{"id":34541,"date":"2025-11-04T10:10:14","date_gmt":"2025-11-04T10:10:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/34541\/"},"modified":"2025-11-04T10:10:14","modified_gmt":"2025-11-04T10:10:14","slug":"houston-neighborhoods-face-raw-sewage-problems-health-risks-from-sewage-spills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/34541\/","title":{"rendered":"Houston neighborhoods face raw sewage problems, health risks from sewage spills"},"content":{"rendered":"

HOUSTON \u2013 2 Investigates<\/a> found Houston is grappling with a widespread problem of raw sewage flowing freely with every flush, creating a public health and environmental crisis in many neighborhoods.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re talking about poop,\u201d said Kristen Schlemmer, Senior Legal Director from Bayou City Waterkeepers<\/a>, a nonprofit focused on clean water. \u201cSometimes treatment and collection don\u2019t happen like it\u2019s supposed to, and poop ends up in our bayous, but not just our bayous. We\u2019ve seen it in elementary school playgrounds, parks, and even people\u2019s homes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Polluted bayou (Click2Houston)<\/p>\n

The presence of human feces in Houston\u2019s waterways is a serious concern because it carries viruses, bacteria, and microorganisms that can make people sick. Many of Houston\u2019s bayous are unsafe for swimming due to contamination from sewage spills.<\/p>\n

In the Settegast neighborhood in northeast Houston, raw sewage problems are common and costly to fix. The Hogue family experienced severe plumbing issues that left them flushing toilets with buckets of water. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe were asking for help and no one would give help,\u201d said a family member.<\/p>\n

Settegast Neighborhood in Houston (Click2Houston)<\/p>\n

The Northeast Action Collective, a small community group, helped the Hogues with a full home rehabilitation. However, the group cannot assist everyone, and the City of Houston currently offers no assistance program for sewage-related home repairs. Nearby Baytown does provide help for eligible residents, with information available on local websites.<\/p>\n

According to Bayou City Waterkeepers, neighborhoods such as Denver Harbor, Sunnyside, and Southpark are among the worst affected by raw sewage releases at homes and businesses. In 2024, the group tracked 1,147 sewage spill incidents on private property, with a disproportionate number occurring in low-income areas.<\/p>\n

\u201cRiver Oaks isn\u2019t having this issue,\u201d said Joel Eisenbaum. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not seeing that issue in the data,\u201d Schlemmer added.<\/p>\n

Bayou City Waterkeepers (Click2Houston)<\/p>\n

Most sewage spills on private property result from accidents or failing old equipment. <\/p>\n

However, some cases are criminal. <\/p>\n

Harris County Pct. 1 Constable Alan Rosen<\/a>, who leads one of Southeast Texas\u2019s largest environmental crimes units, recalled a case in Baytown where a resident was funneling human feces to the front of his home after a septic tank filled up.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe only have one earth. We\u2019ve got to take care of it,\u201d Rosen said. \u201cWe\u2019re going to continue to do our job and enforce the law,\u201d Constable Rosen said.<\/p>\n

Toilet paper draining in front of a Baytown home. (Click2Houston)<\/p>\n

Recently, investigators found a stream of sewage and toilet paper draining in front of a Baytown home. The problem has since been fixed, but neighbors say the smell was unbearable. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt would smell so bad, we would walk our dogs,\u201d one resident said. <\/p>\n

\u201cIsn\u2019t that a neighborhood ruiner when you smell poop while you\u2019re walking your dogs?\u201d Eisenbaum asked. <\/p>\n

\u201cYes!\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Polluted Bayou (Click2Houston)<\/p>\n

There are concerns that some sewage made its way to nearby Cedar Bayou, a waterway already listed by the state as polluted. <\/p>\n

Last year, stretches of Cedar Bayou tested positive for bacteria, dioxins and PCBs.<\/p>\n

Houston residents are urged to avoid skin contact with bayou water due to contamination risks. Despite being known as the Bayou City, many of Houston\u2019s waterways remain unsafe for recreational use.<\/p>\n

For more information on assistance programs for sewage-related home repairs, residents can visit local government websites.<\/p>\n

Copyright 2025 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"HOUSTON \u2013 2 Investigates found Houston is grappling with a widespread problem of raw sewage flowing freely with…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":34542,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[56,58,57,5778,21858],"class_list":["post-34541","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-houston","tag-houston","tag-houston-headlines","tag-houston-news","tag-investigates","tag-sewage"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34541","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34541"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34541\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34542"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34541"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34541"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34541"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}