States Vary on Sewage Right-to-Know Policy

Posted on August 21, 2007 | Filed Under Clean Water, Deep South, Great Rivers, Healthy Waters, Mid-Atlantic, Northwest, Sewage, Southeast 

baerKatherine Baer, Director
Healthy Waters Campaign

Have you been enjoying your summer, splashing in your stream and swimming in your local lake? You may think you know whether it’s safe to take a dip, but depending on where you live, there’s a good chance you have no idea.

What's in Your WaterGiven that there is no consistent national standard requiring sewage system operators to alert the public about spills, states play a critical role in keeping their citizens safe. But what states require public notification after a sewer overflow - in which states can you dive into your local lake or river confident that you won’t be paddling through the waste your neighbor flushed down the drain the day before?

The answer: it depends where you live. American Rivers just released a report, What’s In Your Water: The State of Public Notification in 11 U.S. States (PDF), reviewing public notification policies across the country and found that Americans are not treated equally when it comes to their right to know, with many citizens kept in the dark.

There is wide variation among and even within the 11 states we investigated. In some states, strong notification laws are undermined by a complete lack of enforcement. In other states, the public regularly receives warnings about sewage spills despite a lack of laws or regulations requiring notification. Here is a snapshot of how these selected states compare:

Of these 11 states, only Maryland stands out as an example of states with strong public notification, showing how vulnerable many Americans are to sewage pollution and confusion over whether it’s safe to swim. It is precisely because of this information gap in many states that Congress must pass a consistent national public notification requirement. H.R. 2452, the Raw Sewage Overflow Community Right to Know Act would require all states to ensure that their residents are informed of sewage spills.

Until we can eliminate sewage pollution, let’s end the policy of silence and allow all Americans to take their health and safety into their own hands by improving state and federal right-to-know policies.

The full report is available at www.americanrivers.org/RightToKnowReport.

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Comments

4 Responses to “States Vary on Sewage Right-to-Know Policy”

  1. sharon strickland on August 29th, 2007 1:32 pm

    Thank you,for any info. you continue to share with us,, I am from Ga. I was surprised to see our state on the list also,we would not know if our rivers are very contaminated or not! All summer, most of our children around here, are out swimming,fishing,knee boarding,and so on in our local rivers and creeks, keep up the great work.

    thank you,
    S.Strickland

  2. People always ask us, ‘Are things better or worse today?’ … The Delaney Sisters : American Rivers Blog on August 30th, 2007 6:01 am

    [...] national standard requiring sewage system operators to alert the public about spills and overflows. Learn more River Quotes are posted weekday mornings. Want to see your favorite river quote here? Email it to [...]

  3. Anacostia River and Youth Voices : American Rivers Blog on September 10th, 2007 10:04 am

    [...] the problem can be expensive. That’s why we think a good first step to fixing the problem is alerting people when there are sewage overflows so they (and their pets) can atleast avoid the places where there [...]

  4. Speaking Up for Sewage Right to Know : American Rivers Blog on October 24th, 2007 6:08 pm

    [...] (R-NJ) and so they were pretty amenable to hearing what I had to say about the great need for a consistent federal law to keep people safe while they enjoy swimming and playing in their favorite streams and [...]

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