{"id":234,"date":"2025-06-03T20:20:44","date_gmt":"2025-06-04T00:20:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/?p=234"},"modified":"2025-07-02T12:33:15","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T16:33:15","slug":"the-problem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/2025\/06\/03\/the-problem\/","title":{"rendered":"The Problem: 50 Sewage Overflows a Year"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n

By Charlotte Harvey
UConn Journalism<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

People in the 21st<\/sup> cen\u00adtu\u00adry expect sewage sys\u00adtems to work. They expect them to carry waste away and break down that waste safe\u00adly. They expect not to have to think about that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But what if that isn\u2019t your norm? What if, on a rainy day, untreat\u00aded waste moves the wrong way out of the flood\u00ading street pipes, back\u00ading up onto streets and into base\u00adments?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many of the res\u00adi\u00addents of the North End of Hartford know that real\u00adi\u00adty and have known it for decades. Every time a storm comes and raw sewage backs up into their base\u00adments, they think about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fundamentally, it comes down to anoth\u00ader one of those things we expect the gov\u00adern\u00adment to pro\u00advide in exchange for taxes: infra\u00adstruc\u00adture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mixed sewage and rain\u00adwa\u00adter rou\u00adtine\u00adly over\u00adflows into the Park River, and then on to the Connecticut River. Since the mid-1990s, the agency that man\u00adages water and sewage for Hartford, the Metropolitan District Commission (MDC), has been slow\u00adly sep\u00ada\u00adrat\u00ading stormwa\u00adter from sewage pipes. But mixed waste still over\u00adflows from 38 dif\u00adfer\u00adent out\u00adfall points in the sys\u00adtem.<\/a> These over\u00adflow points carry waste that comes from 170 com\u00adbined sewer over\u00adflow (CSO) \u201creg\u00adu\u00adla\u00adtors\u201d in the Metropolitan District Commission\u2019s under\u00adground sys\u00adtem. These over\u00adflows are usu\u00adal\u00adly trig\u00adgered dur\u00ading rain\u00adstorms. In the 1970s, there were approx\u00adi\u00admate\u00adly 170 CSO reg\u00adu\u00adla\u00adtors in the sys\u00adtem that dis\u00adcharged through 47 out\u00adfall loca\u00adtions to the receiv\u00ading streams that include the Park River. Before to the imple\u00admen\u00adta\u00adtion of the cur\u00adrent pro\u00adgram, the esti\u00admat\u00aded vol\u00adume of CSO dis\u00adcharged through these out\u00adfalls in a typ\u00adi\u00adcal year was 974 mil\u00adlion gal\u00adlons. The 47 out\u00adfall spots have been reduced to 38 out\u00adfalls today,<\/a> accord\u00ading to the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
The Park River takes on combined sewage overflows in multiple places. Here it flows into the culverts under Farmington Avenue in Hartford's West End. From here it will carry the river underground, still taking on overflows from storm drains. Photo by Justin Doughty<\/p>\n\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/2ParkRiverGoesUnderground-1024x768.jpg\" src=\"http:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/2ParkRiverGoesUnderground-1024x768.jpg\" alt class=\"wp-image-344\" style=\"width:400px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/2ParkRiverGoesUnderground-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/2ParkRiverGoesUnderground-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/2ParkRiverGoesUnderground-150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/2ParkRiverGoesUnderground-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/2ParkRiverGoesUnderground-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/2ParkRiverGoesUnderground-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/2ParkRiverGoesUnderground-1200x900.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/2ParkRiverGoesUnderground-1980x1485.jpg 1980w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\">
The Park River takes on com\u00adbined sewer over\u00adflows in mul\u00adti\u00adple places. Here it flows into the cul\u00adverts under Farmington Avenue in Hartford\u2019s West End. From here it will carry the river under\u00adground, still tak\u00ading on over\u00adflows from storm drains. Photo by Justin Doughty<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

