Sewage Leaked into Creek in Southeast Austin
Officials said the spill did not reach downstream to Onion Creek, above. Photo by Knowsphotos, flickr.com/gold41.About 100,000 gallons of raw sewage spilled into Marble Creek in Southeast Austin this morning after a pumping station failed.
The spill was east of I-35 around William Cannon near Springfield Park. Officials say the spill did not make it downstream to Onion Creek. The pump was fixed before noon, and since then the focus has been on cleanup. Thain Maurer with the city’s Watershed Protection Department said the spill could affect marine life.
“We’re pumping back the most contaminated part back into the sanitary sewer system,” Maurer said. “In terms of environmental impact, generally what happens with sewage, is it causes algae blooms and causes the oxygen to drop in a water body, which can kill aquatic life.”
Maurer said they’re putting aeration pumps in the water to try to prevent that from happening. He said the spill will not affect drinking water, so no boil water orders were issued.
