Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
December 19, 2007
4. Water Quality
OIL SPILL:
Spill cleanup costs expected to hit at least $61 million - San Francisco Chronicle
SEWAGE FACILITIES:
Border sewage facility funded; Issues of location and builder remain - San Diego Union Tribune
WASTEWATER PLANT:
Santa Paula water plant deadline extended - Ventura County Star
GROUNDWATER CLEANUP:
Water cleanup eyed; State department says a treatment plan is viable - Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
SEWER LOANS:
County forgives $500,000 in sewer loans for
NITRATE LEVELS:
Nitrate fix may double Manteca's water bills - Manteca Bulletin
OIL SPILL:
Spill cleanup costs expected to hit at least $61 million
San Francisco Chronicle – 12/19/07
By Zachary Coile, staff writer
The Coast Guard's commandant, Adm. Thad Allen, told Congress Tuesday he expects the cost of cleaning up the San Francisco Bay oil spill to hit at least $61 million - and is likely to climb even higher.
The $61 million figure is significant because it's what the owner of the Cosco Busan, which spilled 58,000 gallons of fuel after striking the
But those liability limits, set by the Coast Guard for each type of ship, can be waived if the Justice Department determines a spill was caused by gross negligence. Allen hinted that's a strong possibility in this case, in which investigators believe the bar pilot and the ship's captain might have made crucial mistakes that led to the collision.
"You can waive the limits of liability under certain circumstances," Allen said at a Senate Commerce subcommittee hearing on the spill. "Quite frankly, we are discussing that now."
The Coast Guard said $54.7 million has been spent on the cleanup as of Saturday, an average of about $770,000 per day. The liability limit for the Cosco Busan is $61.8 million, the agency said.
After some previous spills, the companies that owned the ships waived the liability limits voluntarily and agreed to pay all the costs, Allen said.
Already federal, state and local authorities have filed civil suits against the ship's owner, Regal Stone Ltd.; its insurer, Shipowners' Insurance & Guaranty; and the bar pilot who was at the helm, Capt. John Cota, to recover their costs.
The ship was allowed to leave
Darrell Wilson, a spokesman for the Hong Kong-based Regal Stone, said the company is already paying for private cleanup crews who have been skimming oil and cleaning beaches. He said the firm will meet its legal responsibilities, but would not say whether it would agree to pay the entire bill if it exceeds $61.8 million.
"Our main concern and priority is the environmental response,"
Allen made his remarks at a hearing of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries and the Coast Guard, which has been probing the Coast Guard's response to the spill.
Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., who chairs the subcommittee, said the
"The incident brought to light how vulnerable our oceans are to oil spills from non-tank vessels that carry massive amounts of oil not as cargo, but as fuel," Cantwell said.
Several lawmakers said one way to address the issue is to raise the liability limits for cargo ships to the same level as oil tankers. Currently cargo ships have lower liability limits, even though many cargo ships carry hundreds of thousands of gallons of fuel, like the heavy bunker fuel that fouled
Allen said Tuesday he's in favor of raising the liability limits because federal rules have not kept pace with the rising number of cargo ships carrying large amounts of fuel, increasing the risk of big spills. His agency is adjusting the limits, but the new regulations are still being written.
Federal law requires that most of the costs be paid by the ship's owner and the operator responsible for the spill. But if the amount goes above the liability limit for the ship, the costs are often paid out of Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund, which is funded by a 5-cent per barrel fee on imported and domestic oil.
A recent Government Accountability Office report found that those responsible for the spills had paid between 72 and 78 percent of the costs of cleanup for spills since 1990, while the fund paid the rest - about $240 million.
Lawmakers at the hearing called on the Coast Guard to step up its efforts to prevent oil spills. California Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer urged Allen to add new incentives to persuade ship owners to move toward double-hulled ships.
Allen said new rules, taking effect for ships delivered after August 2010, will require double hulls or other measures to reduce the risk of spills.
Boxer is pushing a separate measure with Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., that would require the Coast Guard's Vessel Traffic Service, which guides ships in
The Coast Guard has been cool to the idea, saying the service is not equipped or trained to guide ships the way air traffic controllers direct planes. One witness, William Deaver, president of Totem Ocean Trailer Express, a cargo carrier that operates in the
"In an area like
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/12/19/MNDMU0UIT.DTL
SEWAGE FACILITIES:
Border sewage facility funded; Issues of location and builder remain
By Mike Lee, staff writer
Congress last night set aside up to $66 million to improve treatment of sewage from the
Instead, the legislation directs the International Boundary and Water Commission to report back to Congress after analyzing the two leading sewage treatment plans. It allows the commission to choose the best option, and that probably won't happen for at least four months.
