Our enjoyment of the riverfront is at risk until we fix our regional sewer system.

Every time it rains, inadequacies in the MDC District’s sewer system have an indirect effect on the quality of life in East Hartford—in the form of sewage pollution discharges into the Connecticut River.

Why? First, while East Hartford has its own sewer collection system and treatment plant, other MDC towns depend on aging sewer systems that have reached their useful life and lack the capacity to support today’s population. For six towns, sewers more than 150 years old form the backbone of the sewage conveyance to the Hartford treatment plant.

Second, in many MDC towns, storm water frequently overwhelms the system. Old pipes are cracked, letting groundwater and floodwaters flow in. When all this storm water enters the sewage pipes, it mixes with the wastewater and fills the pipes beyond their capacity. Over-full sewers send extra-large flow volumes to the treatment plants, and when excess wastewater overflows, it spills raw sewage into local streams and the Connecticut River. This happens more than 50 times per year and can impact water quality along 30 miles of the Connecticut River.

Over 1 billion gallons of untreated
sewage overflows every year in Greater Hartford
But the MDC has a solution – The Clean Water Project

In recent years, the MDC upgraded East Hartford’s Water Pollution Control Facility, which has been recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as one of the best in New England. Now the Clean Water Project will continue the improvements and address major obstacles to a cleaner environment. It will also correct deficiencies that tend to require excessive sewer maintenance in East Hartford.

The MDC District has reached a Consent Decree with the U.S. Department of Justice and Environmental Protection Agency to eliminate illegal discharges from District sewers within 12 years. We are now negotiating a similar agreement with the Connecticut DEP specifically for the Hartford system.

The Clean Water Project will repair and rebuild older sections of the sewer system, including rehabilitation and rebuilding of the collection system in East Hartford. The Project will open up new sewer capacity and curtail both sewage backups and polluting overflows into local waterways. The Clean Water Project is the key to a future with the riverfront safe from sewage pollution.