Sewage from Howard County plant polluted Little Patuxent River last week

Jan. 14—By Dillon Mullan — dmullan@baltsun.com

January 14, 2024 at 5:47 p.m.

Sewage from a Howard County water treatment plant polluted the Little Patuxent River last week.

The Howard County Health Department issued a precautionary health alert after an estimated 138,888 gallons of sewage overflowed at the Little Patuxent Water Reclamation Plant in Savage on Tuesday.

"Part of the flow traveled overland into the Little Patuxent River, immediately adjacent to the plant. Most of the flow entered a storm drain, which also discharged into the river," the department said in a news release.

Related Articles

—

Environment — Officials unveil 60 new EV charging stations for Maryland at Coppin State University event

—

Environment — Hottest year ever, what can be done? Plenty: more renewables and nuclear, less methane and meat

—

Environment — 'Outstanding' number of young oysters counted in the Chesapeake Bay last fall

—

Environment — Earth shattered global heat record in '23 and it's flirting with warming limit, European agency says

—

Environment — As the Frederick Douglass Tunnel comes into view, questions over what should happen to the Highway to Nowhere

The Howard County Department of Public Works was first notified of the overflow at 10 p.m., and personnel shut off valves to stop the overflow by 10:15 p.m., according to the release from Wednesday. The area of the overflow is not accessible to the public, though the Little Patuxent, which flooded earlier that day, eventually flows into the Chesapeake Bay.

The Howard County Public School System closed schools three hours earlier in the day as parts of Howard County were forecast to receive up to 4 inches of rain, and the National Weather Service issued a flood warning.

Share this:

— Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)

— Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)

—