Underground Infrastructure - September 2023 - 11

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destructive, flooding coastal sewage systems.
" Wastewater systems are not designed for
this changing climate, " said Sri Vedachalam,
director for Water Equity and Climate Resilience
at Corvius Infrastructure Solutions LLC. " They
were designed for an older climate that probably
doesn't exist anymore. "
A big reason is geography. Wastewater systems
- which deal with sewage or stormwater runoff -
are often near water bodies because that is where
they discharge. But this makes them vulnerable.
Wastewater systems typically are at the lowest
point in the community, " Vedachalam said,
noting they often flow by gravity. " In many cases,
if you have a really large storm, those are the
ones that do get flooded first. "
When storms drop inches of rain onto lakes
and rivers over a short period of time, water and
debris can clog wastewater systems, power can
be knocked out, and service disrupted.
The fact that the nation's water pipes are aging
adds to the risk. The engineering society estimates
that a water main breaks in the U.S. every two
minutes, leading to six billion gallons of lost water
each day, or enough to fill 9,000 swimming pools.
Recent federal spending packages commit
billions of dollars to upgrading the nation's
water systems, but the roughly $55 billion for
upgrades in the Biden administration's $1 trillion
infrastructure law represent a fraction of what's
needed to address climate-related risks to water
and sewage systems. Part of the reason is that
other problems - such as lead pipes - need
urgent attention. Often, they have little to do with
a changing climate, said Olsen.
And while larger cities such as Boston and
Chicago can fund new projects in part by raising
rates on customers, smaller cities and towns
have to find other funding sources - often
through state or federal grants - to avoid driving
up bills, according to Adam Carpenter, manager
of energy and environmental policy at the
American Water Works Association.
Bore_Spacer-Ad_UC_2020.pdf 1 2/24/2020 10:40:27 AM
Granite Wins $215 Million
Contract to Improve
Ohio Sewer Infrastructure
Granite has been awarded an approximately $215
million contract by the city of Akron, Ohio, to
construct the Northside Interceptor Tunnel Project
(NSIT) to aid in preventing combined sewer
overflows from entering the Cuyahoga River
during typical storms. Project funding will come
from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency's
Water Pollution Control Loan Fund (WPCLF).
The NSIT, a crucial component of the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency's mandated
Consent Decree, is set to revolutionize the city's
sewer infrastructure and significantly reduce
combined sewer overflows (CSOs). The project's
primary structure, a 16.5-foot internal diameter
tunnel located along the Cuyahoga River, will play
a pivotal role in addressing CSOs by collecting
overflows at four locations and storing them.
The project encompasses various
components that will ensure its efficacy and
success. Key elements include 6,660 linear
feet of precast-concrete-segmental-lined
rock tunnel with a finished inside diameter
of 16.5 feet, designed to accommodate both
dry and wet-weather sewage flow, as well as
store combined sewage.
The project is planned to begin in September
2023 and is expected to be completed in
July 2027. UI
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UndergroundInfrastructure.com | SEPTEMBER 2023 11
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Underground Infrastructure - September 2023

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