--- title: Waste Watchers date: 2026-06-04T17:10:00-04:00 author: University of Maryland canonical_url: "https://today.umd.edu/waste-watchers" section: Articles --- # Waste Watchers *June 4, 2026* — by [John Tucker](/author/john-tucker) - *Photos by John T. Consoli* > UMD Research Changes Lives: Team wades into homeowners’ sewage spills and braves failing public infrastructure to track health risks *Baltimore Belair Edison Neighborhood Townhouses 03032026 8586 w sky CMYK — The city of Baltimore receives thousands of sewage complaints from residents each year.* **Primrose Stukes fell in love** with the small colonial in Baltimore’s Westfield neighborhood a dozen years ago, its bay-windowed kitchen perfect for family gatherings and Ravens parties. But after she bought the house built in 1930, brown sludge started creeping up from the tub drain in one of the bathrooms. Stukes routinely doused it with bleach and made do, until she attended a community meeting last November where a pair of University of Maryland researchers described their project studying water quality and its health impacts in Baltimore homes plagued by sewage backups—a problem they explained doesn’t affect all communities equally. The 51-year-old Stukes, who lives in a neighborhood where backups are too common, learned the potential danger of what she’d been living with: When too much water overwhelms a sewer pipe network, often through cracks in an aging system that allow stormwater to enter, raw sewage is forced to reverse course and take the path of least resistance. *student in red UMD sweatshirt and blue rubber gloves takes sample — Madison Vlach ’27, an environmental science and policy major, takes a sample from a possible sewage overflow at a Baltimore house.* *three researchers take water sample in river amid snow — UMD researchers test the Potomac River for dangerous bacteria after a catastrophic sewer pipe break in January.* **Hendricks was raised** in southwest Dallas, a community vulnerable to storm pipe bursts and flooding; Goldstein grew up in eastern North Carolina, where frequent floods coursed through hog farms, spreading waste. Both bring their personal experiences with dangerous water to this Maryland project. Hendricks recalls a morning as a young teen when he awoke to a foot of water in his bedroom. His mother ripped out the carpet, scrubbed the cement foundation and spent what she could on new drywall. Hendricks doubted that North Dallas neighborhoods, home to Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and President George W. Bush, ever dealt with such disasters. “It gave me a burning desire to ask, ‘What was it about me, my family, my neighborhood that led to these outcomes?’” he says. For his dissertation at Texas A&M University, Hendricks studied Houston’s two stormwater systems: a nexus of open ditches along roadways in the city’s heavily Black and Hispanic neighborhoods; the other a sophisticated apparatus of pipes to funnel away rainwater in wealthier, mostly white areas of the city. After joining the UMD faculty, Hendricks gravitated toward Baltimore. Its picturesque Inner Harbor bustling with tourists contrasted with narrow waterways in poorer neighborhoods that challenged a 110-year-old sewage system spiderwebbed with cracks. The result was frequent residential backups; in a 12-month period ending last June, the city’s 311 service received 8,692 sewer-related complaints, likely a fraction of total occurrences. In 2019, supported by a Harvard University environmental health fellowship, Hendricks launched a pilot project that leaned on community guidance to address the issue. Goldstein too knew what floods could do, remembering when Hurricane Floyd closed her school for two weeks. While pursuing her master’s in public health and Ph.D. at UMD, she studied wastewater treatment plants and the cycle of raw sewage, and was lead author of a study documenting the discovery of methicillin-resistant *Staphylococcus aureus* (MRSA), an antibiotic-resistant bacteria, in a wastewater treatment plant. In 2021, Goldstein’s Biosafety Level 2 campus lab specializing in waterborne bacteria detection caught Hendricks’ attention, and he asked Goldstein, who also specializes in community engagement, to co-lead his project. They began attending community meetings and arranging home visits with students, spending eight-hour days knocking on doors to inspect and swab bathrooms, kitchens and basements for signs—visible or otherwise—of sewage overflows. After sampling dozens of homes, they sent the specimens to Goldstein’s lab and waited for results. > It gave me a burning desire to ask, ‘What was it about me, my family, my neighborhood that led to these outcomes?’” — —Marccus Hendricks, *Associate Professor of Urban Studies and Environmental Planning* **Four WET team researchers** trudge up a snowy sidewalk to Stukes’ porch one February afternoon. After swapping boots for disposable booties and saluting a cat named Theo, they follow Stukes to a bathtub where remnants of a recent propulsion rim the drain. Urban planning doctoral student Maeghan Goode tries to determine a cause—rain? There’s no clear pattern, Stukes says: “It just comes up, and now it’s just kind of sitting there.” As one student swabs the still-wet residue, Goode inspects the rest of the home, looking for clues like mold or leaks. Another researcher works through a survey with Stukes in her memorabilia-packed “Ravens Room”: How many people live in the house? (Only her and Theo.) Do you ever have symptoms like a cough? (No.) Have you communicated with the city? (She’s asked for help, to no avail.) *woman points at spot in tub while researcher watches — Stukes points out potential spots for WET researchers to test for sewage contamination in her home.