Atlanta’s Department of Watershed Management is investigating a new fish kill on the South River, the city’s second major aquatic-life disaster in just over a month.
In a news release Tuesday afternoon, the watershed department said it was probing reports of dead fish along the South River that may have been caused by a chemical spill at the South River Water Reclamation Center, one of the city’s three main sewage treatment plants.
The investigation comes weeks after a series of overflows from Atlanta’s sewer tunnels contributed to the deaths of thousands of fish on the Chattahoochee River in late May. That earlier incident prompted a separate state and federal review and a federal subpoena of Fulton County’s environmental records.
The South River Water Reclamation Center, located about six miles south of downtown Atlanta, processes sewage for much of southeast Atlanta and northern DeKalb County. Unlike the city’s other two reclamation centers, it does not release treated wastewater directly into the South River — its treated effluent is pumped across town and discharged into the Chattahoochee.
Officials said they had not yet confirmed what chemical may have caused the new fish kill, but early samples showed elevated ammonia levels downstream of the plant. Crews from the Georgia Environmental Protection Division were on site Wednesday morning.
The EPD said it had placed booms across a stretch of the river near the plant to contain any further spread of contaminants. Recreational users of the river, including paddlers and anglers, are being told to avoid the water from Panthersville Road downstream to the confluence with the Ocmulgee.
Residents who use the river for irrigation or who draw water from private wells near the South River are being advised to contact the DeKalb County Board of Health before using water for drinking, cooking or bathing.
The watershed department said it expects to release preliminary findings within five business days.
