Rep. Zawistowski Meets with Holyoke Mayor, MASS Officials Re: Up-river Discharges in CT River
Bazinet, Jamison
Rep. Zawistowski Meets with Holyoke Mayor,
MASS Officials Re: Up-river Discharges in CT River
HARTFORD - State Representative Tami Zawistowski (R-61) this week met with Holyoke Mayor Joshua Garcia, Massachusetts State Representative Pat Duffy, Mary L. Monahan, former Chair Board of Public Works, and Michael Gallagher, Director of Public Works, to discuss concerns regarding up-river combined sewage discharges in the Connecticut River, and ways to mitigate and eventually eliminate such outflows.
According to the U.S. EPA, when the amount of water runoff exceeds the capacity of combined municipal wastewater treatment systems, untreated stormwater and wastewater is discharged into nearby waterbodies creating a Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO). These CSOs are subject to the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting program.
"I want to thank Mayor Garcia for hosting this initial meeting and I look forward to working together with officials from Massachusetts, Connecticut, and federally to address these important and ongoing concerns, including development of meaningful next steps to prevent or mitigate the impact of these overflow events in the future," Rep. Zawistowski said. "The Connecticut River is a vital resource for both our states' communities, economy, and environment that must be protected."
“I appreciate Representative Zawistowski for organizing this important meeting and for her commitment to protecting the Connecticut River, a shared treasure for our communities in Massachusetts and Connecticut,” Holyoke Mayor Joshua A. Garcia said. “Holyoke is actively addressing these legacy combined sewer overflow issues through our ongoing multi-million-dollar sewer separation projects and EPA consent decree compliance, which have already reduced discharges significantly. I look forward to continued regional collaboration, with officials in both states and at the federal level, to secure additional funding and accelerate solutions that benefit the river’s health, economy, and environment for generations to come.”
"My thanks to Representative Zawistowski for coming to Holyoke and learning more about our ongoing efforts to address combined sewer overflow into our shared Connecticut River. The conversation is timely as our regional delegation is currently engaged in discussions to re-up the millions of dollars we've already received in state and federal support. Moving this effort across state lines will be a historic step," Rep. Patricia Duffy said.
Last spring, in response to concerns from local fishermen and others, Connecticut Reps. Zawistowski and Devin Carney (R-Old Lyme), took the lead and sent a formal letter to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Mark Sanborn to request his assistance to prevent the state of Massachusetts and other up-river states from continuing to discharge sewage and other harmful substances into the Connecticut River. The veteran lawmakers whose districts border the Connecticut River cited examples to highlight their claims, noting that more than 400 million gallons of Combined Sewer Overflow entered the Connecticut River during the first seven months of 2025.
Holyoke, which has a long-term control plan and is in compliance with the federal consent decree regarding the schedule and removal of combined sewer systems, has also received some funding assistance through congressionally designated spending, however the majority of the costs are born by ratepayers, noted Monahan. She further emphasized that this is an excellent opportunity for Connecticut and Massachusetts to work together to address additional funding needs for CSO communities.
Those critical concerns, including the interstate water quality impact, public health risks, environmental justice, and the economic impact to tourism, recreation, and property values along the river corridor prompted the meeting. The group is scheduled to meet and discuss next steps early in the new year.
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Rep. Zawistowski represents the 61st district of East Granby, Suffield and Windsor Locks.
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Jamison C. Bazinet
Communications Specialist
House Republican Office
Public Affairs Department
Phone: (860) 240-8726
Email: Jamison...@cga.ct.gov
