After the devastating floods of July, 2010, MMSD established a $151 million program to help reduce the risk of basement backups by cutting down on massive volumes of excess water that get into sanitary sewers from homes and businesses.

Significant amounts of water leak into cracked pipes on private property.  Also, thousands of homes built before 1954 have foundation drains connected to the private lateral (sanitary sewer line), which sends excess water from under the home to the sanitary sewer system instead of a sump pump. 

Fixing these issues will take many years.  MMSD estimates that there are 3,000 miles of private laterals.  By comparison, the 28 communities served by MMSD own and operate about 3,000 miles of municipal sewers.  MMSD owns and operates about 300 miles of regional sewers.

The 28 communities will decide where to tackle private property issues within their various neighborhoods.  It will also be up to the communities to decide if there is any cost share for homeowners.