A Placentia, N.L., resident upset by the dumping of raw sewage into a stream near his home displayed his frustration by pouring a jug of human waste over the counter at the town's municipal office Tuesday.

Jim Murphy, who was later arrested, walked into the municipal building around noon and shocked the lone municipal employee in the office at the time by spilling the jug's smelly contents onto the counter.

This jug filled with human waste from a stream near the home of Jim Murphy was dumped onto the counter at the municipal office. (Submitted by the Town of Placentia)

Murphy, a resident of southeast Placentia, said raw sewage has been flowing into a stream near his house on and off since the 1990s.

When he came home for lunch on Tuesday, he could barely suffer the smell and decided to take action.

"I'm getting dumped on, tonnes and tonnes of sewage, so I brought down a sample," Murphy told CBC News Wednesday.

The office was closed for several hours in order to clean up the mess, and the incident was reported to the RCMP.

Murphy said he has taken photographs of the problem and complained for many years, without much of a response from the town.

He said there are times when "from one end of the property to another is just a wall of sewage."

"It's time to do something. If not, I'm going to lose my house from being flooded with sewage," he said.

RCMP Cpl. Trevor Baldwin, acting detachment commander in Placentia, said Murphy turned himself in to officers on Tuesday evening.

He was arrested and declined to make a statement before his release, Baldwin said.

An investigation is ongoing, but Murphy told CBC News he has been charged with mischief.

"We encourage anybody with any issues or problems with the town council or any agency to deal wit the matter appropriately and respectfully, and not to take matters into their own hands," said Baldwin.

A specialized vacuum truck was operating in the area Wednesday and a crew could be seen installing new equipment in a nearby sewage lift station.

Murphy believes his stunt with the resulting media attention, caused the town to take action.

However, he's not convinced it's a long-term solution.

"They're sucking out the sewer today. It will be cured for another couple of weeks," he said.

In an interview Wednesday afternoon, Mayor Wayne Power described Murphy's actions as "totally unacceptable," and added a town response is "only a phone call away."

The mayor acknowledged there was a malfunction at a sewage lift station in the area, and that repairs were initiated after the town was made aware of the problem.

As for Murphy's contention that the flow of raw sewage near his property has been an issue for many years, Power said that's not the case.

He said the town has a record of one complaint from Murphy, dating back to a year ago, and the problem was quickly addressed.

Power said the issue of untreated sewage is a nationwide issue and towns like Placentia will need help from other levels of government to address it.