To the Editor,
Thank you for your ongoing coverage of local water pollution issues, including your recent article, “Village of Mamaroneck Sheds EPA Administrative Order,” published on Feb. 19.
Right after we provided a quote for that story, continuing our call for the village to address the ongoing sewage contamination in Beaver Swamp Brook and Mamaroneck River, the county sewer line that runs under Beaver Swamp Brook broke, spewing 2,400 gallons of raw sewage onto the streets of Rye near Park Avenue Bridge. A spokesperson for the county reported that during the emergency repair, they discovered a “softball-size hole” in the pipe that runs under the brook. It appears that we have found our culprit, or at least one of them.
It is disheartening that it takes an expensive sewer line break to get inspection and repairs happening, especially in light of the fact that Save the Sound and Arcadis have documented the sewage hot spot in the brook by Rye Neck High School and we have been calling for an inspection there for two years.
The lack of proactive maintenance of our sewer lines, and the costly resulting repairs and water pollution, is the reason why Save the Sound has taken legal action against Westchester County and the 11 municipalities connected to the Sound Shore sewage treatment plants. It is our sincere hope that our legal action will result in more proactive maintenance of our sewer lines, keeping costs down and providing cleaner, safer waterways for all the residents of Westchester County.
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure when it comes to our water infrastructure.
Tracy Brown,
Director of Western Sound programs, Save the Sound
