Sewage spill prompts halt of Delaware Bay shellfish harvest
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DOVER (AP) — Delaware’s environmental secretary has halted commercial and recreational harvesting of shellfish in the Delaware Bay after a sewage spill in Kent County.
Officials say the spill from a sewage pump station in Dover discharged hundreds of thousands of gallons of untreated wastewater into the St. Jones River, which empties into the bay.
The harvest closure for oysters, clams and mussels will be in effect for 21 days after the county’s wastewater discharge has been halted.
While the spill continues, meanwhile, officials are advising people not to use the St. Jones River from its upper reaches of Silver Lake in Dover to Bowers, where it flows to the bay.
The spill was reported Tuesday, but an earlier, smaller spill was reported last week in conjunction with the same force main repair.
