Narragansett Bay, a 4,674 square kilometer waterway, is the largest Bay on the East Coast of the United States. The Bay stretches between Rhode Island and Massachusetts directly South of the city of Providence, Rhode Island. The Bay serves as the hub of economic and recreational activity for not only Rhode Island, but also much of southern New England.

Economically, the Bay is the main waterway for shipment of goods to and from Providence and the surrounding areas. In addition to the major industrial uses of the Bay a large portion of the surrounding population relies on the Bay’s resources to make their income. In addition to its economic benefits, an overwhelming percentage of southern New Englanders use Narragansett Bay for tourism and recreational purposes. In 1993, travel and tourism became the second largest employer in Rhode Island.

Narragansett Bay receives an alarming number of pollutants because it is the economic center of the area. Also, pollution from highly industrialized areas in Massachusetts wash into the regions rivers and flow into the Bay. The main source of pollution in the Bay has come from the overflow of untreated waste. The waste treatment facilities are not capable of functioning properly in periods of heavy rain. The Narragansett Bay Commission has eighty-six combined sewer overflows (CSO) that release an estimated 2.2 billion gallons of untreated sewage into the Bay a year. When there is a rainfall of one-half inch or more the treatment plants overflow and raw sewage flows directly into the Bay. Overflows result in 30-60 day fishing and shell fishing bans, which hurt the local economy. This has resulted in a strain on the 26,000 jobs related to the Bay that generating 330 million dollars in wages. Not only is the economy hurt, but also the habitat of the Bay. Habitat loses have been significant. There has been up to fifty percent lose of salt marsh and the majority of eelgrass beds and fish runs.

Sewage overflows in Narragansett Bay has resulted in the establishment of Bill 98S3233 in the General Assembly of the State of Rhode Island during its January Session in 1998. The Bill asks that the NBC inform harbormasters and local communities if one-half inches of rainfall occur.  For further information go to www.rilin.state.ri.us/Billtext98/senatetext98/s3233.htm.

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