Beacon Sewage Overflows to be Fixed
April 3, 2013
Riverkeeper Team
Three years after Riverkeeper filed a Notice of Intent to Sue, the City of Beacon reached an agreement with the Attorney General’s office to fix ongoing leaks in their municipal sewage system. With the aid of citizen watchdogs, Riverkeeper documented raw sewage overflows into Fishkill Creek, at Madam Brett Park, and pushed for a solution.
The City of Beacon, which was not responsive to the initial reports of sewage overflows, was fined $25,000 and required to repair and replace the faulty sewer lines. See Consent Order for all the details of the violation and the settlement agreement. Download the Consent Order
Over the course of several months in 2010, Riverkeeper and a citizen watchdog documented torrents of raw sewage cascading out of a sewer manhole and bubbling through the slats of the public walkway that runs above it. Riverkeeper reported the overflows to local and state officials, the press and the public.
Concerned citizens in Beacon are keeping a keen eye on their local waterways and making a difference for the health of their community, Fishkill Creek and the Hudson River. For example, in 2011 a citizen reported a sewage overflow into Beacon Harbor. Riverkeeper documented and reported on that overflow and it was fixed a few months later.
Beacon, like many cities in New York, needs to increase investment in its municipal sewage infrastructure in order to keep up with growing demand and to avoid the costly repairs that result from breaks and decay. In the case of the Madam Brett Park overflows, repairs and investigative work have already cost $2.3 million. In addition to the $25,000 fine, Beacon will also have to invest in an environmental benefit project - $225,000 towards a connector trail that links the park to Denning's Point and the Klara Sauer Trail on the Hudson side of the train tracks.
Beacon Harbor, shown here on a busy summer day, is a popular destination for local and out-of-town visitors.
If you see a sewage overflow in your community, report it to the local authorities, the Department of Health and to Riverkeeper at www.riverkeeper.org/get-involved/violations.
Citizens can make a difference and keep sewage pollution out of our waterways.
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