The Lynn Water and Sewer Commission officially completed a $120 million project this month that separated the city’s stormwater and sewer systems in West Lynn, improving water quality in the Saugus River and Lynn Harbor. The move is one of multiple citywide efforts to restore Lynn’s long-polluted waterfront and unlock investment.

Combined sewer overflows (CSOs) have long been an issue in older communities with aged infrastructure.

A collection of cities on the North Shore (and across the Commonwealth) have historically combined sewer systems where both wastewater and stormwater come through shared pipes. During heavy rains — which are becoming more frequent due to climate change — the excess flow bypasses the treatment plants where it is supposed to be cleaned and is instead discharged into local bodies of water to prevent backups in people’s homes.

“For decades, Lynn has not been able to enjoy the waterfront that it could and that it should,” Mayor Jared Nicholson said during a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the project. “Knowing that we have the sewer separation we need for that water to be to our standards gives us great confidence.”

CSOs are a challenge few communities have been able to eliminate, and they are hardly unique to Lynn. There are more than 40 CSO sites along the Charles River, Mystic River, Alewife Brook, and Boston Harbor. Other communities also struggle with overflows, including Holyoke, Chicopee, and Springfield on the Connecticut River and Lowell on the Merrimack River. Watershed advocates have called on the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority to do more to eliminate CSOs, particularly on the Charles and Mystic rivers. But separating the systems comes with complicated engineering challenges and therefore higher costs. Stretches of road and ground often need to be torn up, heavily disrupting communities.

“It’s helpful to remind people that yes, you have to rip up roads, and yes, that does stink. That is a problem,” said Chris Mancini, executive director of the nonprofit advocacy organization Save the Harbor/Save the Bay. “But it’s temporary, and the benefits are going to be, if not permanent, really long lasting.”

The promise of cleaner water is likely to attract more investment in West Lynn, particularly along the South Harbor where industrial cleanup projects have already helped transform the waterfront. The city rolled out its South Harbor Implementation Plan in 2024, highlighting the neighborhood as Lynn’s biggest opportunity for economic growth, calling it “ripe for redevelopment.”

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Published by MassINC