Baltimore County Has New Plan To Clean Up White Marsh Run
WHITE MARSH, Md. (WJZ) -- When it rains, it pollutes. For years, that's been the problem with a highly-degraded stream that flows into the Chesapeake Bay.
Now, as Gigi Barnett reports, Baltimore County is launching a multi-million dollar plan to clean up the White Marsh Run.
Bulldozers barrel through dirt and rocks near the White Marsh Run. Years of flooding caused its banks to erode. That storm water chipped away at sewage pipes nearby, causing them to burst repeatedly--and that sends waste into the White Marsh Run, which flows to Maryland's Chesapeake Bay.
This week, the county says it's time to shore up all the damage.
"The project is going to relocate the sewage drain and then also rebuild the stream," said Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz.
The price tag: $13 million. Experts say the ripple effect will be seen in other smaller tributaries as well.
"It's also going to improve water quality and reduce pollutants flowing into the Bird River," Kamenetz said.
The county says this water restoration project is the first of many to come.
"Ten projects this year alone that are going to be very similar to this in terms of stream restoration," Kamenetz said.
Those 10 projects will be completed within the next 12 months.
The county says most of its water repair projects will be funded by the state's stormwater remediation fee, also called the "rain tax."
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