Emergency shellfishing closure issued in Scarborough
SCARBOROUGH, ME - AUGUST 31: Mo Konefal of South Portland gets set to cast while fishing at the Nonesuch River in Scarborough on Sunday. (Derek Davis/Staff Photographer)
The Scarborough River is under an emergency shellfish closure until Sept. 17 due to pipe leak over the marsh.
The Scarborough River is closed from Seavey landing up river due to pollution from a minor leak in a pipe stretching from Pine Point Road to Black Point Road, according to Daryen Granata, Scarborough marine resource officer.
The Scarborough Sanitary District notified Granata around 2 p.m. Thursday of a leak in the area of the Eastern Trail foot bridge over the marsh. Based on the amount of waste leaking from the pipe, the Department of Marine Resources made the call to close the area.
The Scarborough Sanitary District is in the process of fixing the pipe, and it is expected to be done by Thursday night, Granata said.
When toxic product is released into water, the Marine Resources closes the area for 21 days, giving time to get the bacteria out of shellfish, he said. If people harvested and consumed shellfish from contaminated water, they could ingest E. coli and other bacteria that could make them sick, Granata said.
The Scarborough Sanitary District did not immediately respond to requests for further information Thursday afternoon.
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Tagged: maine department of marine resources
Salomé Cloteaux is a community reporter covering Scarborough and Westbrook. She was born in France but lived in Indiana for most of her life before moving to Portland in November 2025. Salomé has a degree. More by Salomé Cloteaux
