It was still raining Monday from the weekend’s windy nor’easter, and just the estimated 2 inches it brought resulted in at least three combined sewer overflows, the term for releasing waste into public waterways when sewer and water systems get overwhelmed. The area has seen around 30 inches of rainfall this year, compared with a 34.6-inch average at this point, according to the RainDrop app.
Treated CSO discharged Sunday in Somerville from 10:30 a.m. to 2:17 p.m., a spill potentially affecting the Mystic River upstream of the Amelia Earhart Dam, according to a city alert, and from 7:21 to 4:14 p.m. downstream from the dam. A state law from 2022 requires notice to residents when discharges last more than two hours.
The MWRA website shows an additional 23-minute discharge Monday starting at 8:43 a.m. and affecting the Everett and Somerville Lower Mystic River area from Draw Seven Park. The Cambridge overflow website shows no discharges since July.
Residents are advised to avoid contact with these bodies of water for 48 hours after the discharge or the end of the overflow, because the sewage brings health risks from bacteria and other pollutants.
A $1.3 billion plan to reduce the CSOs – the result of four years of collaboration between Cambridge, Somerville and the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority – is being prepared for presentation next year to the federal Environmental Protection Agency and state Department of Environmental Protection. If the plan is accepted, the work is expected to take into the 2050s.
Three public hearings have been scheduled to provide people with the opportunity to provide oral comment on the Draft Plan. Comments are also accepted in writing via an online comment portal, email or mail. Information on how to comment is here. The next opportunity at from 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 28 at Somerville City Hall, 93 Highland Ave., Central Hill, and online at that time.
Information about the discharges are at the Somerville CSO page, Cambridge CSO page and MWRA CSO page.
