“Using GIS/GPS to Manage a Sanitary Sewer System Condition Assessment Program in the United States for Nellis Air Force Base”

This project demonstrates the results of applying a Geographical Information System (GIS) and Global Position System (GPS) application to the management of sanitary sewer infrastructure. The area of study was the Environmental Management Flight of Nellis Air Force Base (NAFB) north of the City of Las Vegas, Nevada.In lieu of the pending Capacity, Management Operation, and Maintenance (CMOM) regulations and managing Sanitary Sewer Overflows (SSO), the NAFB realized the necessity of assessing its system especially with the turnover in AFB staff. The desired program implemented for this assessment project would be required to be user-friendly, upgradeable with the changing computer technologies, and be capable of managing massive amounts of information.The pipeline conditions and capacity data were collected and illustrated in an up-to-date data management system, ArcGIS. This study highlights issues and methods associated with the system. GIS was used to serve as a platform for integrating various types of data management systems and technologies in this project.All problems discovered in the sewer system by Close Circuit Television (CCTV) were stored in a user-friendly computer-based program Flexi-data ™. Methodologies for ranking pipe defects by a standardized grade and score, obtaining defect pictures and exact location provided a better understanding and an overall view of the existing sewer system. Software applications such as ArcGIS and Microsoft Access were applied for analyzing this proposed methodology.The assessment results showed numerous pipe segments were in poor condition and required rehabilitation. Some pipe segments had evidence of voids in the pipe and unrecorded taps. Engineering estimates for repairing the defects and alternative rehabilitation methods for the system were presented.