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A team of engineers from LNEC carried out an inspection of one of Lisbon's large sewers located in Av. de Ceuta, an essential infrastructure for the management of wastewater and stormwater in the city. The work is part of a four-year project for the Lisbon City Hall and aims to evaluate the structural condition of large sewers, from a preventive perspective to prevent damage and public injuries. In the last four years, more than 20 kilometers of large sewers in the city of Lisbon have been inspected and assessed. Despite being confined spaces with restricted access, as these sewers typically present an internal height of more than 1.6 meters, can be visited by personnel with appropriate safety measures.

During this visit, the team carried out a visual inspection that allows, after data evaluation and processing, the assessment of the sewer condition and to foresee maintenance and rehabilitation needs: "we carry out a survey of relevant observations that are coded based on a very complete coding system (standard EN 13508-2) adopted in many European countries. Visual observations, whether of a structural, hydraulic, environmental or operational nature, are complemented with photos or short videos", stated the responsible for the LNEC team, Eng. Maria do Céu Almeida, from the Urban Water Unit, Department of Hydraulics and Environment at LNEC.

The Alcântara large sewer, which consists of a river channeled since the middle of the last century, is around 10 kilometers long and, in the section mentioned above, it is 8 meters wide.