Realistic I/I Reduction: What Can We Really Remove?

The East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) provides water and wastewater services to customers in the East Bay region of San Francisco Bay, California. EBMUD conveys and treats an annual average daily dry-weather flow of approximately 66 million gallons per day (mgd) of wastewater generated by seven “satellite” agencies (six cities and one special district). In 2012, EBMUD, with support from its seven satellite collection system agencies, began an extensive effort to evaluate the validity and relative merit of the wide range of I/I reduction literature associated with manhole, sewer main, and service lateral rehabilitation projects currently available. The results of this effort can be used by other agencies throughout the nation to better understand current I/I reduction studies and to assist in developing future studies that are clear, comprehensive, and beneficial to the industry to further grow the available library of valid studies.