Rain Overflow Causes Sewage Spill in Merrimack River

MERRIMACK, NH - Sewage and stormwater runoff has been spilled into the Merrimack River for the second time in two months. According to the Eagle Tribune, at least two sewage treatment plants in the region discharged untreated waste into the Merrimack River during the heavy rain that fell Monday.

The spills into the river were the second in six months. On Oct. 30, another major storm knocked out power to the region, shutting down the numerous treatment plants along the river. Locally, the Greater Lawrence Sanitary District in North Andover diverted at least 8 million gallons to the river during that storm and a treatment plant that serves Lowell diverted millions more.

The North Andover plant spilled again on Monday, as did a treatment plant serving Haverhill. The plant serving greater Lowell is typically the first plant on the Merrimack to overflow during storms, and its dumps are the largest — but its operators did not return phone calls Wednesday to determine whether the plant had spilled.

The spills occurred when the treatment plants were overwhelmed by several inches of rain that fell over about a last week. The problem isn't new and there are several bills are pending in the Legislature that could fix the overflow problem.

According to the Merrimack River Watershed Council, about 600,000 people in the area drink from the Merrimack.

You can read the full story at the Eagle Tribune.