Sediment Causes Discoloration In Susquehanna River

HAVRE DE GRACE, Md. (WJZ) -- A strange sight along the Susquehanna River. Flooding in parts of Pennsylvania is now having a visible impact in Maryland.

From Sky Eye Chopper 13, it's easy to tell why the Susquehanna River has some concerned. What's typically a beautiful view has now turned into a sight showing brown, murky water.

The color is due to heavy rain and flooding in Pennsylvania.

"Basically, that's a lot of water coming north downstream to where our intake is," said Doug Brown, Steelton Borough manager.

A large amount of sediment is now in the river.

"The turbidity in the raw water is very high, and that's basically cloudiness in the water," Brown said.

Starting early Friday, residents in Havre de Grace say they knew something wasn't right with the water. They are relieved to hear it's just sediment.

"It was definitely discolored and brown. A lot of people were asking, wondering what it was because we haven't had any big storms lately," said Christopher Stachura.

While the Maryland Department of the Environment says there are no health concerns with drinking water, sediment in excess amounts can impact the growth of grasses that are critical to both fish and crabs.

Some were concerned about the conditions because of a recent gas spill in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, but officials don't believe the two are related.

The Maryland Department of the Environment says there is still water testing going on in Pennsylvania that they will continue to monitor.