In the year from May 15, 2024 to May 15, 2025, CSOs over\u00adflowed in Hartford 50 times, accord\u00ading to the state\u2019s pub\u00adlic data\u00adbase<\/a> that tracks every over\u00adflow. Between May 8 and 10, for exam\u00adple, more than a mil\u00adlion gal\u00adlons of mixed waste and rain\u00adwa\u00adter was auto\u00admat\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly divert\u00aded into the North Branch of the Park River dur\u00ading a 2\u2011inch rain\u00adstorm. Last August 20, 2024, about 2 mil\u00adlion gal\u00adlons of over\u00adflows went into the Connecticut River.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the MDC has sep\u00ada\u00adrat\u00aded pipes and closed many of the over\u00adflow points, gal\u00adlons from the over\u00adflows have decreased in the last two decades, from about 974 mil\u00adlion gal\u00adlons each year in 2006 to 488 mil\u00adlion gal\u00adlons of com\u00adbined raw sewage and stormwa\u00adter in 2022, accord\u00ading to the envi\u00adron\u00admen\u00adtal group Save the Sound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But there is much still to do. Waste is still flood\u00ading untreat\u00aded into the rivers dur\u00ading storms, and the work to cor\u00adrect over\u00adflows will take many more years, accord\u00ading to legal agree\u00adments and plans by the state and the MDC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The MDC is also build\u00ading a giant tun\u00adnel to store untreat\u00aded waste after storms. The tun\u00adnel is designed to stop flood\u00ading and elim\u00adi\u00adnate most over\u00adflows near Wethersfield Cove, a pop\u00adu\u00adlar swim\u00adming and boat\u00ading inlet near Old Wethersfield. Eight of Hartford\u2019s 38 CSOs flow into Wethersfield Cove via the Folly Brook con\u00adduit in the south\u00adern end of Hartford.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Connecticut River Conservancy, which mon\u00adi\u00adtors water health on the length of the river, says of Wethersfield Cove: \u201cIf it has rained in the past 1\u20132 days, this site is some\u00adtimes clean for swim\u00adming and some\u00adtimes clean for boat\u00ading.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hartford is one of Connecticut\u2019s old\u00adest sew\u00ader\u00adage sys\u00adtems, set up as a com\u00adbined sys\u00adtem to mix stormwa\u00adter and waste in the same pipe, explained Graham Stevens, the chief of the Bureau of Water Protection and Land Reuse at the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental pro\u00adtec\u00adtion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey\u2019re basi\u00adcal\u00adly the pre\u00adde\u00adces\u00adsor to our mod\u00adern way of man\u00adag\u00ading sew\u00aders and stormwa\u00adter,\u201d he said. \u201cThe early sewer sys\u00adtems were always built in cities because they want\u00aded a way to man\u00adage the waste so it wasn\u2019t a pub\u00adlic health nui\u00adsance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Construction on Hartford\u2019s sew\u00ader\u00adage and water man\u00adage\u00adment sys\u00adtem began in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The goal was fair\u00adly sim\u00adple: move waste\u00adwater and stormwa\u00adter away from inhab\u00adit\u00aded areas. \u201cAway\u201d meant the Park River, which drains into the Connecticut River. The waste poured into these rivers with no treat\u00adment.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
Cynthia Jennings meeting with journalists in March in the dining room of her Hartland Street home. Photo by Sofia Acosta<\/p>\n\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/Photo_Cynthia-Jennings_Sofia-683x1024.jpeg\" src=\"http:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/Photo_Cynthia-Jennings_Sofia-683x1024.jpeg\" alt class=\"wp-image-242\" style=\"object-fit:cover;width:400px;height:450px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/Photo_Cynthia-Jennings_Sofia-683x1024.jpeg 683w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/Photo_Cynthia-Jennings_Sofia-200x300.jpeg 200w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/Photo_Cynthia-Jennings_Sofia-100x150.jpeg 100w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/Photo_Cynthia-Jennings_Sofia-768x1152.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/Photo_Cynthia-Jennings_Sofia-1024x1536.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/Photo_Cynthia-Jennings_Sofia-1365x2048.jpeg 1365w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/Photo_Cynthia-Jennings_Sofia-1200x1800.jpeg 1200w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/Photo_Cynthia-Jennings_Sofia-1980x2970.jpeg 1980w, https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/Photo_Cynthia-Jennings_Sofia-scaled.jpeg 1707w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\">
