Every time it rains in Wethersfield, there are reminders that the MDC District’s aging sewer system is unable to handle our 21st Century development and population. Our town depends on both the Hartford and Rocky Hill treatment plants, and in both directions, there are sewer problems that need repair and rebuilding.

Why? First, the original Hartford system was designed to support about 15,000 people. Today it has expanded to serve almost 400,000 people in 6 towns, including Wethersfield. Sewers more than 150 years old form the backbone of the sewage conveyance to the treatment plant in Hartford. Wethersfield also sends sewage to the Rocky Hill treatment plant, which now has become overloaded.

Second, storm water frequently overwhelms our sewer system. Old pipes are cracked, letting groundwater flow in. When the Connecticut River floods, the high river levels inundate the sewer system. Homeowner drainage also burdens the system with flows from roof drains or leaders, basement sump pumps, and yard drains.

When all this storm water enters the sewer pipes, it mixes with the wastewater and fills the pipes beyond their capacity. Over-full sewers send extra-large flow volumes to the two treatment plants. These sewage flows exceed the facilities’ treatment capacity, and cause raw sewage overflows into the Wethersfield Cove and the Connecticut River. These problems happen more than 50 times per year.

Over 1 billion gallons of untreated Sewage overflows every year in Greater Hartford
But the MDC has a solution – The Clean Water Project

In 2006 the MDC reached a Consent Decree with the U.S. Department of Justice and Environmental Protection Agency to eliminate illegal discharges from our sewers within 12 years. Also in 2006, the MDC reached a Consent Order with the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (CTDEP) and will also address the CTDEP's requirements to reduce nitrogen levels, which impact Long Island Sound.

The Clean Water Project will repair and rebuild the MDC District’s sewer system, including measures to reduce the amount of storm water in Wethersfield’s sewers, and a major rehabilitation and rebuilding of the core system in Hartford. The Project will open up new sewer capacity and curtail both sewage backups and polluting overflows into the Wethersfield Cove, Connecticut River, and other waterways.