The city said on Tuesday that a contractor working with East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) will be performing smoke tests on sanitary sewer lines in the La Salle and Sotelo Avenue neighborhood on Wednesday and Thursday.
According to EBMUD information distributed to homes in the area, a drone will be flown over the sewer easement to observe the smoke testing.
EBMUD smoke tests to find damaged pipes, improper connections and areas where unwanted water may enter the sanitary sewer collection system. When water inadvertently leaks into the sewer system, it can overwhelm the system and cause untreated and partially treated wastewater to be released to the San Francisco Bay.
During smoke testing, the contractor blows smoke into the sanitary sewer system through manholes in the street or on easements. The smoke will follow the path of any leak to the ground surface, quickly revealing the source of a problem. EBMUD contractors use drones to look for smoke that may be escaping from sewers that run through easements in backyards.
If smoke is seen coming from a property, EBMUD’s contractor may need to access exterior portions of the property to further investigate potential defects in the sewer or improper connections to the sewer.