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An early evening rain kept some members from the January 17th meeting, but those who attended were among the first in the city to hear a presentation from the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission on long-range planning for the city’s waste water.
Lead by spokesman Tony Winnicker, PUC staff members took turns describing a new Waste Water Master Plan (WWMP) that will encompass a wide spectrum of issues including: present system deficiencies, fast-changing technology, seismic stability, financial obligation, neighborhood concerns, conversion of storm drain water for garden use and, above all, “how to ensure that the high quality of waste treatment and recycling now being carried out will continue over the next 30 years.” Winnicker also assured those present that drafting the new Master Plan would be an “open process with public workshops for maximum input.”
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The present system, unlike most cities, combines waste water collected from households with that from storm drains, all of which (an average of 80 million gallons per day) travels through 900 miles of sewer pipe into one of three treatment plants located in the north, southwest and southeast of the city, with the great majority (80 percent) going into the latter. Large storage boxes holding 200 million gallons surround the city like an underground moat. The solid residue of the treated wastewater (“bio solids” or sludge) is graded by organic content, with 70 percent going to landfills in Solano County.
Like most of the city’s infrastructure, the waste water system is aging. Most of the sewers are over 70 years old. The sewer failure rate is estimated to double in the next 10 years. During days of heavy rain, 10–15 times a year, the storage boxes overflow directly into the sea. Neighbors living in proximity to the Southeast Treatment Plant particularly complain about the odor.
Although the chair of CSFN’s Water Taskforce, Joan Girardot (MCIPOA), was absent because of illness, she was represented by Nancy Wuerfel (SPEAK), who asked about enforcement of the “capacity fees” (for developers of new buildings) — a revenue stream that Joan has worked hard to get implemented. Winnicker replied that, although fee notices had been issued by the PUC, he was not sure if anyone had actually paid up, as the responsibility for collection was that of the Department of Building Inspection. It sounded like a familiar case of the city failing to follow through on collection of what is owed them.
During the presentation, John Bardis (ISAC) repeatedly asked Tyrone Jue, WWMP communications head, what had happened to the cross-town sewer project, an integral part of the last (1974) Master Plan, but which was never actually built. It wasn’t until the Q&A that the question was finally answered, not by Jue, but rather by CSFN member Tony Sacco (NMTIA) when he said, “I attended meetings on the subject every Saturday morning for a year and what happened was that the cross-town sewer was going to have an air vent in Bernal Heights. The neighbors there fought it and won.”
Although the drafting process will be carried out over the next year and a half, it is important that we follow it closely. It will empower the PUC to make enormous changes — the 1974 master plan resulted in the treatment plant at Oceanside. The PUC Citizens Advisory Committee has a subcommittee devoted to wastewater that meets on the 3rd Thursday of every month, 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at 1155 Market Street in the 4th Floor conference room. More information is available at www.sfwater.org and a website especially for the master plan will be up soon at www.sfsewers.org.
…Karen Crommie (CVIA) |
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