Attorney Cynthia Jennings has been an activist for health\u00adi\u00ader liv\u00ading con\u00addi\u00adtions in the North End, where she has lived her whole life. With a new back\u00adflow pre\u00adven\u00adter in her base\u00adment, her base\u00adment final\u00adly is dry. Photo by Sofia Acosta<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Then, the rea\u00adson\u00ading went, the waste would be dilut\u00aded and the sys\u00adtem would pro\u00adtect human health and not harm the envi\u00adron\u00adment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, these cen\u00adtu\u00adry-plus-year-old com\u00adbined sewer pipes carry water from the storm drains from the street and from the plumb\u00ading inside build\u00adings to a sewage treat\u00adment plant, where it is fil\u00adtered and breaks down. Water from sinks, dish\u00adwash\u00aders, show\u00aders, and toi\u00adlets\u2014 \u201cwaste\u00adwater,\u201d or \u201csewage\u201d\u2014mixes with water from the storm drains, trav\u00adel\u00ading togeth\u00ader toward the sewage treat\u00adment plant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, even though these sys\u00adtems are no longer designed to inten\u00adtion\u00adal\u00adly dis\u00adcharge untreat\u00aded waste\u00adwater into bod\u00adies of water, it does still hap\u00adpen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cynthia Jennings is an attor\u00adney who was for\u00adtu\u00adnate last year to receive a state grant to install a back\u00adflow pre\u00adven\u00adter in her Hartland Street base\u00adment. She said flood\u00ading was rou\u00adtine for her fam\u00adi\u00adly from child\u00adhood, both in her cur\u00adrent house and the one where she grew up, on near\u00adby Cambridge Street.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many long\u00adtime res\u00adi\u00addents inter\u00adviewed for this series said they lived with waste\u00adwater back\u00adups for much of their lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou would see it every day,\u201d she said, \u201cbecause the water never went out. And the fire depart\u00adment wouldn\u2019t pump the water, because it wasn\u2019t water \u2013 there was  other stuff in it. If it was pure water, the fire depart\u00adment would pump it out, but\u2026 if it\u2019s  any\u00adthing in there besides water they can\u2019t pump it out,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Asked who did pump the water out, Jennings respond\u00aded, \u201cNobody. Unless you paid the money, and we didn\u2019t have the money.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

TOP IMAGE: Trucks remove waste\u00adwater from Sharon Lewis\u2019 home in Hartford, Connecticut, Dec. 9, 2022. (Photo cour\u00adtesy of Sharon Lewis)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Charlotte HarveyUConn Journalism People in the 21st cen\u00adtu\u00adry expect sewage sys\u00adtems to work. They expect them to carry waste away and break down that waste safe\u00adly. They expect not to have to think about that. But what if that isn\u2019t your norm? What if, on a rainy day, untreat\u00aded waste moves the wrong way\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1091,"featured_media":224,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[16],"class_list":["post-234","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-explainers","tag-explained"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/files\/2025\/05\/Trucks-Pumping-Water-Out-of-Sharon-Lewis-Home-scaled-e1749826095428.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/234","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1091"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=234"}],"version-history":[{"count":27,"href":"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/234\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1174,"href":"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/234\/revisions\/1174"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/224"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=234"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=234"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaljournalism.uconn.edu\/hartford-north-end-chronic-flooding-sewage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=234"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}