Grand Challenges: Water Emergency Team

Summary:

Exposure to raw sewage from failing infrastructure can lead to negative health outcomes, distress, and feelings of disenfranchisement, particularly in marginalized urban communities. Sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs), the release of untreated sewage from a municipal sewer system, affect several cities around the world, with as many as 75,000 occurring each year in the United States. Baltimore experiences frequent SSOs and household basement backups due to aging and failing sewer and stormwater infrastructure. As a result, communities are persistently exposed to raw sewage, likely containing waterborne pathogens and possibly antibiotic-resistant (AR) bacteria. While AR bacteria have been identified in wastewater at wastewater treatment plants, no studies have comprehensively evaluated exposure to these pathogens from SSOs or backups, nor the impact of physical damage to the home and infrastructure on communities. This project addresses these knowledge gaps by developing a community-driven rapid response Water Emergency Team (WET) to respond to SSOs and backups in underserved African American communities in Baltimore and the surrounding region. WET will complete visual household inspections, conduct residential surveys and interviews about impacts and experiences with these events, collect water and surface swab samples from impacted indoor areas, and analyze samples for AR bacteria, reporting results back to the community. WET will work directly with community organizations and neighborhood associations throughout the project, including translating research findings into an outreach program with the goal of empowering affected communities and informing local policymakers. Climate change will only continue to stress the U.S.’s crumbling infrastructure, disproportionately impacting marginalized communities exposed to raw sewage. The Water Emergency Team has the expertise, experience, and community partnerships to address these issues, bringing national attention and visibility for the university and communities alike.


Photo caption: The project team and community members conducting a pilot study during the Summer of 2022.

Leadership Team:

Additional Team Members:

• Priscila B. Ramalho Alves, Lab Manager and Post-doctoral Associate of the Stormwater Infrastructure Resilience and Justice (SIRJ) Lab
   
• Nick An, Project Manager for the Water Emergency Team 
   
• Brienna Anderson-Coughlin, Post-Doctoral Associate in the in the Environmental Health Sciences Program at the University of Maryland School of Public Health, Maryland Institute for Applied Environmental Health (MIAEH)
   
• Claire Barlow, Master's of Public Health Student in the Water Quality, Outreach, and Wellness (WOW) Lab 
   
• Kathryn Dixon, Doctoral Student in the Environmental Health Sciences Program at the University of Maryland School of Public Health, Maryland Institute for Applied Environmental Health (MIAEH)
   
• Maeghen Goode, Doctoral Student at the University of Maryland School of Architecture, Planning & Preservation
   
• Emmie Healey, Doctoral Sudent in the Environmental Health Sciences Program at the University of Maryland School of Public Health, Maryland Institute for Applied Environmental Health (MIAEH)
   
• Taeilorae Levell-Young, MPH Student at the University of Maryland School of Public Health, Maryland Institute for Applied Environmental Health (MIAEH)

Where is WET Now?

Events:

• Thursday, September 7, 2023
  Belair-Edison Community Association Monthly Meeting
• Friday, September 8, 2023
  UMD First Look Fair
• Tuesday, September 12, 2023
  No Boundaries Coalition Monthly Membership Meeting
  5:30pm-8:00pm
• Thursday, September 14, 2023
  Belair Edison Back to School Night
  Thursday, 4:00pm - 7:00pm
• Saturday, September 16, 2023
  Love Groove Music Festival
  12:00pm-7:00pm
• Sunday, September 17, 2023
  Irvington Community Farmers Market
  8:00am-2:00pm
• Sunday, September 24, 2023
  Irvington Community Farmers Market
  8:00am-2:00pm 
• Saturday, October 14, 2023
  NewERA Baltimore Community Day 
• Thursday, November 9, 2023
  Black Health Equity Summit

News:

• Priscila Alves Presents at Community Forum, Environmental Justice and You: Stormwater Management at the Mount Rainier Nature Center for Her Talk Titled “Connections Between Environmental Justice, Climate Resilience, and Stormwater Management” (October 7, 2023)
   
• Rachel Goldstein Receives $1.3M NIH New Innovator Award to Support WET Project (October 3, 2023)
   
• Rachel Goldstein and Priscila Alves Present at the American Water Resources Association (AWRA) 2023 National Capital Region Water Resources Symposium on Friday, April 14, 2023

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