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Thursday, February 18, 2010

Oops! Some Snow Gets Into the Schuylkill

A reader sent PhillyClout this Flickr set of photos that show a Philadelphia streets department truck dumping snow into the Schuylkill River off the Market Street Bridge.

This of course comes after Mayor Nutter vowed that no snow would go into the city's two rivers because of the negative environmental impact. Oops.

So we called over to the city's press office to find out what was going on. Nutter spokeswoman Maura Kennedy told us that this was an isolated incident, and not a change in city policy.

"This was an error by the crew. They were not made fully aware of our policy that we're not dumping snow into the river," Kennedy said, adding that as soon as supervisors were aware of the problem, "they were immediately halted."

Posted by Catherine Lucey @ 5:16 PM Permalink | 12 comments

Comments

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 6:14 PM, 02/18/2010

Unfortunately, because of combined sewer overflow, plenty of the snow will most likely end up in the river anyway.

— greengal

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 6:28 PM, 02/18/2010

Dead bodies,rats,sewage, and everything else in the river maybe the crew thought the snow would clean it all out.

— west mayfair

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 10:06 PM, 02/18/2010

umm, doesn't it all end up in the river anyway when it melts?

— Pelti

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 10:06 PM, 02/18/2010

It should go there first. I think the snow would help dilute the rivers ans clean them out.

— GTavares

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 10:24 PM, 02/18/2010

Yea, dont dump the snow into the river. The clean water going into the river might cause an environmental impact.

— Pat c

Comment removed.

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 10:57 PM, 02/18/2010

From what I understand, snow melt that goes through the sewer system is treated (like all raw sewage) before it reaches the river as opposed to the dumping that was reported above.

— Philly Ray

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 11:09 PM, 02/18/2010

The schuylkill river has made quite a comeback and is a thriving fishery. Kudos to the mayor for not dumping snow in it!

— gregneff62

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 4:59 AM, 02/19/2010

Maybe we don't want to do that as an everyday procedure, but it sure made sense during the recent record snow. And that is what is lacking in public policy these days: common sense.

— Mark Glaeser

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 7:14 AM, 02/19/2010

No, it doesn't make sense to the people who live near the Schuylkill in Center City and who were flooded in '96 when Eddie Rendell made that stupid move. It is not common sense because you increase water levels in the river very quickly to an artificially high level which, in turn, probably increases, at least temporarily, the water table levels. Disclaimer: I am not an engineer. I just know that it happens and that is the logical explanation. I'm open to hear from real engineers on other potential causes.

— johanna

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 7:42 AM, 02/19/2010

only sewage(sanitary sewers)goes to the processing plant. The storm drains remove water from the streets directly to the nearest creek.

— JZimmerman

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 9:13 AM, 02/19/2010

It's going to end up in the river either way. I can't imagine the little they dumped in in 96 had any effect on the water level. Rather, the runoff from the melting snow all over, especially further west along the Schuykill, was the cause.

— Briarwood

12 comments

About The Philly Clout Team

Chris Brennan, a native Philadelphian and graduate of Temple University, joined the Daily News in 1999. He has written about SEPTA, the Philadelphia School District, the legalization of casino gambling, state government, the mayor, the governor, City Council and political campaigns.

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David Gambacorta spent a small eternity writing about cops, drug dealers and serial killers. Now he’s writing about power and politics – which sometimes reminds him of the old crime beat. He joined the Daily News in 2005. And yes, he knows you’re not quite sure how to pronounce his last name. E-mail tips to gambacd@phillynews.com

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Catherine Lucey joined the Daily News in 2002 and has written about murderous drug gangs, political protesters and Harry Potter. After covering the 2007 mayoral election, she moved over to the City Hall bureau where she has been reporting on the Nutter administration.

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Jan Ransom, a native New Yorker, joined the Daily News in 2010 after graduating from Howard University. She has since written about the difficulty of filing police complaints, tax deadbeats and life after violent home invasions. She joined the Daily News City Hall Bureau in 2011 and has plunged headfirst into reporting on administration budget battles and City Council shenanigans.

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