Crews in Baltimore, Maryland, are installing 414 inlet screens on storm drains in five neighborhoods throughout the city as part of a pilot program to help keep trash and other debris out of Chesapeake Bay.

WBAL TV reports the system is two-fold. First, a screen is installed in the front of a drain, and second, a collection basket is placed inside in case anything falls through.

“Where the stormwater runs off into the inlet, it goes through a filter cloth and holds debris and trash from going into the stormwater line,” says Fred Petrella, a city inspector.

Every week, street sweepers will pick up debris that collects on the screen, and the baskets will be emptied monthly. Department of public works officials say if the pilot program proves to be effective, the city would consider installing more screen systems.

Source: WBAL

Sewer Force Main Damaged By Sinkhole
About 20 residents at a mobile home park in Tarpon Springs, Florida, were evacuated earlier this month after a 60-foot-wide, 35-foot-deep sinkhole opened in the ground, rupturing a sewer force main.

Crews from Pinellas County Utilities diverted flow from a 30-inch sewer force main that was ruptured during the event. The Sun Coast News reports vacuum trucks were mobilized to pump stations around the East Lake area to handle 100 percent of the wastewater that flowed through the broken main during repairs.

Authorities are investigating to learn if the sinkhole was a naturally occurring sinkhole common in Florida due to underground caverns of limestone, a porous rock that easily dissolves in water.

Source: Sun Coast News

Jersey City Budgets $94M for Water, Sewer Infrastructure
Mayor Steven M. Fulop announced that the Jersey City (New Jersey) Municipal Utilities Authority will invest $94 million on improvements to the city’s sewer and water infrastructure.

According to the Hudson Reporter, much of the work will be replacing century-old infrastructure. The MUA has budgeted $45 million in sewer line repairs and upgrades for 2016. The main project will be to repair deficiencies identified by the MUA’s sewer capacity study, which identified pipes in greatest need of repair. This includes replacing 28,500 feet of sewer throughout the city.

MUA will invest $49 million in water system improvement through 2017, including installing a new 8,600-foot transmission main, cleaning and lining 18,800 feet of water mains, replacing 30 large valves and replacing 20,000 feet of water mains downtown.

Source: Hudson Reporter