Did you know, in wet years hundreds of millions of gallons of sewage are dumped into the Charles River?

Right now, MWRA and City of Cambridge, who are required to reduce overflows, are engaging in a public process to determine what solutions are feasible. While progress has been made, these agencies have been slow to act, saying it’s “too expensive” to fully eliminate CSOs. Yet, to date, they have failed to seriously consider one of the most cost-effective solutions to this problem––green stormwater infrastructure.

On Wednesday, November 15th at 6PM, the City of Cambridge, the City of Somerville, and the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority are hosting their third public meeting to discuss Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Control Planning.

This is a great opportunity to show that reducing and eliminating CSOs is important to you––attend the meeting, share your thoughts, and join our call for green infrastructure solutions.

HERE’S AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT TO SAY:

Green Stormwater Infrastructure is a proven, cost-effective solution for reducing combined sewer overflows––and unlike grey infrastructure, can make our neighborhoods more resilient to climate change, create wildlife habitat, cool our neighborhoods, calm our streets, and beautify public spaces.

As a ____ resident, I want to see more investment in these nature-based solutions for stormwater to ensure a cleaner, greener future for my community.