* *woman in Ravens gear talks to four researchers at her house — Primrose Stukes (far left) welcomes members of UMD’s Water Emergency Team (WET) to her Baltimore house.* *researcher takes notes as woman talks in Ravens-themed room — WET project manager Raisa Haq ’26 records details about sewer infrastructure woes in Stukes’ “Ravens Room.”* **Sometimes the team** tackles neglected infrastructure at scales far bigger than that of a single home. One morning in February, Goldstein takes a hesitant step onto a frozen hill above the Potomac River. Ice from a recent blizzard lingered, as did the stench from a Jan. 19 breach of a 72-inch wastewater pipe in Montgomery County, Md., which dumped nearly 250 million gallons of raw sewage into Washington’s main waterway. The disaster, likely the largest wastewater spill in U.S. history, sent cleanup crews scrambling to divert the spewing sludge into a nearby canal. The geyser from the 60-year-old pipe may augur similar disasters across the country, due to a decrease in federal funding to replace sewage systems, critics maintain. When news of the spill broke, Goldstein dispatched students to ground zero to collect water samples, the first of weekly visits to monitor water quality. As she and two researchers inch their way across an icy bridge surrounded by woods, a flock of geese descends on the fouled river. The odor grows stronger, “a sour decay, like some animal died,” observes Claire Barlow, a Ph.D. student in environmental health. “That’s not dirt,” Goldstein says at the frozen riverbank, pointing out toilet paper frozen in the sludge. At the river’s edge, WET’s project manager pokes a metal pole with a plastic jar into the water to collect a sample, then passes it to Goldstein. A sewage-saturated tampon sat nearby. “Anything that goes down a drain is now here.” Two weeks after collecting its first sample, Goldstein’s team announced preliminary findings, sending shockwaves through the DMV and prompting President Donald Trump to deploy federal resources. The river contained extraordinarily high levels of fecal bacteria, including E. coli levels 10,000 times above EPA recreational water quality standards. Wastewater had flowed at least nine miles downstream, near Georgetown. The team also detected MRSA and the bacteria that causes Staph infections. As it continues to monitor the river, the WET team is expanding its house testing with the Grand Challenges Grant funds, with a research footprint covering the city of Baltimore and Montgomery and Prince George’s counties. In March, Stukes got a call from Goldstein with her test results. Surprisingly, the researchers found no pathogens in her tub. But on the basement walls under the bathroom, the team detected two fecal bacteria: Methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative *Staphylococcus*, often associated with hospital-acquired infections; and *Enterococcus*, able to cause potentially severe infections including those to the urinary tract. “To think that my grandkids have played in the basement, leaning against the walls—it’s concerning,” she says the day after getting the news, criticizing the city. “I asked for help with leaking water years ago, and I’ve heard crickets.” The WET team’s newest testing has yielded even more disturbing findings than the pilot. At most recent count, 64 of 77 homes contained fecal contamination, including 28 with antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The researchers warn that the problem will intensify as a shifting climate causes more extreme weather. Hendricks, who is writing a book about the history of Baltimore’s sewage system, isn’t shocked by the findings, citing a sense of resignation that settles on resource-starved communities. “Some have normalized infrastructure failures and exposures, or suppressed it,” he says. Goldstein says she is fueled by residents’ kindness, despite their embarrassment, recalling one woman who inherited her mother’s home breaking down in tears in front of her, having seen the property value plummet because of the leaks. “This isn’t just a research question,” she says. “People are living with this, with potentially lifelong impacts, but it’s not their fault.” **Sidebar note:** **UMD Research Changes Lives** At the University of Maryland, scientists and scholars come together to spark new ideas, pursue important discoveries and tackle humanity's grand challenges—improving lives in our communities and across the globe. See more examples of how UMD research changes lives at [today.umd.edu/topic/research-impact](https://today.umd.edu/topic/research-impact). **Sidebar note:** **Grand Challenges Grants Program** Creative solutions to the state’s and world’s most vexing problems require unconventional approaches. You can help move Maryland *Forward* by supporting UMD’s Grand Challenges Grants Program, which is making strides to protect our planet, build healthier communities, strengthen data security and online privacy, and much more. Make a gift at [forward.umd.edu/priorities/grand-challenges](https://forward.umd.edu/priorities/grand-challenges). **Topics:** [Research](https://today.umd.edu/tags/research) **Tags:** [Urban Studies and Planning](https://today.umd.edu/topic/urban-studies-and-planning), [Global, Environmental, and Occupational Health](https://today.umd.edu/topic/department-of-global-environmental-and-occupational-health), [Research Impact](https://today.umd.edu/topic/research-impact), [Research](https://today.umd.edu/topic/research) **Units:** [School of Public Health](https://today.umd.edu/topic/school-public-health), [School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation](https://today.umd.edu/topic/school-architecture-planning-and-preservation)