Mobile Area Water & Sewer System (MAWSS) is continuing to push its Private Lateral Replacement Program, an effort aimed at reducing the amount of rainwater and groundwater that seeps into the sanitary sewer system through aging pipes on private property.
The program was developed as part of MAWSS’s ongoing effort to protect the health of the community and the environment. It targets a problem utility officials call infiltration and inflow, or I&I: extra water that enters the sewer system during rain events and wet weather. That additional flow contributes to sanitary sewer overflows, backups into homes and buildings, reduced sewer capacity for customers, and added costs from having to transport and treat storm water that was never supposed to be in the sanitary system in the first place.
An Aging, Extensive Network
The scale of the problem is significant. Private laterals, the pipes that connect individual homes and businesses to the public sewer system, account for more than 1,000 miles of pipe connected to the MAWSS collection system. Roughly 75% of those private laterals were built before 1976, primarily using vitrified clay pipe, known as VCP.
VCP laterals have joints spaced every three to five feet and typically run between 50 and 150 feet in length. Over time, those joints begin to fail, allowing roots and storm or ground water to work their way into the pipes. As roots continue to grow, they force the joints open even wider, letting in more water. Meanwhile, as the surrounding pipe settles over the decades, the joints separate further, causing the pipe itself to crack and break.
How MAWSS Finds Failing Pipes
MAWSS relies on several methods to identify which private laterals need repair. One approach involves forcing smoke into the sanitary sewer system and watching for where it escapes; smoke exiting a lateral indicates there’s a leak. Camera inspections are also used to spot laterals with roots, cracks, separated joints or deteriorated pipe walls, all of which prevent the line from being watertight and allow rainwater or groundwater to seep in. In some cases, crews conduct direct visual inspections of lateral discharge during an actual rain event to confirm a problem.
Because storm water and groundwater can enter the sanitary sewer system through both public and private property wastewater pipes, MAWSS says addressing private laterals is a necessary complement to maintaining its own public infrastructure. Residents can find additional detail on the requirements property owners face under Policy 3.14, Property Owner Sewer Repair Notices.
Help Finding a Contractor and Paying for Repairs
To make repairs more accessible, MAWSS periodically solicits pricing from licensed plumbers who are qualified to perform lateral repairs, and makes that contractor contact information and unit pricing available to property owners who need work done.
MAWSS also offers financing assistance to residential property owners whose homes fail a private lateral investigation test, helping offset what can otherwise be an unexpected repair expense. Homeowners interested in that option can get more information from the MAWSS Mapping and Connections Department.
For property owners with low to moderate incomes, MAWSS offers a separate grant program intended to help cover the cost of lateral repairs. More information on eligibility and how to apply is available through the MAWSS Collections System Department.
By combining pipe inspection, financing assistance and income-based grants, MAWSS is aiming to chip away at a problem built up over decades of aging infrastructure, one lateral at a time, while easing the burden on Mobile-area homeowners who discover their private sewer connection needs work.