Poor water quality in the Chesapeake is a result of a lot of factors, but sewage spills anytime, much less during the summer time are one of the worst things that can happen. I have been very outspoken on the fact that as water quality declines we need to reduce harvest limits and I still believe that. However, at the same time we need to start really doing something about the water quality, like improving it. I have heard some good signs around our neck waters in and around Easton with a lot new grasses being seen which is good news. We need really  need to start to clean up the sewage plants around the bay. Just stopping this will make big improvments. We really need to stop this “s*!t

——————————————-

4 million gallon sewage spill shuts Patapsco at Linthicum

By SEAN PATRICK NORRIS, Staff Writer
Link to article

Published July 16, 2008

More than 4 million gallons of sewage spilled from a pumping station in Halethorpe into the Patapsco River starting Monday afternoon, prompting health warnings from Linthicum downstream.

Officials on the Baltimore County side of the river cautioned the public to avoid contact with the water from the Annapolis Road Bridge to the Chesapeake Bay for at least a week. Anne Arundel County posted a similar warning.

The spill happened over 12 hours starting at 5 p.m. Monday at the pumping station at 4612 Annapolis Road, Baltimore County officials said. Officials discovered that a log jammed in the system, causing an electrical outage at the pumping station.

“I don’t know how a piece of wood gets in there,” said Bill Clarke, a manager at Baltimore County Department of Environmental Protection and Resource Management. “I’ve seen kids stick ladders down manhole covers and people throw rocks in there. You can’t eliminate vandalism or people messing it up.”

David F. Fidler, a spokesman for the Baltimore County Department of Public Works, said clean-up options are limited.

“There is some ponding that didn’t get into the river that will be pumped back in or will flow back into the plant naturally,” said Mr. Fidler. “There will be some liming to neutralize the pollutant but there won’t be much we can do beyond that.”

Mr. Clarke said work crews already yesterday started putting up signs warning people against touching the water.

“It’s foolish to stick your hands in natural waters,” Mr. Clarke said. “A lot of infections come from people having breaks in the skin and fishing or swimming. People have to use their common sense.”

The Patapsco forms the border between Baltimore and Anne Arundel counties, flowing past Baltimore City, and parts of Brooklyn Park, Curtis Bay and Orchard Beach before reaching the bay at Fort Smallwood Park. With a heavily developed shoreline, including industrial sites and a Coast Guard yard, it is not a source of drinking water.

Mr. Fidler couldn’t tell what the log was.

“I can’t make heads or tails of the pictures,” he said. “You would be completely amazed what people get into theses pumping stations. It’s miraculous what people get down a manhole cover.”

County officials said the amount of sewage was “significant.”

“The Patapsco is a relatively slow-moving body of water,” Mr. Clarke said. “There are a lot of little pockets where stuff can accumulate. When the water is like that you need to be on your toes with regards to your personal hygiene.”

Water samples will be conducted later in the week by the Baltimore County environmental department to monitor the contamination and determine when the ban on contact can be lifted.

“I doubt that it will be this week, but it could be very much diluted if there is a torrential rain,” Mr. Clarke said. “These conditions will probably persist for a while.”

The department will update the situation on its Web site at www.baltimorecountymd.gov/agencies/environment.

The power outage was made worse by the timing: peak time for the sewage system. However, from the standpoint of bacteria the effect of the spill will last a short time, county officials said.

The timing of the spill also wasn’t good for aquatic life because during the summer, the river is prone to algae blooms. When the algae dies, it saps the water of oxygen and leads to fish kills. Sewage, because of the nutrients in it, feeds algae growth tremendously.

Rain water runoff, while it can help flush the Patapsco, also can contribute nutrients to the river as well through fertilizer and other things in the watershed.

Mr. Fidler said this spill is the largest within the past six months to a year. There have been four other overflows in Baltimore County this year, but their total overflow equaled 30,000 gallons.

The capacity of this pumping station is about 60 million gallons per day and is slated to be completely rebuilt in order to increase its capacity. Construction is supposed to begin at the end of the year.

The station was built in 1976 and is aging, Mr. Fidler said.

“It will be expanded to four pumps,” he said. “It can handle the flow coming into it without all the pumps online.”

Comments RSS