A years-long effort to upgrade water and sewer lines in and around Fayetteville is paying off with reduced instances of lines bursting, overflows, and other sudden failures, the Fayetteville Public Works Commission was told on Wednesday.
The PWC, owned by the city, is the main provider of water and sewer service in Fayetteville and Cumberland County. As of June 2025, it served about 98,000 homes, businesses, and other customers with water, and about 94,000 with sewer. The utility reaches about 225,000 people.
Michael Smith, PWC’s water resources asset management coordinator, told commissioners at their semi-monthly board meeting that the rate of reactive repairs per 100 miles of pipe has dropped since 2021 in the water system and in the sewer system. The reactive repairs rate is a measurement of the robustness of a water or sewer system.
The reactive repair rate for the water system fell from 4.47 repairs per 100 miles in 2021 to 3.40 in 2025, Smith said. This is well below the national average of 18.2, he said. There were 63 reactive repairs in 2021, down to 51 each in 2024 and 2025.
In the sewer system, the reactive repair rate was 3.63 in 2021 and dropped to 1.51 in 2025, Smith said. There were 47 reactive repairs in 2021, down to 20 in 2025. The national average is 2.4.
Sewage overflows decreased from 23 in 2021 to 12 in 2025, his presentation said. The rate per 100 miles fell from 1.77 in 2021 to 0.90 in 2025. The national average is 4.50.
Meanwhile, new “SmartCover System” maintenance hole covers—commonly called manhole covers—have sensors that detect developing overflows. They were triggered 41 times in the 2025 fiscal year, allowing the PWC to prevent overflows and save $525,000, Smith said.
The PWC has about 1,433 miles of water lines, of which 430—or 30%—are over 50 years old, according to Smith’s presentation to the commissioners. PWC has 1,327 miles of sewer line, with 318 miles (24%) over age 50, and 33,422 maintenance holes, of which 9,928 (30%) are older than 50 years.
Older lines are often made of concrete, which is eroded by the hydrogen sulfide gases emitted from sewage. The PWC was adding epoxy linings to its old pipes but changed to replacing water lines with iron pipe and sewer with PVC and iron pipe, Smith said. These are expected to last 100 years, he said.
Since 2004:
- 126 miles of water lines have been lined or replaced, for $166.5 million.
- 238.5 miles of sewer lines have been lined or replaced, for $175.8 million.
- 4,239 maintenance holes have been lined, for $22.2 million.
Those total $364.5 million.
The PWC projects to spend another $564 million in the next 10 years on its water lines, sewer lines, lift stations, and sanitary sewer discharge lines, according to Smith’s presentation.
Senior reporter Paul Woolverton can be reached at pwoolverton@cityviewnc.com.
Did you find this story useful or interesting? It was made possible by donations from readers like you to the News Foundation of Greater Fayetteville, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization committed to an informed democracy in Fayetteville and Cumberland County.
Please consider making a tax-deductible donation so CityView can bring you more news and information like this.