Haverhill Mayor Melinda Barrett announced in a July 1 statement that the first of two 24-in. temporary bypass lines was successfully installed, allowing for wastewater to again flow to the city’s wastewater treatment plant.

“Through the tireless efforts of the City’s wastewater staff and contractors Xylem, DeFelice and Wright-Pierce, the sanitary sewer overflow into the Merrimack River has ceased,” she said. This is a major milestone in the emergency response to this unprecedented crisis.”

Construction is ongoing for a second temporary bypass line, designed to increase temporary bypass capacity to about 30 million gallons per day, enough to handle wet weather flows while permanent repairs of the 42-in. force main are underway, Barrett added. 

Mass. Gov. Maura Healy also stated that state beaches impacted by the recent wastewater event were “cleared for swimming after water quality testing showed no evidence of elevated bacterial levels. The state will continue to monitor water quality in river areas. Public health officials are recommending residents, and recreational users avoid contact with the river near Haverhill and downstream for at least the next 48 hours. 

Before the bypass pipe was installed, an estimated seven to 10 million gallons of untreated sewage a day were flowing into the river, which flows northeast before entering the Atlantic Ocean at Newburyport, Mass., says the city’s Public Works Director Robert Ward. But Ward and other officials note that Haverhill’s drinking water system is separate and unaffected by the wastewater spill.

The massive raw sewage forced beaches to close for swimming and shellfish areas north of Boston to close only days before July 4, the Boston Globe reported.

Downstream of the sewer line break high levels of bacteria were reported at beaches including Plum Island, which is experiencing “dangerously high levels of bacteria,” the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge website says.

Bypass Installation

The mayor and DPW director Ward told the nonprofit news service WHAV June 27, that the city responded quickly placing an emergency contractor on site within hours. Defelice Corp. was onsite working on another project June 27 and is already “stringing together” a 24-in.-temporary line that will go to the wastewater treatment plant, Ward said.

As of June 29, “one 24-in. bypass line designed to handle dry weather flows was laid out in 500-ft to 700-ft sections from the pumping station to the [wastewater treatment] plant,” with fusing set to begin later that day, Mayor Barrett said on Facebook.

“Delivery and installation of two of the five pumps” was also set to begin that day. The two pumps and single bypass line will handle dry weather sewage flows to stop the flow of sewage to the river, she notes.

Installation of a second bypass line and the remaining three pumps will follow initial bypass work with a July 5 deadline, Barrett says.

Emergency Response

The city’s emergency response is underway with help from contractor DeFelice and water technology consultant Xylem for the temporary bypass work, and environmental engineering firm Wright-Pierce, the mayor said on Facebook. Wright Pierce’s is providing technical support throughout the emergency response including evaluating the condition of the force main and repair options.

“The city retained Xylem immediately following the force main failure to design and install a temporary bypass pumping system that will convey wastewater around the damaged sections of the force main,” Barret said on the city’s Facebook page. Xylem arrived June 27 and has completed its evaluation.

Due to the break near the South Mill Street Pumping Station, the city is discharging all wastewater flowing to the pumping station via the break into the Merrimack River downstream of downtown Haverhill, Barrett noted.

Funding Requests

Healey added that the combined sewer overflow (CSO) event is “also a reminder that aging water infrastructure is under increasing stress from more frequent extreme weather.”  She said she is requesting federal funding for infrastructure needed to replace the aging water infrastructure and will also rely on the Massachusetts’ revolving fund designed to help communities comply with Clean Water Act standards.

Within two weeks, she said she expects to sign the Mass Ready Act, “a law that will provide needed funding to aging infrastructure like this.”

And once the immediate emergency is resolved, she said she would make sure a full investigation of the pipe failure is launched.  

The city has filed all necessary notifications with state and federal environmental agencies and reported combined sewer overflow information on the city’s website, Ward said.