The money is the most tangible sign yet that the
The facility in San Ysidro handles about 25 million gallons of wastewater a day from
One complication is that $66 million would pay for only about two-thirds of the San Ysidro expansion.
Bajagua officials have said their plant would treat at least 59 million gallons of wastewater a day. They would finance the construction costs upfront, but
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., has said for months that expanding the plant in San Ysidro is the surest way to lessen sewage problems in the
“The compromise demonstrates that the federal government is committed to cleaning up the
She added that none of the money will be spent until the Government Accountability Office completes its investigation into which project would be the most cost-effective and would most quickly comply with the Clean Water Act.
Rep. Bob Filner, D-San Diego, said he tried to block the appropriation in part because he doesn't trust the boundary commission. Filner, a longtime supporter of the Bajagua plan, said the agency's officials “have dragged their feet for years.”
“We tried and tried to keep (the money) out,” Filner said. “When that became impossible, we ended up negotiating this. ... For some reason, (Feinstein) was convinced that the Bajagua thing couldn't work. ... On this one, she was very stubborn.”
Bajagua spokesman Craig Benedetto said he was pleased that the Government Accountability Office will complete an in-depth review of the Bajagua and San Ysidro projects.
“We believe that comparison will favor us,” he said.
Benedetto also hopes Filner and other politicians still can influence the boundary commission's choice because the agency likely will depend on Congress for money to complete either plan.
The commission's officials could not be reached for comment. For months, they have said little publicly about their intentions, though that may change in January, when they are scheduled to give a progress report to a federal judge in
The commission is under court orders to fix the pollution problems in San Ysidro by September. It's widely agreed that the deadline can't be met, and it's unclear when the work will be finished. #
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20071219/news_1m19sewage.html
WASTEWATER PLANT:
By Sam Richard, staff writer
The Santa Paula City Council on Monday night extended the deadline for firms to submit proposals to design, build, operate and finance the city's wastewater recycling facility, but the number of proposals may dwindle despite the extra time.
The council voted 3-2 to give three firms until Feb. 4 to submit proposals. The original deadline was Jan. 11.
The changes were made in light of two teams, led by American Water and EPCOR Utilities Inc., wanting more time to submit their most cost-effective and creative proposals. The main reason for the request was that winter holidays could make meeting the deadline more difficult, officials said.
Some council members in the past advocated for selecting several teams to submit proposals for more competition.
But city officials found out Monday that EPCOR decided not to submit a proposal.
"This decision came as the result of a number of internal matters within EPCOR," David Hermanson, general manager of West Coast operations, said by e-mail Tuesday. "Our decision is not reflective of the value of the project or attributable to the city's processes."
American Water also may not submit a proposal because the deadline was extended to Feb. 4 instead of Feb. 22, said Debra Vernon, western regional manager for communication and corporate responsibility.
"We're still discussing it internally,"
Pacific Environmental Resources Corp. and Veolia Water would head the only two teams with bids if American Water pulls out. Officials from PERC said Tuesday they intend to submit a proposal. An official from Veolia Water did not return a call from The Star.
City Manager Wally Bobkiewicz said that, although the deadline has changed,
A contract could be awarded by April 14, but if other teams decide not to submit a proposal, a contract could be awarded earlier, Bobkiewicz said. In the past, officials planned to award a contract by March 16.
The city could be fined thousands of dollars per day by the board if it misses the deadline.
However, a Ventura County Superior Court judge in September approved a consent judgment and final order that freed the city from paying $8.2 million in fines to the state. Instead, the money will go toward construction of the new plant.
The fines originate from a 1997 permit from the control board that requires
Councilman John Procter said the city must make sure to meet the board's new deadline.
Procter said he wanted to extend the deadline to Feb. 22 but is confident that city staff will achieve the overall goal to build the plant on time.
Councilman Ralph Fernandez, who voted with two other council members for the new deadline, said unexpected delays could occur while the plant is being constructed.
"If we went all the way to the 22nd, it sort of appears that we have leisure time, and we really don't," Fernandez said.
