SANITARY SEWERS

Sanitary sewers are a type of gravity sewer and are part of an overall system called a "sewer system" or sewerage system. Sanitary sewers serving industrial areas may also carry industrial wastewater. In provinces served by sanitary sewers, separate storm drains may carry surface runoff directly to surface waters. An advantage of sanitary sewer systems is that they prevent combined sewer overflows. Sanitary sewers are typically much smaller in diameter than combined sewers, which also carry urban runoff. Backups of raw sewage may occur if excessive stormwater inflow or groundwater infiltration occurs due to leaky joints, faulty pipes, etc. in older infrastructure.