Entech - Engineering | Architecture | Construction

The Borough of Minersville’s infrastructure includes a combined sewer system that drains both the sanitary wastewater and stormwater runoff from this Schuylkill County community of 4,600 people. The Minersville Sewer Authority had undertaken several projects to separate the sanitary flow, installing both new sanitary and storm drain lines through a substantial portion of the Borough. These projects eliminate wet weather overflows of sanitary wastewater into the West Branch of the Schuylkill River, and substantially improve the local environment and stream water quality.

Several of the main drain trunk lines in Minersville were stone arch tunnels constructed during the Great Depression through the Works Progress Administration (WPA). During the sewer separation efforts on Lewis Street the 4-foot high tunnel in the street collapsed. Luckily no one was hurt, but the drainage capacity of the tunnel needed to be replaced and the sewer separation completed for this section of the Borough.

The Sewer Authority authorized Entech to expedite the design for the replacement of the tunnel. Several alternative alternatives were quickly considered including multiple storm drain pipes; however, the close proximity of existing homes, the narrowness of the existing street width, and competing utilities limited the options for reconstruction. Ultimately, Entech fast tracked a 4-foot by 6-foot cast-in-place concrete design for the tunnel replacement, with a parallel 12-inch sanitary sewer and full roadway reconstruction. The final length of the tunnel and sewer replacement was 1,000 feet. Additional funds were secured through PENNVEST for the additional work, and the overall project was successfully completed with a minor adjustment to the overall project schedule.

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File Name			Size
		Minersville Sewer Authority - Lewis Street Tunnel Project	(87K PDF)