Summer Time Sewage: Maura Healey Gives Update

The timing of the sewage leak into the Merrimack River couldn’t be worse. Everyone is gearing up for America’s 250th birthday AND a heat wave is around the corner.

CBS News reported:

Plum Island beaches in Newburyport, Massachusetts remain closed to swimmers for the foreseeable future as millions of gallons of raw sewage are being pumped into the Merrimack River in nearby Haverhill each day. Initially on Thursday, Newburyport officials said 60,000 gallons of wastewater were accidentally dumped into the river in Haverhill, which is upstream. Plum Island was set to reopen for swimming on Saturday after a 48-hour precautionary closure. Instead, crews in Haverhill found two breaks in a 42-inch sewer line near its pumping station.

But Governor Maura Healey is trying to convince beachgoers that everything is okay.

Look at this compilation by Mass Fiscal Alliance.

"Look at this compilation by Mass Fiscal Alliance."

“The beaches are open.” 🏖️💩 That line was absurd in Jaws. It sounds even worse when millions of gallons of untreated sewage are spilling into the Merrimack River and beaches across the North Shore are closed heading into the Fourth of July. 🤢 At the same time, the… pic.twitter.com/jqQwFce0B5— Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance (@MassFiscal) July 1, 2026

NBC Boston reported:

The 42-inch sewer force main transports most of Haverhill’s wastewater from the main pumping station to the wastewater treatment plant, according to the city, which said that heavy rainfall last Friday night caused wastewater flows to “increase rapidly” and put greater demand on the pipeline. All wastewater arriving at the pumping station is being discharged via the break into the Merrimack River downstream of downtown Haverhill. The gallon overflow estimate, which is based on the average daily flow through the pump station over the past month, would put the total overflow by end-of-day Tuesday at around 32 million gallons.