Shiels, Brian

Brian Shiels is a speaker at WEFTEC 2026.

Titles from this speaker

Emergency Interceptor Sewer Replacement With Deep Cut in Urban Environment

Abstract

General Background: The Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission (PVSC) was founded in 1902 and operates as a regional sewerage authority serving over 1.6 million residents across 48 municipalities in Bergen, Hudson, Union, and Passaic counties in northeastern New Jersey. It was founded to mitigate pollution of the Passaic River and the associated tributaries as well as the Newark Bay and the Upper New York Bay. The original branch sewer was constructed between 1910s and 1920s. The PVSC operates a combined sewer overflow (CSO) system and maintains a series of interceptor sewers which convey sewerage from the various municipalities from the north and south to the PVSC Wastewater Facility, located in the city of Newark, where flows are treated and discharged out their outfall into the Newark Bay (Figure 1). The communities serviced by the PVSC are largely highly urbanized and are situated opposite New York City. Many occupants are daily commuters into New York City. Just to the north of the city of Newark in Hudson County is the Town of Harrison which is an urbanized community of approximately 22,000 residents (Figure 2). The historic Kearny-Harrison-Newark (KHN) Branch Interceptor Sewer runs through the Town of Harrison and is the subject of this paper. Project Specifics: On Kinglsand Avenue in the Town of Harrison, the Kearny-Harrison-Newark (KHN) Branch Interceptor Sewer failed resulting in roadway settlement and prompted investigations by the PVSC. Suspicions of failure and imminent collapse, due to prior rehabilitation projects of the KHN Branch in 1999-2001 as well as rehabilitation work on the nearby Hamilton Avenue and Schuyler Avenue, were confirmed by CCTV investigations (Figure 3). Caution was required for the investigations to determine the extent of the problems without causing a full collapse or losing the CCTV equipment in the sewer. The PVSC declared an emergency and employed Mott MacDonald and Montana Construction Inc. to collaborate. Montana served as the general contractor and hired a geotechnical engineer as well as several specialty subcontractors. PVSC's task was to conduct a thorough investigation and to quickly develop a plan to stabilize the situation while immediately working to enact a permanent solution to restore full capacity to their system. The partial collapse of the 42' diameter cast-in-place concrete sewer appeared ready to collapse at any moment (Figure 4). It was determined that groundwater infiltration caused soil migration into the sewer causing pavement subsidence. Mott MacDonald was retained on an emergency basis to investigate and design the replacement pipe as well as the rehabilitation of the adjacent segment of sewer before that failed. Project delivery employed design-build methodologies due to the urgent nature of the collapse and the desire to the have sewer service reinstated prior to the start of the next school year after the summer because there was a high school a few blocks down the road. The existing sewer was approximately 25-feet deep and was bedded in corrosive soil and was wedged between several existing utilities that had to be relocated to perform the required repairs. The sewer was situated along a narrow street which included both single family homes and apartment buildings. The first step was to establish a bypass system which had to be buried due to the dense development and the duration of the anticipated repairs. 24-inch fusion welded HDPE pipe was installed below grade to ensure continuity of flows while the contractor was mobilizing and starting with the replacement work (Figure 5). A new manhole was installed, and new 42-inch diameter Ductile Iron Pipe (DIP) was installed up to an existing structure with a small portion of the existing non-reinforced concrete sewer left intact so as to not damage the existing manhole (Figure 6). A concrete collar connection was employed to provide a permanent transition from the new DIP to the existing cast-in-place concrete sewer. During construction, investigations determined that adjacent segments of the sewer were also highly deteriorated, so cured in place pipe (CIPP) lining was employed to prevent future collapses in the adjacent lines. The new DIP sewer was lined with a partially deteriorated CIPP liner design due to the long-lead time of corrosion resistant interior coated DIP. Innovative Support of Excavation and Other Geotechnical Considerations: The project entailed a complicated support of excavation (SOE) design which utilized a Giken silent piler to press sheet piling into the soil to reduce vibrations and mitigate damage to residential / mixed use buildings in the vicinity of the project (Figure 7). Walers were installed outside of the sheeting for a portion of the SOE to avoid a structure that was wider than anticipated below grade. Excavations were approximately 27-feet deep and were 14-feet below the ground water table. Grout columns were also installed to help control groundwater. The new 42-inch diameter sewer was a class 56 ductile iron pipe with zinc coating which acted as a sacrificial anode against the corrosive soils. The pipe was further protected within a Polyethylene encasement (Figure 8).

This paper was presented at WEFTEC 2026 in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Presentation time

13:45:00

14:00:00

Session time

13:30:00

15:00:00

SessionWeekend Plans? Cancelled! When Catastrophe Strikes.

Session locationErnest N. Morial Convention Center

TopicCollection Systems

Author(s)

Shiels, Brian, Granholm, Eric

Author(s)B. Shiels1, E. Granholm2

Author affiliation(s)Mott Macdonald, 1Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners, 2

SourceProceedings of the Water Environment Federation

Document typeConference Paper

PublisherWater Environment Federation

Print publication date Sep 2026

DOI10.2175/193864718825160477

Volume / Issue

Content sourceWEFTEC

Word count11

Large Diameter CIPP Lining by the Holland Tunnel

Abstract

The Jersey City Municipal Utilities Authority (JCMUA) is responsible for operating and maintaining the combined sewer system in Jersey City. Jersey City is the second most populous city in New Jersey and serves a critical function for daily commuters due to its proximity to New York City. The combined sewer system in Jersey City is dilapidated with most segments requiring rehabilitation or replacement. As part of a consent decree (CD) with the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to perform repairs to its collection system, the JCMUA initiated the Phase 3-4 Sewer Rehabilitation Project. Part of the project includes trenchless rehabilitation of a 2.44-meter (96-inch) combined sewer pipe that runs under the 12th Street approach to the Holland Tunnel. This paper explores the investigations and rehabilitation methods considered to perform a structural trenchless repair. The chosen rehabilitation method of cured in place pipe (CIPP) lining is examined in detail.

SpeakerShiels, Brian

Presentation time

13:30:00

13:50:00

Session time

13:30:00

15:10:00

SessionCollection Systems Rehabilitation and Construction

Session number416

TopicCollection Systems

Author(s)

B. ShielsK. WynnR. Haytas