We demand the following:

• Elimination of all Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs) to End Sewage Pollution
• Separated Sewer Systems to keep Sewage out of Stormwater
• A Safe, Beautiful, Fishable Brook for the Residents and for Wildlife
• New Green Infrastructure on State Land for Stormwater Cleaning
• New Grey Infrastructure to Reduce Flooding in the Face of Climate Change

During some major storm events, the Alewife Brook floods into the parks, yards, and houses of area residents in Environmental Justice Communities. The flood water contains hazardous sewage that is discharged from the active CSOs owned by Cambridge, Somerville, and the MWRA. Climate change, with its wetter rainy seasons, more intense storms, and sea level rise, is expected to increase the severity and frequency of these events.

Furthermore, the MWRA’s sewer infrastructure is failing to meet capacity during many rain events, causing hazardous sewage pollution discharges. In fact, the rate of sewage discharge is increasing exponentially with increase in rainwater, making this a Climate Change Emergency.

Therefore, we demand that the cities of Cambridge, Somerville, and the MWRA completely stop discharging sewage pollution into the Alewife Brook. We also demand that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts invest in urgently needed improvements to the Amelia Earhart Dam and to the Draw Seven Park along the Mystic River so the area is resilient to the effects of flooding due to Climate Change.

Thank you for your support!

Add your name and email address to our Petition Comment Email shown below.

Dear MassDEP,

The health of our community and the multiple environmental justice neighborhoods along the Alewife Brook depend on your protection.

Protect our brook, our park, and our homes from pathogens in the sewage flood water by enforcing the existing Class B (boatable and fishable) Water Quality Standard – the standard that ensures that contact with the waters of the Alewife Brook is safe. Please use the Department’s regulatory authority to require that out-of-compliance CSOs in the Alewife Brook and Charles River meet existing goals. Make sure that MassDEP is a forceful advocate for Supplemental Environmental Projects for all out-of-compliance CSOs in the Alewife Brook and Charles River in Federal Court proceedings.

There must be real scrutiny of the documentation MWRA has already provided for the cost of CSO elimination. MassDEP must require MWRA, Cambridge, and Somerville each to provide a separate financial analysis explaining why they say they can’t afford to eliminate sewage discharges. These independent analyses should include costs for various alternatives, such as local CSO treatment, CSO detention tunnels and tanks, and Green Stormwater Infrastructure.

The public has a role in protecting the waters of Massachusetts. As the hearing on Tuesday, April 9, 2024 demonstrated, there is keen interest if the public is provided meaningful opportunities for participation. A single meeting and hearing is inadequate. Ongoing robust public participation must be part of the variance, particularly regarding the performance assessment of CSO controls based on “typical year” modeling. The community must have a seat at the table when compliance is reviewed so that actual measured data and human experience inform that assessment. That court-ordered performance goals remain unmet after 20 years is ample evidence of the need for public scrutiny.

Thank you for all you do to protect us and our environment.

Alewife Sewage Hearing News

–> To the 100 people who attended last Tuesday’s Alewife Sewage Hearing, held by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection

–> To the good folks at MassDEP for hosting this special session and taking public comments for more than two hours

–> To the dedicated civic leaders who were there to offer support for a safe, boatable and fishable Alewife Brook

There were powerful statements from Alewife supporters in Cambridge, Somerville, Belmont, and Arlington about the need for a safe neighborhood, park, and brook. We sent a strong message for Environmental Justice and Community Health.