Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
September 6, 2007
4. Water Quality
SEWAGE SPILLS:
'Sensor' manholes help Fallbrook district prevent sewer spills - North
URBAN WATER USE:
Store owners with tainted water await health-risk report results -
WELL WATER:
Fingers pointed at RCSD meeting on water well; Water quality questioned - Mojave Desert News
SEWER ISSUE:
Live Oak rushes sewer bid; City in race to meet 2009 deadline - Marysville Appeal Democrat
WATER QUALITY ISSUES:
Editorial: Protect state's water -
SEWAGE SPILLS:
'Sensor' manholes help Fallbrook district prevent sewer spills
By Tom Pfingsten, staff writer
FALLBROOK ---- Utility district officials in Fallbrook are praising a new technology that detects sewer spills before they happen, saying it helps the district avoid costly cleanups, lawsuits and environmental harm resulting from spills.
The Fallbrook Public Utility District and Escondido-based Hadronex were both honored last month by the California Association of Sanitation Agencies for Hadronex's spill-detecting technology, which it tested in the Fallbrook utility district beginning in May 2005.
The technology, which consists of a small sensor mounted on the bottom of a manhole cover, has been available on the market since late 2005 for between $3,000 and $4,000 per unit, depending on the number ordered, Hadronex officials said last week.
The equipment is designed to alert sewer system managers when a clogged pipe starts backing up, causing the level of water to rise in the manhole, or when a manhole cover is removed without authorization.
The district uses the technology on five of its manhole covers, and plans to buy three more every year for "the foreseeable future," district General Manager Keith Lewinger said last week.
The district has several thousand manholes in its service area.
"If the water level starts to rise in the manhole, (the sensor sends) an alarm to a pager on my system operator's hip, and he knows to get out there and clear up the problem," Lewinger said.
The technology has already alerted authorities to two potentially harmful situations, Lewinger said.
"In one, we prevented a spill," he said, adding that in the second instance district officials caught someone dumping materials into the sewer system after a sensor indicated that someone had removed a manhole cover.
Fallbrook was the first district to test the equipment, which is now being used by other agencies across
Greg Quist, a senior partner with Hadronex and co-inventor of the technology, said last week that his company has helped
He said the company worked closely with the Fallbrook utility district to improve its product based on the district's feedback.
Lewinger said that the technology probably would not prevent every spill.
"In my opinion, it's impossible to prevent 100 percent of the spills," he said. "Sewers clog up. What we're trying to do is minimize them, identify the locations where we're most prone to having spills, and put this equipment in those locations."
He said roots from trees and shrubs combined with fats, oils and greases coming out of homes and restaurants create sewer-line "hot spots" around Fallbrook that are more prone to clogging.
He said that by keeping a closer eye on those areas using manholes fitted with sensors, the district could potentially save thousands of dollars, Lewinger said.
"By preventing one sewer spill, I've avoided the cleanup costs, the bad publicity and the fines from the Regional Water Quality Control Board," he said. "The regional board can fine you up to $10 per gallon of a spill, and you can spill 100 gallons really fast. It's not unheard of to spill thousands of gallons."
Lewinger said alerts for unauthorized removal of manhole covers are also beneficial.
"Someone who has (liquid waste) they want to get rid of, drives to an isolated spot, and dumps it into the sewer system," he said. "It could be as innocuous as septic system waste, but it could be hazardous waste, which someone didn't want to pay to dispose of properly."
If the wrong chemicals or toxins were introduced into the sewer system, they could upset the biological processes used to break down sewage at the plant, he said, a scenario that would also be costly to address. #
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/09/02/news/inland/22_18_099_1_07.txt
URBAN WATER USE:
Store owners with tainted water await health-risk report results
By Anne Kruger, staff writer
“We don't want a battle. We just want to know what's going on,” Amy Wise, co-owner of a gift store, told district board members during a board meeting in
Employees of the
The water district's general manager, Mark Watton, had promised to give store owners test results showing exactly what was in the recycled water.
Owners said they fear they consumed traces of heavy metals or flushed drugs, and that they need the test results to ensure they receive proper medical care.
But the water district has only sent tests from the plant where the water was treated, not from the
Otay board member Jose Lopez said the district must “do this right. We can't at any time put a price on this.”
A report by Otay officials said the misconnection occurred because district inspectors failed to follow regulations governing oversight of construction projects. They were also hampered by inaccurate and confusing construction plans that changed in the middle of the project without notice to the water district, the report said.
Otay officials said they will more clearly mark pipe connections with purple to indicate they are for recycled water. The water will also be tested at the meter and at a new customer's tap.
Jorge Perez, who owns a graphics store at the center, said medical tests given to him and relatives who drank the water showed suspicious bacteria. Perez said his mother, 67, suffered severe abdominal pains last month, and he has suffered diarrhea.
“I hope they take responsibility and at least tell us what to test for,” he said of the district. “I'm worried for my kid's health.” #
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20070906/news_1m6otay.html
WELL WATER:
Fingers pointed at RCSD meeting on water well; Water quality questioned
By Jill Barnes Nelson, staff writer
ROSAMOND - The William Fisher Memorial Well again was a topic of discussion at the Rosamond Community Service District meeting on August 22. There was a lot of finger pointing concerning whether or not the emergency was handled properly.
The well had broken down on August 6 and again on August 20, and was barely producing water for its customers. The RCSD Maintenance Crew brought potable water to site of the emergency. The crew continued hauling water until a commercial water hauler was contacted to provide potable water. Repairs were made with emergency funds, but it was determined the well should be abandoned because of sand, rock and rust entering into the pump cylinder.
