Photo Courtesy of W*USA 9It may be calm before a storm, but afterwards there's usually sewage, backing up into basements and overflowing into rivers. You probably noticed that most of last week's Spills of the Week were out of New England, caused by a Nor'easter that swept through the region. In the wake of the punishing storm, damage reports are pouring in.

Flood waters caused a sewer pipe rupture in Westfield, MA, forcing city officials to divert "millions of gallons of raw sewage into the Westfield River." Similarly, 10 million gallons of sewage poured into Wethersfield Cove in Rocky Hill, CT. Fire departments in West Hartford, CT and throughout Central Massachusetts were called in to bail sewage out of several homes. "It's a disaster, there is still human feces just laying there," said Westfield resident David Williams about the 3 ½ feet of sewage that flooded his basement. Meanwhile, residents of Jersey City, NJ are calling on city officials to upgrade the city's 100 year-old sewage system after several area homes were flooded with sewage. Jersey City has a long history of sewage backups, which isn't exactly helping the city's (or the state's) image.

Sewer line breaches, millions of gallons of sewage spilled, basement backups, CSOs, calls for sewerage upgrades all strike a similar chord - our aging sewerage infrastructure systems can't handle the rain from big storms.

Recall the recent EPA study citing major problems to be expected across New England from the increased frequency of severe weather caused by global warming. The EPA recommends massive upgrades of the region's antiquated sewer systems. This means that last week's sewage problems caused by the Nor'easter are likely a sign of things to come. Yet another reason to Act for Healthy Rivers!