Utah Government Trust urges annual manhole inspections to reduce costly sewer backups

Jason Watterson, a staff member at the Utah Government Trust, told attendees at a Sewer Summit that inspecting manholes annually and documenting those inspections are the single most effective, low-cost steps sewer operators can take to prevent costly backups and related lawsuits.

Watterson said the trust—an organization that provides insurance and risk services for local government utilities—has seen its sewer-backup claims fall to roughly one-quarter to one-third of the levels reported in the late 2000s after members adopted simple inspection and maintenance practices. He made the comments during a presentation at the Sewer Summit; the date and location of the summit were not specified in the meeting record.

The trust collects data annually through a sewer survey and issues a report card to participating members. Watterson highlighted survey results showing roughly 120 member agencies operate collection systems and about 62% of manholes were inspected in 2024. He said 44 of the 120 responding agencies reported inspecting 100% of their manholes, and that the trust is concerned the overall inspection rate has declined from earlier years.

Inspector-focused, risk-based maintenance: Watterson said the trust’s working group concluded that “flipping a lid and seeing what’s going on in every manhole every year” lets…