Raleigh federal building has been sending sewage into waterways for years, report says
The Terry Sanford Federal Building in downtown Raleigh has been discharging raw sewage into the local stormwater system and adjoining waterways, and authorities have known about it since at least 2012, according to a report from the inspector general of the General Services Administration.
The report said the building, just a couple blocks from the State Capitol, has separate pipes to transfer stormwater and raw sewage, but the pipes are cross-connected, causing the discharge of raw sewage where stormwater should flow out.
The stormwater system flows into Walnut Creek and ultimately the Neuse River.
The cross-connections have existed since the building was constructed in 1969. Renovations since then have worsened the problem because they connected more pipes to the already cross-connected ones.
The Public Building Service, which acquires and maintains federal properties across the country, first identified the problem with the pipes in November 2012.
In 2018 and 2019, nine cross-connections were detailed in the building’s pipes. They came from toilets, showers and sinks.
“We performed the dye test this morning and confirmed that we do have sanitary [sewer] discharge into the stormwater drains,” wrote one PBS employee in an email in 2018.
The report goes on to say PBS management was made aware of the issue and decided not to report the problem to the City of Raleigh or the Environmental Protection Agency.
The office building and courthouse is owned and managed by the GSA, which the inspector general said may be subject to civil litigation and remediation costs because it is “placing people, animals, and habitats at risk.” Raw sewage discharge can introduce bacteria, viruses and parasites like E. coli and the hepatitis A virus into waterways.
According to the report, the discharge is likely a violation of the Clean Water Act and Raleigh’s similar Illicit Discharge Ordinance.
In an email, a GSA spokesperson told The News & Observer it is aware of the concerns raised in the IG report and is reviewing construction and inspection history of the building.
“Prior to the release of the IG report, GSA was already several months into the process of soliciting vendors to correct this issue, and a contract award is currently pending,” wrote the GSA spokesperson.
“We remain fully committed to working with our tenant agencies and stakeholders in order to develop the best path forward to appropriately address the situation.”
The report concludes the GSA should take immediate action to remedy the issue and report it to Raleigh and the EPA.
A spokeswoman for the city of Raleigh said the EPA is leading the investigation.
