Oysters, clams and mussels can be harvested in the Rehoboth Bay again after a sewage spill prompted a 21-day emergency closure of commercial and recreational harvest last month, according to the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control.
The state agency first announced the closure on Dec. 28, reporting that untreated wastewater was discharged into the bay when a plumbing contractor cut a sewer line in Mariner’s Cove mobile home park in the Long Neck area.
DNREC closed the shellfish harvest due to the potential public health risk from shellfish that may have been affected by the spill.
Following U.S. Food and Drug Administration Guidelines under the National Shellfish Sanitation Program, DNREC determined that 21 days allowed for an abundance of caution for public protection against pathogens of concern, including viruses, that might be associated with wastewater exposure.
