74,500 gallons of wastewater spill into Boca Ciega Bay

More than 100,000 gallons total spilled near the Treasure Island Causeway from the decades-old standpipe.

ST. PETERSBURG — More than 100,000 gallons of wastewater leaked from a pipe on Sunday morning near the Treasure Island Causeway, 74,500 gallons of which spilled into the Boca Ciega Bay.

The wastewater burst from a decades-old pipe that was located within St. Petersburg’s city limits but owned by St. Pete Beach. The pipe was so old that the city of St. Pete Beach was unaware it existed, St. Pete Beach Public Works Director Mike Clarke said in a phone interview Monday evening.

The wastewater spill was reported to St. Petersburg officials just after 10 a.m. Sunday and lasted until 1:30 p.m., according to a report submitted to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

The sanitary sewer leak stemmed from a two-inch standpipe that had not been used in decades, Clarke said.