Helena’s sewer system is getting a makeover thanks to a $1 million grant given to the city. Alabama’s Congressman Spencer Bachus and Sen. Richard Shelby helped secure the grant, said Helena’s head of wastewater management Chris Ramsey.

Work has already begun on Helena’s sewer lines and the entire project should be complete in less than six months, Ramsey said.

The grant money will go toward installing new plastic lining to keep older pipes from leaking as well as a SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) system, said Ramsey. The SCADA system will allow workers at the water treatment plant to monitor an instant feed of water levels from their computers.

“We will immediately be able to view the inflow and infiltration levels. Our pumps won’t run as much, we’ll save on power, and there won’t be any problems when it rains,” said Ramsey.

With the new SCADA systems on water tanks, water treatment workers will be notified by an alarm if one ever gets too low.

“We will instantly be able to know what is going on with the tanks and pumps,” Ramsey said.