‘No one would dare walk through here.’ Jackson residents fed up with sewage issues

Robert Pugh walks around the home he's owned for decades, pointing out erosion and damage caused by sewer overflows that have been going on since 2019.

“Since that drain is so rotten and old and collapsed,” he says, pointing to a drain in front of his home, “Water builds up from the street and run all the way down through my yard.”

Pugh says he can't even allow his grandchildren to play in the backyard because of a hole that's formed due to a drain collapse. A corroded pipe and soil erosion has created a giant hole several feet deep that goes into both his and his neighbor's yards. What was once a bustling neighborhood, Pugh says, is now dangerous to walk through because of the issues.

“Kids used to be able to walk through here, a great path for them to walk through,” he said. “But as you can see now, no one would dare walk through here.”

According to the EPA, contact with sewage can cause bacterial and parasitic infections, mild to severe gastrointestinal illness, and diseases like hepatitis.

Pugh and other residents in the Woodhaven neighborhood have formed a committee that is consulting an attorney and discussing the damage done not just to their property values, but to their quality of life. He and other Jacksonians took part in one of many public comment sessions held by the Department of Justice earlier this year, and he is optimistic that speaking out on the issue will influence officials.

“I hope that we can shed some light on this that can not only inform people but will also help our policymakers and our elected officials —both city, county and state and federal as well — to take a look at what's going on in our capital city because it is a shame,” he said.

Woodhaven is just one of many neighborhoods around Jackson affected by the more than 200 emergency sewer failures listed in a recent federal court order. The stipulated order placed third-party water system manager Ted Henefin in charge of improving the city's failed sewer system.

Priority projects listed in the order include re-routing the sewer line near Mill Street, rehabilitating and improving a number of water treatment plants, and addressing the hundreds of emergency sewer overflows.

Peter Stewart, an attorney based in Jackson, has been meeting with the committee and has been in touch with several Jacksonians about the possibility of a lawsuit.

“The hope is that we get the cooperation from the government officials and agencies so that… people don't lose their property values,” he said. ‘Some of these retired people in Jackson… that is their single biggest investment.”