Trump's Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool makeover turns green again
Trump's $14 million Reflecting Pool facelift was already showing green algae and a tear in the new sealant days after reopening, undermining the promised "American Flag Blue" finish.
The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, resurfaced at President Donald Trump’s direction with an “American Flag Blue” coating, was already showing the strain of its latest overhaul. Dark green algae spread across the water just days after the pool reopened, and photos on June 18 showed a tear in the newly applied sealant on the floor.
The contrast was stark for a project billed as a spring cleaning centerpiece ahead of the nation’s 250th birthday. Trump launched the renovation in April, after calling the century-old pool’s condition “terrible,” and the work ran through early June as crews drained, resurfaced and refilled the landmark on the National Mall. Federal contracts for the project were valued at more than $14 million, with the renovation estimated at about $14.2 million and in some accounts $14.8 million or more.
The president said he personally chose the color of the sealant and described it as the “latest and greatest filament” and an “industrial-grade” pool liner. Instead of the clear-water display envisioned for Independence Day celebrations, the pool had turned into a green patchwork by June 14 to 16, with visitors, ducks and cleanup crews visible around the water near the Lincoln Memorial and the World War II Memorial.
Interior Department officials said the bloom came from residual algae in dormant supply lines that had sat idle for about eight weeks during construction and framed the problem as a normal startup issue. Department officials later said the water was “crystal clear” and that workers were vacuuming dead algae while deploying a high-tech “nanobubbler” system to keep the growth from returning. Crews also used hydrogen peroxide to treat the water.
The response underscored how much maintenance work still sits beneath the political theater. Green Water Solutions received $1.7 million from the National Park Service to install the ozone nanobubbling system, while Pearl Purity Water Solutions has treated the pool water since 2021. Experts said warm weather, lingering algae, stagnant water and nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus likely fueled the bloom, and a Smithsonian researcher said there was “no quick fix” because the reflecting pool is especially favorable to algae growth.
Washington’s heat did not help. AccuWeather reported a high of 100 degrees on June 12, a stretch of weather that likely accelerated the bloom. The Reflecting Pool has long had problems with leaks, algae and faulty plumbing, a reminder that even the most visible federal showpieces can fail quickly when upkeep, contracting and design collide.
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