A pictorial field guide to what we read in the camera.
Every CCTV survey we run is coded against the NASSCO Pipeline Assessment Certification Program (PACP).1 The five plates below are the morphologies we read most often under pre-1940 Buffalo sewer laterals — in descending order of frequency on our books since 2018. Each plate is a labeled cross-section diagram, a real photograph, the PACP coding, the typical underlying cause, and the method we'd recommend.
Frequency · 2018–2025 surveys (n=1,872)
What we see, in proportion.
| Plate | Morphology | PACP code | % of surveys |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Root intrusion | RFJ / RBL | 62% |
| B | Joint offset | JOM / JOL | 34% |
| C | Belly / sag | SAM / SAL | 22% |
| D | Longitudinal crack | CL | 14% |
| E | Total collapse | BBA / X | 4% |
Sums > 100% because most laterals show two or three coexisting morphologies. Source: Reuter & Knapp internal survey database, 2018-01 through 2025-12.
Plate A — Root intrusion
The most common failure mode under Buffalo's tree-lined streets. A lateral root mass — typically silver maple, Norway maple, or American elm — enters at the bell joint and progressively occludes flow. CIPP-treatable at any severity that doesn't physically prevent inversion.
RKT-MOR-B · PACP JOM/JOLPlate B — Joint offset
Differential settlement under the foundation step or the curb has shifted one bell relative to the next. Mild offsets line cleanly; severe offsets exceed the bursting head's tolerance and require open-cut.
RKT-MOR-C · PACP SAM/SALPlate C — Belly / sag
A vertical low spot in the lateral where standing water collects between flushes. Symptom: recurring slow drain in the basement-floor cleanout. Caused by failed bedding under expansive clay soils.
RKT-MOR-D · PACP CLPlate D — Longitudinal crack
A crack running parallel to the pipe's axis. Almost always under traffic load — a driveway, a sidewalk, a curb cut. Bores stay continuous so CIPP works; the crack itself stops being a failure once the liner closes against the host wall.
RKT-MOR-E · PACP BBA/XPlate E — Total collapse
The pipe wall has failed and a section of bore is missing. Trenchless rehabilitation is no longer an option for that segment; the lateral is replaced by burst or open-cut, depending on the surrounding geometry.
CCTV survey →A note on the limits of this atlas
The five plates above describe the lateral as a structural object. They do not describe upstream household plumbing problems (a venting issue under a kitchen sink can produce identical symptoms to a downstream lateral problem; the survey will distinguish them), they do not describe storm-leader failures (a separate run with separate failure modes), and they do not describe the city-side main connection (BSA's responsibility, not ours). For a complete diagnosis, the survey is the document, not this atlas. The atlas is for understanding what the survey is going to report.
References
- National Association of Sewer Service Companies. Pipeline Assessment Certification Program (PACP) Reference Manual, v8.0. nassco.org/programs/pacp
- NASSCO. Lateral Assessment Certification Program (LACP). nassco.org/programs/lacp
- U.S. EPA. State of Technology for Rehabilitation of Wastewater Collection Systems, EPA/600/R-10/078. nepis.epa.gov