The Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District will hold eight public open houses from next Monday to Nov. 10 to explain and obtain comment about a $1.9 billion plan to reduce pollution from the sewers of St. Louis and some inner suburbs of St. Louis County.

The current sewer system allows sanitary sewers to overflow into storm water sewers during heavy rains. That carries pollutants, such as E. coli bacteria, into area rivers.

The districts solution would rely on construction of huge tunnels to hold and slow down water during heavy rains.

The plan also calls for disinfecting facilities -- one near Macklind Avenue in St. Louis and the other in the Bellefontaine Neighbors-Spanish Lake area -- to partly treat sewage before it goes to the Lemay or Bissell Point sewage treatment plants.

The open houses will be from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Officials will make a presentation at 6 p.m. The sessions will be:

• Monday at New City School, 5209 Waterman Boulevard, St. Louis.

• Oct. 27 at the Maryland Heights Community Center, 2344 McKelvey Road, Maryland Heights.

• Oct. 28 at the Walbridge Elementary School cafeteria, 5000 Davison Avenue, St. Louis.

• Nov. 2 at the Jennings High School cafeteria, 8850 Cozens Avenue, Jennings.

• Nov. 4 at Chesterfield City Hall, 690 Chesterfield Parkway, Chesterfield.

• Nov. 5 at Florissant Valley Community College Student Center, 3400 Pershall Road, Ferguson.

• Nov. 9 at the Richmond Heights community center, 8001 Dale Avenue, Richmond Heights.

• Nov. 10 at the gymnasium of St. Lucas Lutheran Church, 7100 Morganford Road., St. Louis.