The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-10-03

1I1EL MA A1OfGS . MESSiAUE.
 To the Honorable Common Council
 of the City of Bridgeport. Gentlemen:|I desire to call your
 attention to the necessity of provid- ing an immediate remedy for the sewage nuisance which exists in the
 Pequonnock River at the outlet to Berkshire Pond. am convinced that the nuisance arises partly from the exposed flats in Berkshire Pond, and partly from the enormous amount of sewage put into the Pond and into the river below the Berkshire dam. The water below the dam forms a dead end. The sewage is held with in a. few hundred feet of the place of it's entrance into the river, and the result is a constantly accommodating mass of filth which is dangerous to the health of those who live in the vicinity. s-
 An examination of the water of the river below the dam shows that it consists of three parts of sewage to one of water. The bare limit of of sewage. Whflke this statement may present the amount of contamination at it's maximum, it is conclusive as showing that there is at all times in 1 this neighborhood dangerous con- dition.
 l The condition has been called to the attention of the mayor by com mittee representing the citizens of the Ninth and Twelfth Districts, who rep-. | resent that the value of their prop. | nuisance. After making an exhaus- 1 tive investigation I believe that there | is much justice in this claim and | that the nuisance ought to be abat- ed Moreover the city, if it fails tS l furnish an adequate remedy, will un- doubtedly be obliged to face an ex- | pensive law suit, since, l am inform l ed, the citizens of the districts re- l ferred to have organized an sAsso- citation with this end in view.
 l The city must dispose of its sew lage, but it ought to do so without creating a nuisance. especially in neighborhood that is essentially resi-
 ldentia1, as in the case before us 1 To dispose of the nuisance in Berk- shire Pond, created by the frequent exposure of many acres of mud flats, recommend taking by condemnation or otherwise the mill rights attached | to the Pond. This will enable the | city to maintain the pond constantly
 | full of water at the same level. For the present, it will make valuable
 winter play ground for the children
 | of the city and in the future, if the,
 | demands of commerce should be sucn as to necessitate throwing the water open to navigation. the dam ana | bridge might be removed and the pond made a part of the harbor. But certainly no such course should be pursued until conditions are created which would assure the flats being al-
 ways under water. To remove the
 l dam at the present time, and expose
 1 the flats, would be to aggravate the 1 conditions that now exist. ss I am informed that the mill rights
 | can be purchased at reasonable price. I believe that the increase
 l in property values in the neighbor- hood of the Pond, with the constant increase in the revenue from taxa ton, will alone make the investment a paying one for the city.
 l I recommend that the committee on Harbor Improvements ana the City Attorney confer imm ediately With | the owners of the mill rights relative to the value of said rights.
 l I also recommend that immediate steps be taken to remove the sew age evil below the dam, either by l carrying the sewer outlets further 1 down the river, or by some other suitable method. For doing this work. plans will soon be submitted to your | honorable body.
 begun as soon as possible and thas | the cost may be defrayed from the bond issue authorized by the last General Assembly for the construc- ton of sewers. | the future safeguarded if the flats, l for several hundred feet below the l dam, were dredged to point where l they will be covered with water at low 1 tide. These flats are not great i'll | area. They lie substantially upon q level, and the removal of a relatively | small amount of material would be 1 sufficient. I recommend that this | work be undertaken as soon as pos sible, deeming it necessary for the health and well being of many of | the people of the city and for the protection of property. Incidentally | the creation of this basin on the site of the exposed mud flats below the dam would make an excellent an | chorage for small craft.
 Respectfully submitted this End day | of October, 1911.
 l EDWARD F RIICKINGHAM.