News

Pamlico-Tar Riverkeeper Katey Zimmerman met with the members of the Medoc Group of the Sierra Club to share what she knows about Rocky Mount’s sewage problem.

Katey joined group members at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Rocky Mount, located down the street from one of the city’s most problematic spill sites: Riverside Drive.

In July, Riverside Drive was the site of back-to-back sewage spills: 42,000 gallons one day, followed by a 1.7-million-gallon spill that started the next and lasted three days. Over the last four years, more than 4 million gallons of sewage spilled at the site has flowed from a manhole into stormwater drains that empty into the Tar River, right next to a park.

After a general presentation about Sound Rivers’ work, Katey delved into Rocky Mount’s pollution issues.

“I spent some time specifically going over the sewer spill issues in Rocky Mount, data I have compiled, what the city is doing to resolve the issue and what we are advocating for,” she said. “The Sierra Club members in attendance were very engaged and asked lots of good questions. There were some questions about the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s role in enforcing issues such as this, the timeline of when I expect the issue to be resolved, and what feasible options there are to mitigate impacts to the river.”

Would you like to host a Riverkeeper at your next meeting? We’d love to talk with your group about the many issues facing the Neuse and Tar-Pamlico waterways! Contact us at info@soundrivers.org today!