From Beacon Hill to Capitol Hill, Officials Rally for Local Shellfishing

Healey, Moulton and Markey push relief after Merrimack sewage closures

Essex County Greenbelt the Essex Marsh

(Photo: Essex County Greenbelt)

Shortages from 12 days of banned clamming after the Haverhill spill has pushed prices up locally to as much as $45 for a pint box of fried clams.

Courtesy

Posted Thursday, July 16, 2026 5:01 pm

As communities across the Commonwealth continue recovering from the recent sewer main failure in Haverhill, it is increasingly clear that local governments, even those acting responsibly and proactively, cannot shoulder the costs of long-term infrastructure modernization without stronger, more reliable federal partnership.”

US Rep. Seth Moulton

by Erika Brown

It’s been nearly two weeks since an unprecedented municipal sewage spill in Haverhill shut down shellfishing in Essex and in other coastal North Shore flats. Starting late last week, elected officials from Beacon Hill to Capitol Hill have unveiled a series of initiatives aimed at helping commercial shellfishermen recover while seeking to prevent a similar disaster from happening again.

On Friday, Mass. Gov. Maura Healey announced $300,000 aid for North Shore shellfishermen; on Tuesday morning, a $50 million federal infrastructure funding increase secured by Congressman Seth Moulton was announced; that night, the introduction of new emergency grant legislation was introduced in Washington by US Sen. Edward Markey and Sen. Elizabeth Warren.

Together, the proposals reflect growing recognition that the June 26 sewer main failure in Haverhill—one of the largest municipal wastewater releases in recent Massachusetts history—inflicted significant economic damage on local coastlines. This is particularly acute in Essex, where there are currently 25 active shellfishing licenses.

The emergency closure, ordered June 29 after millions of gallons of untreated sewage entered the Merrimack River, halted shellfish harvesting for 12 days from Salisbury south through Ipswich, Essex, and Gloucester, while state officials tested water quality and shellfish tissue for contamination.

In Essex there are currently 25 active commercial and recreational shellfishing license holders. The shutdown sidelined commercial clammers at their busiest and most profitable time of the summer. And the resulting shortage has pushed prices up locally. By this past weekend, restaurant prices reflected the shortage, with prices surging around Cape Ann to as much as $45 for a pint box of fried clams.

Immediate relief

Healey announced last Friday that the state will provide $300,000 in direct financial assistance to those affected by the closure. The MA Div. of Marine Fisheries will administer the relief program, with an advisory group of harvesters helping determine eligibility requirements and how the funding will be distributed.

State officials stressed that the emergency closure protected public health by preventing contaminated shellfish from reaching the marketplace. Water quality improved steadily following the spill, and as testing returned with negative results, shellfish harvesting flats gradually reopened.

The state’s aid package addresses the immediate economic impact, which towns welcome. By Tuesday morning, Moulton announced support focused on the infrastructure failure that caused the crisis.

The 6th District congressman announced that the congressional Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved his amendment to increase the federal authorization for Haverhill wastewater improvements from $40 million to $50 million through the Water Resources Development Act. The idea is the additional authorization would help modernize Haverhill’s aging sewer system, where a 42-inch force main failed during torrential rainfall in late June.

Moulton said permanent repairs—not temporary bypasses—are needed to protect downstream communities, public health and coastal industries. The authorization would still require future congressional appropriations before funding becomes available.

By Tuesday evening, Markey announced he had joined Warren and Congresswoman Lori Trahan in introducing the Water Emergency and Technical Assistance Act, legislation designed to create a permanent federal grant program for communities facing drinking water or wastewater emergencies.

The proposal would authorize emergency technical and financial assistance for water infrastructure failures, allowing communities to respond more quickly to major system breakdowns without relying solely on local taxpayers.

The legislation was prompted directly by the Haverhill sewer failure and the resulting economic losses caused by lost days of shellfishing and beach closures, which were more pronounced off Newburyport and in Ipswich, although Essex’s Clammer’s Beach on Conomo Point was closed for two days during testing.

A rare convergence

These three initiatives take different approaches, but together they represent an unusually broad governmental response to an industry that doesn’t often receive outside public attention. Healey’s administration is addressing lost income. Moulton is pursuing long-term infrastructure improvements to prevent another catastrophic sewer failure. Markey and Warren are proposing broader federal authority to assist communities nationwide if similar water infrastructure emergencies happen.

For Essex, where commercial shellfishing remains front and center, both for many local residents’ livelihood and for its maritime identity, the flurry of activity is welcome support. It remains to be seen exactly how and when the immediate financial losses will be restored. Or whether all this attention placed on longer-term vulnerabilities exposed by the Merrimack River spill will translate into practical change.