Sewering the City of New York

Abstract

The establishment of a centralized sewerage agency in 1963 has enabled the development of a program to upgrade and augment New York City’s sewer system to meet the vital life supporting needs of the 21st century. The previous decentralized structure, with five different design standards and financing assessments, did not lend itself to a rational and sound engineering approach to the drainage problems. The shift of population to the periphery of the city, the elimination of sewer assessment, and the antiquated sewerage mandated launching a crash effort. Citywide planning, new management techniques, infusion of new engineers, and optimal use of in-house staff and consultants have all culminated in sixfold acceleration of the sewer construction program.