It takes thousands of miles of sewer pipe to collect and transport all of the wastewater in this region to one of two water reclamation facilities where it's cleaned and returned to Lake Michigan.

MMSD owns and operates about 300 miles of regional sewers that collect wastewater from 28 communities. All 28 communities own and operate their own sewers, about 3,000 miles of pipes. There are two different types of sewer systems: combined and separate.

Check it out! It can take hours for a drop of water from your home to reach one of the water reclamation facilities.

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