Sewage Leak Closes Shellfishing Near Baltimore
BALTIMORE (AP) -- Maryland environmental officials are warning the public to avoid waters of the Chesapeake Bay and the Patapsco River near the site of a sewage main break.
Shellfish harvesting has also been closed at the mouth of the Patapsco and nearby portions of the bay. The 54-inch main broke Sunday at a Baltimore County pumping station. The line carries about 17 million gallons of sewage a day. Sewage has continued to leak since then, but MDE spokesman Jay Apperson says crews were expected to begin pumping sewage around the break Wednesday afternoon.
The department says the area where the break occurred has been closed to shellfish harvesting since the 1960s. The closest area normally open to shellfish harvesting is more than 12 miles from the site of the leak.
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