Riverhead Sewer District

An electrical problem caused the Raynor Avenue pumps to shut down and overflow last night, discharging an estimated 4,000 gallons of untreated wastewater into the Peconic River, Sewer District Superintendent Michael Reichel said.

The district's sewer fees, charged on an estimated sewage flow calculated according to the volume of water used, have increased by more than 50 percent since the district installed irrigation systems to water its athletic fields and lawns. But the water used for irrigation doesn't flow to the sewer plant.

At issue is the right to payment from a special fund administered by the county that’s intended to stabilize sewer district assessments and taxes in Suffolk. The fund's source of revenue is a quarter-percent sales tax authorized by state law.