Last week’s heavy rainfall triggered an overflow of roughly 180,000 gallons of untreated wastewater, all of which ended up in Bristol Harbor.

In response, the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) has closed a 458-acre section of the western side of Bristol Harbor to shellfishing. This includes waters north of a line extending from the southernmost tip of Usher Point in Bristol to the northernmost tip of Hog Island. The closure will lift at sunrise on Saturday, March 30.

The length of the closure is per guidance from the federal Food And Drug Administration (FDA) and will allow for adequate dilution volume and time for shellfish in the area to flush themselves of pollutants.

The Town of Bristol regularly experiences sewage overflows during wet weather, and residents’ sump pumps connected to the Town's sewer system are a major cause of these overflows. For this reason, it is illegal to have a sump pump connected to the sewer system.

For more information on shellfish closures, call DEM’s 24-hour shellfishing hotline at 401-222-2900 or visit www.dem.ri.gov/shellfish