United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Office of Enforcement
and Compliance
Assurance (2201 A)
EPA 325-N-06-001
Enforcement Alert
Volume 8, Number 1
Office of Civil Enforcement
September 2006
EPA Enforcement: Preventing Backup
of Municipal Sewage into Basements
Backups and Other
Sewage Overflows:
What Are They and
Why Do They Occur?
Overflows from aging municipal
sewer systems expose citizens to bac-
teria, viruses and other microorgan-
isms that can cause serious illness.
Raw or partially treated sewage may
flow out of manholes onto streets,
sidewalks and yards; it can also back
up through pipes into businesses and
homes. Tackling this environmental
and human health risk is a top EPA
enforcement priority.
There are two types of sewer sys-
tems. Either of them may overflow
onto your property. Sanitary sewer
systems transport sewage and indus-
trial wastewater to sewage treatment
plants. Combined sewer systems trans-
port storm water in addition to sew-
age and industrial wastewater. Both
sanitary sewer overflows and com-
bined sewer overflows can be rou-
tine in some municipal systems, re-
flecting chronic problems.
Sewer systems can deteriorate
with age, resulting in pipe or equip-
ment failures, blockages and breaks
in sewer mains. Pipes or water treat-
ment plant capacity may be over-
whelmed in severe weather or where
there is inadequate planning for popu-
lation growth. Overflows may also re-
sult from poor sewer system mainte-
nance practices.
Nationwide, EPA is protect-
ing public health through
settlements that require
municipalities to stop sew-
age overflows, overhaul
their sewage systems and
clean up contamination.
"Building backup" overflows can
occur in either type of sewer system.
Although the overflows usually
emerge through toilets and drains in
basements in private residences, they
can happen in any type of facility, in-
cltiding businesses, schools, restau-
rants, nursing homes, retail stores and
other buildings. Yards may also be
contaminated by backups.
Sewage backups can be a regular
occurrence in some communities,
causing a range of problems for resi-
dents. One municipal sewer author-
ity received hundreds of reports of
sewer overflows and backups each
year. Residents described repeated in-
cidents of backups of black, thick,
smelly water, containing cigarette
butts, toilet paper and human waste
through basement toilets, shower
drains, floor drains and laundry sinks.
In many homes, the water rose to
more than 12 inches and destroyed
furniture, wallboard, carpets, an-
tiques, electronic equipment and
(Continued on Page 2)
Sewage overflows often occur in public areas where citizens may come into contact with raw
sewage. (Source: docupic.com)
http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/newsletters/civil/enfalert/index.html
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Enforcement Alert
many other valuables. Cleanups were
expensive and often required the re-
moval of floors, wallboard and car-
peting, as well as disinfection to re-
move mold, mildew and bacteria
present in the saturated portions of
the buildings.
Poor operation and maintenance of
the sewer system in another city
caused repeated incidents of basement
and building backups of raw sewage
over a ten-year period. Raw sewage
typically entered the affected homes
through overflowing toilets and floor
drains in shower stalls, in some cases
filling basements with dead rats, toi-
let paper and human waste.
When backups are the result of
conditions in the municipal sewer sys-
tem, the municipality is responsible
for cleaning up and preventing future
backups. However, if sewage backs
up as a result of problems in the pipe-
line extending from a private resi-
dence or other building to the mu-
nicipal system, it is usually the prop-
erty owner, not the municipality, who
is responsible for cleaning up and fix-
ing the problem that caused the
backup. The municipality can help de-
termine the cause of a basement
backup. If a homeowner suspects
that a backup may be the result of
conditions in the sewer system, the
homeowner should contact the mu-
nicipality to investigate the backup.
In addition to creating a health
threat, sewage backups can have sig-
nificant financial consequences from
property destruction and interference
with business operations. Many
homeowner and renter insurance
policies do not cover sewage back-
ups. Special coverage may be
needed, typically as a rider to a ba-
sic properly owner or renter policy.
Sewage backing up into a toilet in a house.
