The White House Reflecting Pool has reopened after a $14-million renovation, but people noticed algae in the water only days later.
The objective was to repair the pool, improve its structure, and make the water look clean and visually striking, with a blue tone described as “American Flag Blue,” but the pool turned bright green again.
“Versus previous administrations, the National Park Service is actually maintaining the beautifully completed Reflecting Pool,” the Department of the Interior spokesperson told The NY Post.
The department’s spokesperson, Katie Martin, said that the National Park Service is now properly maintaining the newly renovated Reflecting Pool.
OMFG!
So Trump had people dump a bunch of peroxide in along the edges of the reflecting pool.
Do you see what I see? pic.twitter.com/LAAQRoOhEj
— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) June 17, 2026
At first, President Donald Trump said the project would cost about $1.8 million; later, it was estimated at around $13.1 million, and finally it reached about $14.2 million, according to CNN.
Martin claimed the use of a technology has helped fight algae problems happening in the pool for many years, at least since 1922, when the structure first had repeated maintenance issues after reopenings.
She also said that during a past reopening under Barack Obama, the pool developed a heavy algae problem, where green clumps formed on the water surface. At that time, the government spent about $34 million to repair the Reflecting Pool.
She said the current administration installed a system called “nanobubblers.” This system releases very tiny air bubbles into the water, according to Forbes. These bubbles help increase oxygen and destroy algae growth. She further said that the algae currently in the pool is now dead and is being cleaned out using vacuum machines.
She also thanked US President Donald Trump, saying his administration has finally cleaned and fixed the Reflecting Pool permanently. “Now, due to deploying the advanced nanobubbler technology, the algae is dead and being vacuumed up as we speak. We thank President Trump for fixing the Reflecting Pool for good,” Martin said.
On June 4, Trump and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum announced that the renovation was completed and water was being refilled in the pool. They also said the timing was planned to match America’s 250th birthday celebrations on July 4.
