The Obama-era repairs addressed several long-standing problems, including stagnant water, leaks, and the gradual sinking of the pool into land dredged from the Potomac River decades ago. Engineers redesigned the pool with a new filtration and circulation system using water from the nearby Tidal Basin instead of city drinking water. The basin was also made shallower to conserve water, and its bottom was tinted gray to improve reflections of the Washington Monument.
