News

Results from water-quality testing at a Smithfield stormwater outfall on the Neuse River show extremely high levels of fecal bacteria.

Neuse Riverkeeper Samantha Krop and Sound Rivers Program Director Clay Barber unexpectedly encountered the suspected sewage spill two weeks ago, while scouting potential locations for a trash trap along the Neuse River. That the stormwater outfall was flowing when there had been no recent rain and the overwhelming smell of sewage pointed to a pollution problem.

“This location is right off of the Neuse River Greenway and right downstream from the popular boat ramp in downtown Smithfield, so it’s right where everyone’s putting in the water,” Samantha said. “I returned last week to get water samples — two from the outfall and one farther downstream — and, sure enough, both the sample and the duplicate at the outfall were off the charts in term of E. coli. That indicates a serious fecal bacteria source that is unfortunately flowing directly into the Neuse River.”

The problem with the outfall is not a new one.

“According to locals that we’ve talked to, they’ve been smelling this for a long time,” Samantha said. “If you see a stormwater outfall flowing during a dry period; if you smell that sewage smell; if you see bluish water, or foam — all of those things are reasons to report the problem.”

Samantha said she has reached out to the Town of Smithfield via phone call and email, but has not received a response. She has also shared her water-quality results with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality.

“In similar issues that we’ve run across before, a problem like this can be due to an old, broken sewer line that is leaking into the stormwater system. That’s a common reason,” she said. “We’re hoping we can partner with the Town of Smithfield to identify the source of the pollution and fix it, just like we’ve done in Havelock and Kinston.”

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