District Engineer Claud Seal seemed to take issue with Director Steven Russell for questioning the District's use of its own trucks to haul water. Russell didn't think that RCSD trucks were licensed to haul potable water to the site.
"We had permission, so we hauled the water," Seal said. "If we didn't, the system would have had to be purged and the residents wouldn't have had water for 5-6 hours. We didn't check all the licenses, but it was an emergency situation."
Water safe?
Russell said he was just questioning if the hauled water was safe. "This is drinking water and I work in the water-related industry, so I wanted to make sure there was the proper licensing by the DHS (department of health services) to haul water," he said. "I live by the rules and they should be enforced even if there is an emergency."
He also cited a code 26591-4.5, which he gave to General Manager Robert Neufeld. The named code supposedly gave some direction about hauling water safely. Neufeld said he couldn't find the code on the books and it was later determined the stated code was for haulers of bottled water.
"Hindsight is 20-20," said President Greg Wood. "We'll have the staff look over the licensing and have an emergency list for everyone in case something like this happens again."
Sue Johnson, a resident within the Fisher Well district, was frustrated by all that had transpired. "No one ever contacted any of us about what happened," she said. "We have a lot of senior citizens who can't come to meetings. We need better communications," she said. "There is so much misinformation about the quality of the water that was being pumped. We heard there were organics in the water, but it was OK to drink. Then we heard we should boil the water. All I know is that I raise goats and a lot of them got sick."
The RCSD is looking into drilling a new well near the old one at an estimated cost of about $200,000.
Billing school district
In another water related issue, the Board left open more discussion with the Southern Kern School Board concerning charging it with a bill of $140,000 for connection fees to the RCSD's water supply to
General Manager Neufeld said he was having talks with Superintendent Rodney Van Norman.
"This seems to be a swap of money from one government agency to another," said Director Robert Scherer. "I feel we should waive the fee since the school was built (in 1963) before there was an actual agency for water."
President Wood said if that were done, it might set a precedent for others to challenge connection fees. "We'll need to have more discussion with the school board."
The Board did agree to let the Parks and Recreation Department set pool rental fees. The cost would be $100 per hour, with a minimum of two hours to rent the pool. There would be a $10 discount for each additional hour and a fee of $15 per hour for a lifeguard. Walk-ins for lap swimming or water aerobics would be $3.
Parks and Rec Superintendent Sharon Morrison also noted they were putting the finishing touches on Ordinance 2008-1, which would set park rules. "We need this so the police can act accordingly to any trouble," she said.
The Board also approved a request to support the East Kern Enterprise Zone with a contribution of $5,000. The Enterprise Zone would give tax credits for businesses working within the Zone.
It also approved a Cost of Living increase of 3.6 percent for district employees, retroactive to July 1. #
http://desertnews.com/mdn/story7.html
SEWER ISSUE:
Live Oak rushes sewer bid; City in race to meet 2009 deadline
Marysville Appeal Democrat – 9/5/07
By Robert LaHue, staff writer
Live Oak is hoping for a bit of an edge in its quest to upgrade its wastewater treatment plant upgrade by trying to get bids a little sooner than usual.
The City Council on Wednesday night unanimously approved putting the project out to bid, although final plans have not been completed.
City staff has been reviewing 90 percent complete plans of the plant upgrade, Public Works Director Michael Bohlander told the council.
Typically, complete plans are approved before projects are sent out to bid, Bohlander said. But in order to keep the project on schedule and determine funding sources sooner, he’s coming to the board sooner.
Bohlander’s statement were backed by Interim City Manager Tom Lando, who noted recent bids put out by the Sacramento Area Council of Governments have wound up being bid 5 to 10 percent below their estimated cost.
“I think the bidding climate has gotten better,” he said.
The city is in a race to meet an April 2009 deadline to improve the quality of wastewater discharged from the plant after receiving a cease-and-desist order in 2004 from the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board.
Failure to meet the standards by deadline makes it possible for the board to levy fines of up to $10,000 a day against the city.
Early construction costs estimated the upgrades costing $16 million. That figured has since jumped to $25 million. #
http://www.appeal-democrat.com/news/city_53633___article.html/bid_board.html
WATER QUALITY ISSUES:
Editorial: Protect state's water
Intentional obstruction as a way of sending a "political message" is a generally distasteful practice, but there's some merit in Don Perata's move last week to hold up confirmation of two of the governor's appointees.
Perata, the state senate's president pro tem, announced he would delay confirmation of two of Gov. Schwarzenegger's appointees to the Water Resources Control Board as a way of demanding that
In a letter to the governor, Perata called the state's water quality program a failure. He complained the public has no way of monitoring board appointees' performances or the quality of the state's water by using the agency's difficult Web site. The enforcement system, in general, is "antiquated" and "ineffective," he wrote.
State Water Resources Control Board spokesman William Rukeyser defended the usefulness of the board's on-line information services but conceded the Web site is being redesigned, adding links to local municipal water suppliers. The state board also will be holding workshops on how to improve the enforcement program.
The lack of confidence in the state water board, as suggested by Perata's letter, is as bad in
Pamela Creedon, the
We hope she and her "enforcement" agency mean it. Correspondence over the years between the board and local refineries (mostly predating Creedon's tenure) suggests more could have and should have been done.
The pressure Perata is placing on the governor is justified. We urge Schwarzenegger to show resolve in addressing concerns over controlling potential pollution sources and protecting the state's water. #
http://www.bakersfield.com/opinion/editorials/story/229045.html
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