Preventative Maintenance & Sewer Overflow

Sanitary Sewer Overflow (SSO)
The division responds to reports of raw sewage overflowing from manholes. Most of the overflows in Lebanon are caused by cooking grease that is dumped down the drains instead of being disposed of properly in the trash. Most cases of sewage back up in homes is caused by grease or root intrusion into the sewer lateral leaving the house. The responsibility for maintenance of the sanitary lateral rests with the property owner. The division will respond to help the homeowner determine where the problem is.

View the Annual Sanitary Sewer Overflow Report.

Fats, Oils & Grease
Fats and grease from cooking are the major cause of problems in the sanitary sewer system. Pouring the hot, liquid grease down the sink may be the quick way of getting rid of the grease, but it leads problems in the sewer system. Liquid grease dumped down the drain begins to cool and solidify on the walls of the sanitary sewer pipes. This eventually reduces the effective diameter of the pipe and restricts flow. Eventually, flow is restricted so much that it overflows manholes, which creates human-health and environmental problems or back ups into homes.

Proper Grease Disposal
To properly dispose of grease, let it cool in the pan and then scrape it into the garbage can for disposal at a landfill.