IMMOKALEE, Fla. — Walking outside your home and seeing a sewage overflow, would really stink, but a new project in Immokalee is designed to prevent that nasty water from flooding.
Underneath a manhole, you would expect to see dirty water.
In Immokalee, 95 manholes have a SmartCover.
"There in the center is an antenna that's what actually reads and sends the signal to us as to what the reading is in the manhole," Immokalee Water and Sewer Crew Chief Armondo Reyes said.
Reyes and his crew work in the field and rely on this information to monitor and make sure the sewer system doesn't get blocked up, build up or overflow.
See how the technology works in Community Correspondent Ella Rhoades' report:
The SmartCover has a box attached to the lid on the manholes.
It collects data from a sensor that hangs eight feet deep in the manhole.
The sensor's info gets sent to a database where crews can monitor the levels and exactly pin point where a problem in the sewer system pops up.
It's something they couldn't do before. Instead, they would receive a call from a customer and have to test miles of the system to find the issue.
The sensor notifies crews when the sewer levels rise. Then, crews can change the direction of sewage flow, so it won't build up.
Reyes said, "Now we're catching it before it even leaves our system, so the main idea behind all of this is you know we want to keep everything that is wastewater in the wastewater collection system, and keep clean water and rainwater in the canals and everywhere else."
IWSD Executive Director Sarah Catala said since installing the Smart Covers, crews prevented five sewage overflows.
She said the technology makes a huge difference when we see a lot of rain as that increases the chances for levels in the system to rise.
"Right after hurricane, a lot of people come out they wanna start cleaning up their yards you know people come out, children play, so we're able to ensure that we do not have any untreated wastewater like flowing in the street or in the yard," Catala said.
She explained the project is all about protecting the community's public health.
Catala said, "Our staff They grew up in Immokalee. They live in Immokalee. They raise their families in Immokalee. They invest in this community, so this is one way we can give back on a very important level."
The SmartCovers are only phase one of this project. In a few months, the district will install new water meters and sensors for updates on usage and quality. Eventually, the district plans to use a software that allows them to monitor the sewer and water systems on the same platform.
The district received $3.5 million in state funding to complete phase one.
