THE LEAFLET

Did you know it’s the Year of the Anacostia? To kick things off, last week Mayor Bowser announced significant conservation and investment commitments for Kingman and Heritage Islands. Mayor Muriel Bowser pledged $4.7 million towards the islands, and designating Kingman and neighboring Heritage Island as a state conservation area. The southern tip of Kingman Island is now a critical wildlife area, adding further protections for the 100 species of birds, mammals and other creatures that can be found there.

The overall vision? Seeing this sliver of land on the Anacostia River, tucked behind RFK, as a destination for outdoor learning and recreation, complete with outdoor classrooms, a ranger station, an environmental center and better public access.

DOEE Director Tommy Wells was on hand for the announcement on the bridge between Kingman and Heritage Island, and noted that since the islands are in such an odd place, “…Because nobody’s touched the islands, you really had a natural habitat that is indigenous to the neighborhood grow up without hardly any disturbance at all. That is a forest that has been untouched since these islands were created over 100 years ago.”

That is something we can all get behind. To see how you can further help your urban forest and help make the Anacostia swimmable and fishable, check out our residential planting and stormwater management programs.

Photo courtesy of DOEE.