Water main break turns Shoal Creek green, kills at least 30 fish

Claire Osborn, Austin American-Statesman
·2 min read
Shoal Creek turned green after a water main break clouded the waterway on Tuesday in Austin.
Shoal Creek turned green after a water main break clouded the waterway on Tuesday in Austin.

Shoal Creek, which winds its way from Northwest Austin through the city's downtown, turned green this week, and it wasn't to replicate the Chicago River for St. Patrick's Day.

A water main break Tuesday on a 12-inch pipe at Shoal Creek Boulevard and Bull Creek Road poured chlorinated drinking water into the creek, clouding its appearance and killing at least 30 fish, according to the Austin Watershed Protection Department.

At least 30 fish died in Shoal Creek because chlorinated drinking water poured into the creek from a water main break, according to the Austin Watershed Protection Department.
At least 30 fish died in Shoal Creek because chlorinated drinking water poured into the creek from a water main break, according to the Austin Watershed Protection Department.

"Similar to heavy rain, the pressurized water leaving the water main can result in a cloudy or muddy appearance of the water in Shoal Creek," according to a statement from the Watershed Protection Department.

"These fine, suspended particles will settle out over the next few days. … While water is safe for human consumption and contact, chlorinated water is impactful to aquatic life."

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The city department started dechlorinating the water before the valve was turned off to minimize "direct impacts to the aquatic habitat," the statement said.

The break was repaired Wednesday, according to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. The Austin region of the TCEQ will continue to monitor the waterway until it returns to normal conditions, an agency official said.

Matt Franks said he lives near the creek and saw the problem this week.

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"I noticed the turbid water on Tuesday," Franks said. "The creek was up about 4 inches and had a light green color. … It wasn't until (Wednesday) that I could smell the dead fish."

"As a longtime resident and member of the Shoal Creek Conservancy group, I'm quite upset by what has happened," Franks said. "My family spends a lot of time playing in the creek, catching fish and exploring the wildlife. It's tragic to see this."

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin's Shoal Creek turns green but it's not a St. Patrick's Day stunt