(Source: U.S. EPA photo)
Health Effects of
Sewage Backups
Sewage backups into homes and
neighborhoods are of special concern
to EPA due to the increased chance
of human exposure. Raw sewage of-
ten contains a variety of microorgan-
isms, viruses, bacteria and intestinal
parasites that can cause serious ill-
nesses, including cholera, dysentery,
hepatitis, cryptosporidiosis and giardia-
sis. Sensitive populations -- children,
the elderly and those with weakened im-
mune systems — can be at a higher risk
of illness from exposure to sewage.
The most common effects of sew-
age-related illness are gastroenteritis,
which is an infection of the gas-
trointestinal tract, skin rashes and in-
fection of open cuts. Gastroenteritis
affects the gastrointestinal tract, in-
cluding the stomach and small and
large intestines. Symptoms typically
include abdominal cramps, watery
diarrhea and vomiting, which can last
from one to ten days, depending on
the severity of the illness. Infected
cuts and rashes can become swollen
and red, with localized pain at the site
of the rash or cut. Although symp-
toms can be treated, no curative medi-
cal treatment is available for some
sewage-related illnesses.
Exposure to disease may persist
for months after a sewage backup
affects a building. Walls, floors and
furniture can remain saturated, cre-
ating an environment for non-sewage-
related organisms to grow, including
Clostriditim telani (tetanus). Toxic
fungi and molds can also thrive in
moist environments. In many cases,
removal of damaged material such as
rugs, furniture and dry wall is the only
viable option, and in some cases, a
building may become uninhabitable.
EPA's Enforcement
Strategy to Address
Sewage Overflows
Preventing sewer overflows is a
national enforcement priority for EPA.
As shown by recent settlements, EPA
seeks comprehensive solutions to re-
duce the risks of exposure to raw
sewage. The Agency has required
municipalities to report sewer over-
flows to authorities and the public and
to take action to avoid future occur-
rences. It has also required munici-
palities to clean up buildings contami-
nated by sewage backups.
Recent Settlements
Addressing Sewage
Backups
Washington (D.C.) Suburban
Sanitary Commission
EPA, the State of Maryland, and
five citizen groups took action to ad-
dress sewer overflows and backups
in Montgomery County and Prince
George's County. The result was a
settlement agreement with the Wash-
ington Suburban Sanitary Commis-
sion (WSSC) entered in federal court
(Continued on Page 3)
September 2006
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Enforcement Alert
Resident walking through sewer overflow on a neighborhood street. Risks posed by exposure
may not be obvious, (Source: U.S. EPA photo)
in December 2005. Under the settle-
ment, WSSC has agreed to implement
substantial corrective activities to en-
sure the proper management, opera-
tion and maintenance of its sewer sys-
tem, WSSC will undertake activities
valued at over $300 million to elimi-
nate sanitary sewer overflows, in-
cluding any sewage backups onto
public or private property and into
homes. The actions under this settle-
ment will reduce raw sewage dis-
charges from the WSSC system by
more than 26 million gallons per year
and eliminate basement backups
caused by inadequate capacity or
poor operation and maintenance.
WSSC will also implement emer-
gency response and cleanup programs
to address all overflows, including
sewage backups. WSSC's "Emer-
gency Response Plan" will contain
methods for reporting backups,
timeframes for responses, measures
that will be taken to clean up back-
ups and to repair conditions causing
backups, and a follow-up process to
ensure the adequacy of cleanups.
Knoxville (Term.) Utilities Board
The sewer system operated by the
Knoxville Utilities Board (KUB) was
the subject of an action brought by
EPA, the State of Tennessee, and the
Tennessee Clean Water Network (a
local citizens group). The parties
reached a settlement in February
2005 with KUB that requires KUB to
ensure the proper management, op-
eration and maintenance of its sewer
system. The settlement is expected
to eliminate approximately 3.5 million
gallons of sewage overflows annu-
ally. KUB has agreed to undertake mea-
sures costing about $530 million to
carry out the settlement. KUB will re-
port its sewer overflows (including
building backups) to EPA, the State
of Tennessee and the City of Knox-
ville, and provide public notice of
such overflows at the Knoxville li-
brary and on the KUB website.
Washing machine floating in backup from
municipal sewers, (Source: Sierra Club)
The KUB settlement incorporated
significant human health protections.
