As many as 15 million gallons of untreated sewage water spilled into the Western Branch of the Patuxent River during Monday’s heavy rains, adding bacteria and chemicals to the already polluted waterway.
Three days of stormy weather dropped nearly 7 inches of rain in Upper Marlboro, overwhelming the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission’s treatment plant with 90 million gallons a day of untreated sewer water, WSSC spokesman John White said. The plant is designed to handle a peak flow of 60 million gallons a day, and the six pumps struggled to keep up, White said.
The situation was made worse by the rising water levels in the rivers near the plant, he said. Swaths of Upper Marlboro were under water Monday, forcing the evacuation of the county administrative building and the courthouse.
“It was a matter of nature overcoming man,” White said.
Of the 10 million to 15 million gallons of untreated water that entered the river, only about a quarter of it was actually sewage, White said. The heavy rain diluted much of it.
But when it comes to sewage, diluted is a relative term, Kelly Canavan, president of the Accokeek, Mattawoman, Piscataway Creeks Council, said.
“Untreated water is what comes from your toilet,” Canavan said. “I could put an extra cup of cup of water in my toilet, but it doesn’t mean I want to brush my teeth with it. … What this means for us is that our waterways are severe human and ecological health hazards.”
This isn’t the first time untreated sewage water has made its way into the Patuxent and other rivers in Prince George’s County. The WSSC entered a consent decree in 2005 requiring it to spend $350 million over 12 years to upgrade its facilities. That work is still under way, White said.
There are already signs posted around the Patuxent warning swimmers not to let their heads go below the surface; doing so could result in a brutal infection, Canavan said.
“That’s the water flowing next to your picnic. The water you’re watersking in, fishing in. It’s all been in your toilet. You’re flushing right into that water,” she said.
