Abstract

Using GIS to Locate and Analyze Sanitation Line/Steam Crossings
Track: Water, Wastewater, and Stormwater
Authors: Tim Gahagan

In the summer of 2010 in one of the Water Agency's sanitation districts, a sanitation line crossing a large stream started to leak material into the water way. Emergency action was taken to repair the leak. The Agency is now dealing with the penalties associated with this occurrence. As a result of this spill, a team of Agency engineers and environmentalists were assembled to devise a plan of action that would systematically find and inspect all instances of sanitation pipelines crossing all water sources. GIS was used to identify all crossings as well as harvest all data pertaining to the pipes - including cleaning records, as-built drawings and inspection video. Mobile GIS was used in the field to locate, update and prioritize crossing data. An AGS web application was the data distribution model providing all disciplines immediate access to the inspection reports that included engineer notes, environmental notes, and photos.