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Animanialmanac OP t1_jach11k wrote

Reply to comment by Matt3989 in President set to give Maryland $56.1 million for water infrastructure upgrades by Animanialmanac

No we don’t. The city is under a consent decree from EPA because of how bad the sewer system is. In my neighborhood in Southwest Baltimore the sewers back up with every storm, the sewer water goes into people’s basements and into the streets form the storm drains. That sewer water goes right into the bay.

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Matt3989 t1_jachy10 wrote

WASA and WSSC were/are also under Consent Decrees (I think WSSC's is over, but WASA's is still active), but instead of tracking down and correcting SSO's, they're doing it for CSOs.

It's amazing: Sewers don't back up when you can dump the excess into your storm drains and never even realize it. Both WASA and PWD systems are built on "Magic Pipes" (Where does this sewer pipe flow to? Who knows, Who cares. Not our problem). At least Baltimore knows when we have an overflow event.

By "Better" I should have specified: More Modern. In that we don't have any crossover between our sanitary and storm water systems.

Edit: A link to some info about DC's combined sewer system:

  • CSO overflow events are triggered by <1" of rainfall
  • Warning lights for when the Potomac or Anacostia Rivers are contaminated
  • Greater than 1" of rainfall causes water quality issues for at least 3 days

And that's just WASA, WSSC is singlehandedly responsible for the condition of Sligo Creek (and many others). Philly has all of these same problems, and a lot less oversight. If you don't look for the issues, you won't find them.

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Animanialmanac OP t1_jaclrod wrote

The Baltimore system may be more modern but it’s not better. They don’t know, won’t admit, where all the SSO’s are, the city fixed the problem dumping sewer water into the harbor by redirecting it into people’s homes. Both Philadelphia and DC have programs to stop the sewer water from coming into homes or going into the streets. Baltimore only has a program to repay for a little bit of clean up after it happens, and only if you’re friends with your councilperson. The vacant homes in Southwest Baltimore have basements filled with sewer water, it comes out the basement windows, goes into the streets when it rains. That’s not better even if it is more modern. Baltimore doesn’t do anything to prevent the overflows into houses or the streets.

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Matt3989 t1_jacnx2c wrote

Also not a unique situation to Baltimore: https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/dc-mayor-tours-sewage-damage-in-northeast-washington/2417058/

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Animanialmanac OP t1_jacp4to wrote

That’s an article about DC’s mayor helping people whose homes were damaged by the sewer water! DC’s mayor helped the people, had companies clean the damage and has a program for the city to install the prevention valves for free so it doesn’t happen again. Baltimore doesn’t do this

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Matt3989 t1_jacqlnw wrote

>Edgewood residents told News4 that they received no promises for disaster relief and they were referred to homeowners insurance for damage from sewer backups. Some say they have already been told that insurance companies won’t cover this type of damage.

Did we read the same article? No where in it does it report that those residents actually got help. Mayor Bowser was paying lip service, same thing you get here.

This article (paywall) says that DC water later committed to offering up to $5,000 per property for restoration (same limit you can apply for here) which definitely doesn't cover the damage.

>Days later, her basement was gutted down to the studs. She and her neighbors have thrown away couches, appliances and family heirlooms. Some have no hot water because their water heaters were compromised. And after D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) visited the neighborhood last week, Sarstedt was disappointed in the city’s failure to offer financial support for rebuilding after remediation.

I get that you want to show that Baltimore DPW does a bad job when it comes to these things, because they do. Most other places do an equally bad job.

Infrastructure is incestious: you get the same best practices, the same specs, the same standards, etc. in DPW's around the country. They generally have the same problems and the same 'solutions'. Baltimore gets more news articles written about it's issues than DC because it's Baltimore, DC is a World City and Baltimore might be best known for The Wire.

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Animanialmanac OP t1_jacv8ai wrote

DC gives people money to fix the problem before it happens, and gives people money to dry out their basements. Baltimore has a program to reimburse money after you already pay for clean up, no one I know was able to get reimbursed. I listened to the city council hearing on this problem the only person who was reimbursed was a friend of the councimwoman.

I experienced this myself for years in Baltimore, the city doesn’t reimburse people. My son lives in DC and experienced the opposite, DC paid for a valve to be installed before his basement ever flooded.

You shared a news story about a single flooding event after historic rainfall in DC when the same thing happens every rainy day in Baltimore. If Baltimore gets more news stories about our issues because of the Wire, where are the news stories about the sewer water flooding from last night? Or from three weeks ago when the sewer water froze to the street? Baltimore DPW, mayor and council people don’t do anything about it.

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