Using the entire "time cushion" the city has now in the beginning of the process is risky, he said. #
http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2007/dec/19/s-paula-water-plant-deadline-extended/
GROUNDWATER CLEANUP:
Water cleanup eyed; State department says a treatment plan is viable
By Liset Marquez, staff writer
Since March, the agency has been conducting a sodium permanganate study. The process involves injecting sodium permanganate into the ground where it oxidizes and breaks down the levels of trichloroethylene, or TCE, said Rafat Abbasi, project manager for the Department of Toxic Substances Control.
"Based on the data, it is pretty successful in knocking down the TCE levels in the groundwater," said Abbasi in a monthly update on the cleanup.
Located on 400-plus acres to the east of
Tests have shown that some chemicals in the groundwater may have moved from the Wyle site to under nearby residential neighborhoods. The chemicals include trichloroethylene, vinyl chloride and perchlorate.
In October, the state's Department of Toxic Substances Control confirmed that Wyle Laboratories is not the source of airborne chemicals found in
Abbasi said the agency also has completed fieldwork. Next year it expects to move into the cleanup phase. Wyle Laboratories then will begin a feasibility study that will look at the best way to clean up the site, he said. #
SEWER LOANS:
County forgives $500,000 in sewer loans for
Grass Valley
By Dave Moller, staff writer
The Nevada County Board of Supervisors forgave about $500,000 in loans Tuesday made in recent years to bolster and rebuild the
The forgiveness of loans from the county's general fund to its sanitation district will allow the county to produce a financial plan for the new plant for the state that is affordable and meets water quality standards.
It also paves the way for an upcoming vote of 84 homeowners to see if they are willing to increase annual sewer rates from $1,995 to $2,445 to pay for it. If the board had not forgiven the loan, the vote would have been for $2,875 per year.
Bob Crabee, head of the Cascade Shores Homeowners Association, said he thinks homeowners will approve the smaller increase for fear the state will eventually red tag their homes if they refuse to fund a new treatment plant.
The homeowners have the right to do so under Proposition 218, and did just that in 2006, when they rejected a plan to increase their $1,995 annual rate to $4,500.
The
A landslide knocked the plant off-line in May 2005, compounding problems and forcing the eventual replacement cost to $5.1 million.
http://www.theunion.com/article/20071219/NEWS/306353350
NITRATE LEVELS:
Nitrate fix may double
By Jason Campbell, staff writer
Thanks to nitrate levels that exceed the maximum containment level, two city wells are off-line until the problem can be corrected.
Eleven other wells exceeded the new, stricter federal guidelines for Arsenic, and other wells contain an alphabet of chemicals that aren't at the limits to be considered unsafe but they aren't far off either.
So according to Manteca Water Engineer Keith Conarroe, the best way to proceed would be to look into treating each of the sites that currently aren't operational. That means using the industry methods that work best to eradicate the chemicals that can be harmful - even causing cancer in high doses over time - if left untreated and unchecked.
Standard agricultural practices in the Central Valley has meant low-level aquifers in rural areas are having problems with nitrates that pull through the ground and eventually end up in deeper aquifers where city wells draw their water.
While arsenic is naturally occurring in the ground, the high levels indicate that it's coming from some other source over a period of time.
Even naturally occurring uranium is something that engineers have been keeping their eyes on as greater concentrations are found in the water that could eventually be feeding the taps.
The answer? Lots and lots of money.
In Conarroe's report, he figured it would run somewhere in the neighborhood of $280 per customer to install the necessary arsenic filtering systems at a total of $26 million. It's a number much higher than the $6.5 million needed to construct the uranium filtering mechanisms at a cost of $114.75 per customer.
In the end, Conarroe thinks that building such a massive infrastructure project would probably require a doubling of current residential water rates to help pay for the construction and the new media that will be used to filter the harmful ingredients found in San Joaquin Valley groundwater.
While arsenic is the only thing that the city really has to worry about, the effects of drinking arsenic aren't yet completely known. He cited a report and investigation into an
The concentration in
The issue will likely be back before the City Council for their consideration once progress is made on deciding which way the city will go in terms of media and filtration methods for which particular toxin. #
http://mantecabulletin.com/main.asp?FromHome=1&TypeID=1&ArticleID=55504&SectionID=28&SubSectionID=58
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