Sussex County Investigating Water Discharge Issue from Bethany Beach-Area Facility
July 23, 2025/
Sussex County is addressing a diversion of treated wastewater from its South Coastal Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility near Bethany Beach. On Saturday, July 19th, the County鈥檚 Environmental Services division reported to DNREC that a damaged section of pipe had caused some of the sanitized effluent鈥攏ormally discharged offshore鈥攖o instead flow into a nearby tax ditch by the Assawoman Canal. The amount diverted is currently unknown, but officials estimate it is less than 10% of the total discharge.聽There are no public health or environmental hazards as a result of the issue, and no advisories have been issued by DNREC or any other State agencies. Preliminary testing of the effluent shows the quality of the discharge is within the County鈥檚 State-issued permit for the facility.聽聽County Administrator Todd Lawson says The County is committed to delivering reliable, cost-effective, and environmentally responsible wastewater service. While their system usually operates without issue, he says occasional equipment failures do occur–adding that when they do, their team acts quickly to fix the problem and ensure compliance in partnership with the State.