JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – An equipment failure at JEA’s Skinner Parkway lift station last week led to a “sanitary sewer overflow” into Pottsburg Creek.
JEA said the estimated size of the spill was 509,000 gallons and happened after crews discovered a break in a submerged pipe.
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As of Monday, JEA said testing results “have shown significant progress, with bacteria levels back to background levels in nearly all testing locations.”
“As a cautionary measure, signs will remain posted in impacted areas advising against fishing or recreational activities in affected waters for at least another day,” a JEA spokesperson said.
The sanitary sewer overflow did not impact drinking water.
JEA said it will continue to sample Pottsburg Creek at multiple locations downstream of the sewer overflow.
JEA said it cleaned up at the lift station and finished recovery efforts from Pottsburg Creek by Thursday evening, but it sent a cautionary e-mail to about 780 customers adjacent to potentially impacted areas along Pottsburg Creek advising against fishing or recreational activities in affected waters.
It’s not the first time the area has experienced environmental issues.
Last year, approximately 90,000 gallons of raw sewage overflowed into Pottsburg Creek, a waterway in Jacksonville’s Grove Park neighborhood that runs directly into the St. Johns River, according to a report JEA filed with Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection.
That resulted in elevated bacteria levels in the creek.
The state and city also investigated after construction site runoff was seen in the area of Beach Boulevard and Hogan Road in 2021.