Opinion

A delayed dip in the Anacostia will be a big victory for clean rivers

People were going to be allowed to swim legally in the Anacostia River on Saturday for the first time in half a century, but organizers called off the event because a rainstorm caused raw sewage to overflow into the water.

This is no cause to lose heart. That this event was scheduled at all is a testament to how much progress has been made cleaning up what was once one of the dirtiest rivers in the United States. That it needed to be postponed until September underscores that work remains.