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Article: San Francisco Bay Befouled Regular Sewage Spills; Some Wealthy Regions Identified as Top Polluters
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- March 8, 2009
- Author:
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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On a recent weekend, 890,000 gallons of raw sewage and storm
water spilled into San Francisco Bay from an overloaded World War II-
era treatment plant. Five days earlier, a ruptured pipe released
400,000 gallons of filth into the bay.
And those were just the big spills the public heard about.
On average, human waste spills into the San Francisco Bay more
than five times a day, fouling the waters and shorelines of this
environmental jewel and recreational treasure.
Decrepit pipes, outdated municipal sewage treatment systems and
poor upkeep have been blamed for many of the spills into one of the
world's most famous and beautiful natural harbors. And some of the