KUB will take specific measures —
such as increasing sewer capacity,
improving operation and mainte-
nance, and installing backflow pre-
vention devices — to prevent the re-
lease of sewage into buildings, yards,
and other areas where people may
come into contact with it. When re-
leases do occur, KUB will clean up
thoroughly and disinfect the affected
property. Cleanup of sewage back-
ups will include activities such as wet
vacuuming, wiping floors and walls
with cleaning solution and disinfec-
tant. Hushing out and disinfecting
plumbing fixtures, carpet cleaning or
replacement, and disinfection or re-
moval of items potentially contami-
nated by a backup.
Hamilton County, Ohio
In a 2004 settlement with EPA,
Hamilton County, Ohio, agreed to un-
dertake comprehensive action, esti-
mated to cost at least $ 1.5 billion, on
a court-enforceable schedule. The re-
quired activities include construction
of major capital improvements that
will control sanitary sewer overflows
and eliminate over 6 billion gallons of
raw sewage annually from the
county's separate sanitary and com-
bined systems. The county will in-
stall backflow-prevention devices and
pumping systems and, in some cases,
purchase contaminated property.
EPA guaranteed additional human
health protections in the settlement by
fashioning a "Water in Basement"
(WIB) program specifically to ad-
dress sewage backups. Under the
WIB program, Hamilton County will
staff a call-center 24 hours a day,
seven days a week, to respond to
sewage backup claims and to clean
up the immediate effects of backups.
The program also establishes proce-
(Continued on Page 4)
September 2006 <
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Enforcement Alert
dures for residents to file a claim with
Hamilton County for damage to real
and personal property caused by sew-
age backups. To date, Hamilton
County has received over 1,000
claims filed under the WIB program.
Sewage Backups: What to Do
If you observe an area lhat you suspect is affected by a
sewage backup, avoid coming into contact with the area.
Keep family members and pets away from it.
For more information, contact
Kevin Bell, Office of Civil Enforce-
ment, Wa fe r Enfo re einent D i v is ion.
at (202) 564-4027: Email:
bell.kevin@epa,gov.
II it is necessary to approach an area contaminated by sew-
age, first turn off the cleclricHy. Wear protective clothing
such as rubber boots and gloves when entering the affected
area. Be alert for hazards such as broken gas lines, Hooded
electrical circuits, and submerged furnaces or electrical ap-
pliances.
Enforcement Alert
Enforcement Alert is published
periodically by EPA's Office ol
Enforcement and Compliance
Assurance, Office of Civil
Enforcement, lo inform the public and
reg ul ated co m m u n ity abou t
environmental enforcement issues,
trends and significant enforcement
actions.
This information should help the
regulated community avoid violations
of federal environmental law.
Please reproduce and share this
publication.
To receive this newsletter
electronically, see www.epa.gov/
compliance/resources/newsletters/
civil/enfalert/index.html.
Director, Office of Civil Enforcement:
Walker B. Smith
Edited by the Office of Planning,
Policy Analysis and Communications
Please send all address and name
changes or subscription requests to:
ncepiwo@one.net
Document Number:
EPA325-N-06-OQ1
Take pictures inside your basement and other areas affected
by a sewage backup for damage and insurance claims.
Many cities have a 24-hour sewer maintenance or customer
hotline to report water in basements and backups from
drains and plumbing fixtures located below ground.
Other contacts in case of a sewage backup include your
state environmental authority and the U.S. EPA Regional
office for your state.
EPA maintains a webpage where citizens may report envi-
ronmental violations, including sewage overflows:
hup://www.epa.gov/conipliance/complaints/index.htinl
&EPA
United States
Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Civil Enforcement
(2241 A)
Washington, D.C. 20460
Disclaimer: This document attempts to
clarify in plain language some EPA
provisions. Nothing in this Enforcement
Alert revises or replaces any
regulatory provision in the cited part,
any other part of the Code of Federal
Regulations, the Federal Register, or
the Clean Water Ac:, as amended. For
more information go to:
www.epa.gov/compliance
Report a Violation!
Protecting the environment is
everyone's responsibility. Help
EPA light pollution by reporting
potential environmental viola-
tionv
www.epa.gov/compliance
September 2006
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