The Elephant in the I&I Room: Lateral Infiltration With Chris Parker

Chris Parker is the Founder and President of infraTerra™, a company focused on wastewater pipeline intelligence and data-driven infrastructure solutions. With more than two decades of experience in the wastewater industry, he has worked with hundreds of municipalities and contractors to improve system performance and reduce infrastructure failures. Chris specializes in condition assessment, data integration, and strategies to address inflow and infiltration challenges in sewer systems. He is also an advocate for modernizing wastewater management through technology, education, and policy reform. In this episode… America's wastewater systems are facing a crisis, with frequent spills and aging infrastructure threatening public health, the environment, and city finances. In places like Florida, the sheer volume of sewage spills and the challenges of managing inflow and infiltration (I&I) have forced communities to reckon with the true state of their underground networks. What new strategies and technologies are helping cities turn the tide against these daunting problems? Chris Parker's answer points directly to visibility and strategy. As a wastewater infrastructure expert with decades of experience working alongside municipalities, he explains that the biggest barrier isn't always funding — it's fragmented, underutilized data. By combining condition assessments, flow monitoring, and GIS mapping into a single, visualized system, utilities can pinpoint exactly where infiltration and inflow issues originate and address them with precision. Chris emphasizes moving away from blanket rehabilitation approaches toward targeted interventions, including tackling private lateral lines that are often overlooked. Ultimately, better data integration leads to smarter decisions, reduced costs, and more resilient systems. In this episode of Saving Our Sewers, Kwin Peterson hosts Chris Parker, Founder and President of infraTerra, to discuss how Florida's combination of public pressure, legislative reform, and modern data tools is creating a new standard for sewer management. Chris talks about Florida's surge in sewer spills, the shift to proactive infrastructure strategies, and how data visualization helped restore compliance to 27 pump stations.