WASTEWATER COLLECTION SYSTEM O&M

 Municipal sanitary sewer collection and conveyance systems are an extensive, valuable, and complex part of the nation's infrastructure. Collection systems consist of pipelines, conduits, pumping stations, force mains, and all other facilities used to collect wastewater from individual residential, industrial, and commercial sources and convey it to facilities that provide treatment before discharge to the environment.

Unfortunately, the current performance of many collection systems is poor, and many systems have received minimal maintenance for many years. Wastewater collection systems also suffer from a history of inadequate investment in maintenance and repair due in large part to the "out-of-sight, out-of-mind" nature of these systems. The poor performance of many sanitary sewer systems and resulting potential health and environmental risks highlight the need to optimize operation and maintenance of these systems. 

Fats, Oil and Grease—or “FOG,” to use the wastewater industry term—has negative impacts on wastewater collection and treatment systems. Many wastewater collection system blockages can be traced to FOG, and such blockages are serious, causing sewage spills, manhole overflows, or sewage backups into homes and businesses.(from http://www.neiwpcc.org/collectionsystems.asp)

Ted Berry Company offers preventive maintenance programs including sanitary sewer cleaning and sewer video inspection. We make presentations to city councils and wastewater committees that help justify preventive maintenance to avoid costly damage claims and other risks associated with failed sewer systems. We also help with the environmental compliance requirements of your wastewater collection system. Our project managers are NEWEA collection system certified operators. 

A century ago, the average American used only about 10 gallons of water a day to drink, cook, clean, and bathe. Today, Americans use 100 gallons a day per person¹ on average, causing stresses on our sources of drinking water. However, the American household spends, on average, only $523 per year² on water and wastewater charges, in contrast to an average of $707 per year³ on carbonated soft drinks and other noncarbonated refreshment beverages. Compared with other developed countries, the United States has the lowest burden for water/wastewater bills when measured as a percentage of household income. EPA

Sanitary Sewer Overflows (SSO)

Sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs) differ from combined sewer overflows (CSOs).  CSOs are overflows from older sewer systems designed to carry both domestic and storm water loads.  SSOs are discharges of raw or inadequately treated sewage from municipal separate sanitary sewer systems, which are designed to carry domestic sanitary sewage but not storm water.

When an SSO occurs, raw sewage may be released into basements, city streets, properties, rivers, and streams. SSOs are illegal and often constitute a serious environmental and public health threat. The number of communities that have SSO problems is not known.  The frequency and duration of SSOs are often unknown.   The Ted Berry Company Municipal Services Team has been working with municipalities across the state to identify SSOs and correct SSO discharges.

Most SSOs are associated with wet weather conditions, when sanitary sewer systems receive storm water in-flow or infiltrating groundwater.  The SSOs may occur during extreme hydrologic events in many separate sanitary sewer systems, even though systems are intended to collect and contain all the sewage that flows into them.  When SSOs happen frequently in any given system, then the system is not functioning properly, and chronic problems must be addressed to eliminate the SSOs.

Problems that may cause chronic SSOs include too much infiltration and inflow into the sanitary system from groundwater infiltrating through cracks; rain water or snow-melt flowing into the sanitary system through roof drains connected to sewers; groundwater from footing drains and house leads connected to the sanitary system; undersized sanitary systems with sewers and pumps that are too small to carry all the sewage; system failures due to tree roots growing into the sewer, sections of sewer pipe settling or shifting so that pipe joints no longer match, or sediment and other material building-up causing blockages; equipment and pump failures; and power failures.

On September 1st, 2007 the Town of Dixfield's Sewer System will be  operated and maintained by the Ted Berry Co Inc of Livermore, Maine.
	In an effort to prolong the life of the sewer infrastructure, maintain Maine DEP compliance, eliminate sewer overflows or discharges, and respond to issues more efficiently, the Town has entered into a four year agreement beginning in September of 2007. A major part of the agreement involves cleaning and internal robotic video inspection of the entire 42,000+ feet of gravity sewer mains and manholes. This information will be very useful for future planning, road upgrade, and road resurfacing projects, as well as helping prevent a catastrophic failure.
DOWNLOAD THE PUBLIC INFORMATION FLYER HERE 24 hour emergency service Town of Dixfield 758-0535 DOs and Don'ts for keeping your sanitary sewer working properly!   Sanitary sewer systems are designed to handle three types of waste products: Used water Human body waste Toilet paper Follow these simple DOs and DON'Ts to help prevent sewer backups  and avoid expensive plumbing and cleanup bills DO: Collect grease in a container and throw it in the garbage. DON'T: Pour grease, fats and oils from cooking down the drain. DO: Put food scraps in your compost bin or the garbage for disposal with solid waste. DON'T: Use the sewer to dispose of food scraps. DO: Place a wastebasket in the bathroom to dispose of items such as disposable diapers and personal hygiene products. DON'T: Use the toilet as a wastebasket for garbage or chemicals. These items can kill "good" bacteria used for sewage treatment, cost much more to treat, and can enter the Androscoggin River. DON'T: Plant trees with shallow, spreading root systems near your sewer lateral. Tree roots seek water sources, such as cracked sewer lines. Once the roots have penetrated the line through cracks, the roots can create a dense mat and trap materials.