VIDEO: James Earl Jones describes the 1969 Cuyahoga River fire [#Cuyahoga45]

In this clip from a 1978 documentary, Cuyahoga, James Earl Jones' booming voice tells the tale of the famous 1969 Cuyahoga River fire that turned national attention on the state of our environment and inspired action in Northeast Ohio and far beyond.

VIDEO: No, we do want you to see what we allegedly don't want you to see.

What was recorded and posted to YouTube in the style of an exposé is actually a great educational resource to better understand pollution sources and their impacts on Lake Erie.

YouTube user pmc291 recently posted this video to our Facebook page under a very ominous title, "NORSD NOT WHAT THEY WANT YOU TO SEE." It shows pollution along one of Cleveland's beaches near our Easterly Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Known as White City Beach, this area has suffered from several pollution sources for many years: Combined sewer overflows, storm sewers, sanitary sewer overflows, and storm debris. Each one deserves a few words about future clean-up efforts.

#DogsCantFlush: Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus, but no, Santa Cruz, there is no poop fairy.

We're partial to our #DogsCantFlush campaign encouraging dog owners to pick up poop, but we tip our hat to the city of Santa Cruz for the creativity behind theirs.

Photo by mobileranger. Read the full post at Santa Cruz Waves.

Thanks to Adam for sharing the link.

EVENT: Pollution Appreciation Day celebrates the treasure that is trash

In what could be out biggest announcement in years, we are proud to announce our support of Pollution Appreciation Day, an effort to raise awareness of the benefits of pollution in every day life.

Today is the first celebration of this new annual campaign, an effort that was inspired by the success of World Water Day March 22.

"Think of the investments the Sewer District is making in clean water," said Pollution Appreciation Day spokesperson Walter Forgranted. "No matter how much they clean, it's still going to get dirty. Polluted runoff, stream bank erosion, combined sewer overflows, they all keep the pollution coming. Wouldn't that money be better invested somewhere else? Just think of the children."

Our event calendar is overflowing today. Our Reignite the River kick-off will bring flames back to the Cuyahoga the likes of which haven't been seen since 1969. Our Invasive Species Petting Zoo will be great for kids of all ages, and the Algae Bloom Relay will feature teams competing in a polar plunge in some of the greenest lake water you've ever seen.

The Sewer District takes pollution very seriously. More seriously than you should ever take this post. Happy April Fools' Day.

VIDEO: Dead fish near our treatment plant? It's nature and temperature, not pollution.

Are we poisoning fish by releasing polluted water into the Cuyahoga River? Contrary to the YouTube video's inaccurate captions above, we are not.

We were alerted to this video today, a clip that was posted to YouTube January 31 with the title, "NEORSD sewage kills fish in Cuyahoga River." The title and captions were incorrect, but the occurrence is worth a closer look to understand the issues and results.

The simple answer: This kind of fish die-off is a natural event at this time of year, not a result of sewage pollution in our effluent. It comes down to water temperature and temperature-sensitive fish.

ARCHIVES: A photograph that changed everything

Like rummaging through family photos from a dusty hatbox in the attic, finding a photo in our Sewer District archives can have amazing emotional impacts.

We found this one today.

TWEET: "We're not that bad." And getting better.

Our @WallyWaterdrop came across this tweet from Ohio Problems @Ohio_Probs late yesterday. It's still getting RT'd today. In typical "Only In Cleveland" fashion, even Wally had a chuckle at this, but the sewage issue caught our attention.

While our work can't improve our baseball team's standings or locals' dietary choices, the sewage issue is one we are taking off the #OhioProbs list slowly but surely.

NEWS: Fish kill investigation benefits from Sewer District's first-responders

Senior Investigator Seth Hothem tests water quality near the fish-kill scene April 25.

The Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District is pleased that the grand jury returned indictments against Renato and Teresina Montorsi for allegedly dumping toxic cyanide into a storm sewer, deliberately poisoning tens of thousands of fish last April. This intentional act is a clear infringement of the Clean Water Act.

In Thursday’s story, Grafton couple accused of causing fish kill, the good work performed by local, state and federal agencies was highlighted. Unfortunately, the Sewer District’s exceptional performance was overlooked at the press conference: our employees played a key role in this investigation.

Our employees were among the first investigators on the scene. During the critical first hours, our field investigators collected water samples from the East Branch of the Rocky River and its tributaries. Our laboratory staff quickly and expertly analyzed samples collected by our staff and Cleveland Metroparks rangers.

NY video: Storm floods canal with sewage

This video was taken in Brooklyn, NY after a storm, and is a disturbing example of how combined sewers function during heavy rains, discharging huge amounts of sewage to the environment.



The Sewer District has reduced the number of these kinds of discharges in Northeast Ohio, but the problem still exists. Public meetings beginning November 4 will discuss our approach to a solution.

Remembering the 1969 Cuyahoga River fire

Two vintage clips from Cleveland's NewsNet5 show footage from the 1969 blaze and a 1989 follow-up story on the fire anniversary.