tax revenue from the new businesses, the new baseball stadium and all other development underway near the river should go directly toward bringing the city's sorry sewer system up to the standards of a civilized nation. Great idea!

It's important to recognize the integral connection between development, increased stormwater runoff and the sewer overflows in the District - moderate to heavy rain is what triggers the combined sewer system to overflow. So while treating sewage is crucial, reducing runoff is also a must. Fortunately, there is a move for new development (like the stadium) to be more "green", using low impact development techniques that reduce storm water and sewer overflows.

Which brings us to some good news for the Anacostia River. According to another story in the Washington Post, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a lower court's ruling that would set and enforce Clean Water Act pollution limits for the Anacostia. Fecal bacteria, trash and toxic chemicals make the Anacostia one of the most unhealthy streams in the region. The court's decision means that the EPA must put "daily" caps on the amounts of pollutants dumped into the river - instead of the annual or seasonal pollution limited preferred by the agency.

This is a huge victory in the long-running battle over the raw sewage running into the river. The District's antiquated sewer system currently dumps out raw sewage-laden rainwater during storms. Environmental attorneys successfully argued that these "overflows" are so severe that an annual pollution limit is simply not adequate.

Already, EPA and D.C. sewer officials are claiming (and complaining) that the ruling will delay and divert cleanup plans and money for the river. It could certainly derail their dubious plan to dig massive tunnels under the city, where water can be stored during a storm and afterward pumped to a sewage treatment plant for treatment. But at least the river will benefit from more protection, not less with the daily pollution limits. After all, they don't call it "total maximum daily load" for nothing!