Update: October 14, 9:12 p.m. - This SSO advisory is no longer in effect.

Sanitary Sewage Release Advisory (this is not a combined sewer overflow [CSO] advisory)

October 12, 2016

Work crews this evening successfully stopped sewage flowing from a private manhole off of SW Macadam Avenue into SW Boundary Street that appeared to be caused by a blocked private sewer line.

https://goo.gl/maps/rExsoxGaFWp

Maintenance crews cleaned out the manhole with a Vactor truck and jet-rodded water through the sewer line to clear the blockage and flush out the debris.

About 500-600 gallons of sewage flowed from the manhole into SW Boundary Street, entered a nearby private catch basin, and may have flowed from there into a private outfall to the river. The public is advised to avoid contact with the Willamette River in the area through this Friday at 6:00 p.m. because of the possibility of increased bacteria in the water. Maintenance crews posted warning signs in the area.

The City of Portland treats an average of 70 million gallons of wastewater each day. Over one-third of Portland’s more than 2,500 miles of sewer pipes are over 80 years old. Pipes that fail or become blocked with grease, tree roots and debris can cause sewage overflows. The sewage release in southwest Portland is not related to Portland’s combined sewer overflow control system.

For more information contact Cheryl Kuck, 503-823-7898, Cheryl.Kuck@portlandoregon.gov.

The Bureau of Environmental Services provides city residents with programs to protect water quality and public health, including wastewater collection and treatment, sewer construction and maintenance, stormwater management, and stream and watershed restoration.

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