For Immediate Release: 2/11/2022 10:05 am
WORCESTER — City employees are monitoring the aftereffects of untreated wastewater that flowed into Lake Quinsigamond earlier this week, but officials don’t anticipate any significant long-term issues for public recreation or wildlife.
A public health advisory remains in place, and individuals should not use the lake for recreational activities such as ice fishing in the vicinity of the pumping station at 83 Lake Ave. and to the south until further notice. However, acceptable bacteria levels are expected to be reached within several days and have no lasting effects on spring and summer recreational activities.
While the current lake ice conditions make monitoring and testing more challenging, the city’s Department of Inspectional Services is conducting water quality sampling. This will continue until the laboratory results conclude acceptable bacteria levels for recreational activities.
The Department of Sustainability & Resilience, which helps oversee blue spaces in the city, has been monitoring the situation closely and don’t foresee long-term impacts for the health of the lake. They expect the wastewater to dissipate, without gathering on the bottom of the lake, creating additional warm weather algae blooms, or causing large fish die-off. Staff will continue to sample, test, and monitor in the days and weeks to come to ensure the lake recovers quickly as expected.
The problem began on the morning of Feb. 6 when a leak on a wastewater pipe flooded the dry well portion of the station — the area that houses pumps, motors, electrical equipment and controls — causing the system’s pumps to stop. At 5:45 p.m. on Feb. 7, a pump at the Lake Avenue Sewer Pumping Station was successfully re-started, bringing an end to the wastewater overflow into Lake Quinsigamond.
With the pump station out of service for 36 hours, it is estimated that 4 million gallons of untreated wastewater entered the lake. Tanker trucks called into assist prevented another 473,500 gallons of overflow.
The initial response to the sewer overflow followed procedures identified in a Lake Quinsigamond Sanitary Sewer Overflow Response Plan that was created in 2017 and approved by MassDEP. That agency has been closely monitoring the city’s response, including follow-up on sample collection and assuring strict adherence to the Response Plan protocols.
An emergency bypass pump system is being installed to help prevent similar issues in the future. It will serve as an external backup pump system for use in emergencies or for planned shutdowns needed for maintenance and repairs. Officials expect the bypass system to be operational by the end of the week.
The Lake Avenue Sewer Pumping Station is the city’s largest pump station with a capacity to handle up to 20 million gallons per day. At this time of year, on a dry day, the station pumps about 3 million gallons daily. The station was substantially rebuilt in 2015 to handle higher flows during heavy rains.
