■Hatfield and Williamsburg are dumping raw sewage into the Mill and Connecticut rivers and despite years of effort it could be years more before state and federal money can be found to solve the problem. The blame for the long delays and continued uncertainties belongs to the federal government, according to local officials.
■In a bid for Amtrak’s consideration of establishing a station at Northampton on its New York-Montreal route, Mayor Sean M. Dunphy sent a letter last Monday to Amtrak President Roger Lewis. The letter requested the opportunity to make a presentation highlighting the advantages of having a station in Northampton rather than a Springfield stop.
■Gazette-NET, the Daily Hampshire Gazette’s site on the World Wide Web, today introduces a special section for Five College students. Called aXis, the page was designed by students and includes news, career information and entertainment so students can stay current with what’s happening in the Five College community and beyond.
■William M. Bulger, who rose from the working class streets of South Boston to be president of the state Senate, was officially inaugurated yesterday as president of the University of Massachusetts.
■The state Department of Health has increased the risk level for exposure to West Nile virus from moderate to high in four more Hampshire County communities, including Northampton and Easthampton. The move was prompted by an increase in the number of confirmed cases in the surrounding area.
■A controversial affordable housing project in Easthampton received city approval Monday, more than two years after officials and residents began debating it. The ZBA voted unanimously at its meeting to approve the 38-unit Parsons Village development with 37 conditions, to the consternation of residents who oppose the project because of its density, among other reasons.