Sewers? Under the Airport? Really? Manhole and CCTV Inspections Performed at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport, St. Louis, Missouri

Since its creation in 1954, the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District has continuously labored to improve sanitary and storm water collection and treatment services for the citizens of St. Louis City and County. At the same time Lambert-St. Louis International Airport, established as the first municipally-owned airport in the U.S. in 1928, has worked to continuously improve service for millions of travelers each year to and from St. Louis. By happenstance, real growth at the Airport began in 1956 with the opening of the present Main Terminal, the same year that St. Louis MSD had its first full year of operation. The two agencies grew up together, but just like some distant cousins, each did not always know what the other was doing.In 2009, more than 50 years later, the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District (MSD) contracted with ADS Environmental Services to perform manhole inspections (MHI) and closed circuit television inspection (CCTV) of all sanitary and selected storm sewers at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport (Lambert or the Airport). The purpose of the project was to locate and verify connectivity in the storm and sanitary collection systems, as well as to assess their current conditions. This paper outlines the coordination effort between MSD, ADS, and The Airport Authority and highlights some unusual findings that were discovered during field investigations. A coordination effort was then set in place to determine how to address these findings and how to maintain continuous cooperation in future years.