Motorists accustomed to using Sandy Lane have either taken an alternative route or come to know the detour that takes them past the city compost station to connect to Cedar Swamp Road. Traffic …
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Motorists accustomed to using Sandy Lane have either taken an alternative route or come to know the detour that takes them past the city compost station to connect to Cedar Swamp Road. Traffic isn’t backed up the way it was when a broken sewer pipe, nearly 16 feet below the pavement, forced the Warwick Sewer Authority to take emergency steps to deal with the situation Thanksgiving week.
That’s a good thing, although Wilde’s Corner remains an area to avoid during the late afternoon commute.
The bad thing is that the authority is at least a week away from replacing the broken section of pipe and relocating a manhole that was dangerously close to a gas main. But there’s more troubling news that could mean the work on Sandy Lane could go on for untold weeks.
With a section of the system feeding into the Cedar Swamp pumping station down, the authority took the opportunity using cameras to eye other portions of the pipeline. The pictures aren’t good. They found obstructions including a rusted chainsaw, a 2 x 4 and dirt that may have come from additional collapses in the pipe. Further, explains Sewer Authority Director Janine Burke-Wells, it appears the pipe used was intended for a forced main sewer, rather than for a gravity feed system. The difference is important, because the forced main pipe is more susceptible to the effects of hydrogen sulfide gas, a byproduct of sewage. The gas deteriorates the pipe, causing it to collapse.
Repairing the current break requires the unearthing and replacement of 154 feet of pipe. Replacing the entire pipe would be an additional 600 feet.
There’s more to it than pipe and the detour that work means.
Burke-Wells estimates the immediate repair will cost in the range of $500,000. It could be another $700,000 for the full job.
Asked Tuesday what he would do, Mayor Joseph Solomon said the broken pipe is “only half the story.” He said he is exploring ways to fund the project and will talk with congressional representatives to see if the city is eligible for any federal assistance. The authority does have reserves for maintenance and replacements as well as bonding authority it has not used for treatment plant upgrades.
The trouble with the bonds, Solomon pointed out, is that once they’re issued the city is faced with the debt service. He likened using bond funds to using a credit card.
“You can put it on a credit card,” he said, “but what do you do when it comes time to pay and you don’t have the money?”
WAY DOWN: Work on replacing a section of broken sewer line on Sandy Lane has been halted by ground water, proximity of a manhole to a gas main, sandy soil and the fact that the pipe is 16 feet down. In the foreground are sections of the old and new pipe. (Warwick Beacon photos)
DEALING WITH WATER: A member of the Warwick Sewer Authority crew disconnects piping after pumping out ground water that has impeded the replacement of broken sewer pipes on Sandy Lane.
WHAT CAME OUT; WHAT’S GOING IN: Sections of old and new piping litter the site where a crew is replacing a sewer line on Sandy Lane.
4 comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here
richardcorrente
This is STILL the most efficient work I have ever seen since I started driving in the mid-sixties. Pass by these people any time of the day or night and they are ALL WORKING. Not one guy working with twelve guys watching like you see in Cranston, Providence and especially Rt. 95 over the last fifty years. This crew hasn't taken one break!
They deserve our deep respect. They have mine.
Merry Christmas "crew".
Merry Christmas everyone.
Rick Corrente
The Taxpayers Mayor
Thursday, December 20, 2018 Report this
Justanidiot
or over at the mortgage company, one guy on the computer, other guys leaning around on their mortgage rakes waiting for payday. don'ts try to lift warwicks up by putting other towns down. not very mayerorally of youse.
Friday, December 21, 2018 Report this
wwkvoter
justanidiot, love it! LOL thanks for the laugh
Saturday, December 22, 2018 Report this
richardcorrente
Dear Justanidiot,
OK
You got me!
Merry Christmas old friend.
Rick
Saturday, December 22, 2018 Report this