[Water_news] 4. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS: WATER QUALITY - 2/15/08

Department of Water Resources

California Water News

A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment

 

February 15, 2008

 

4. Water Quality

 

SEWAGE SPILL:

1,500 gallons of raw sewage spills into Bay; Officials notified the public soon after San Quentin Prison waste flowed into water - Contra Costa Times

 

WATER PLANT HONORED:

Encinitas water plant honored - North County Times

 

 

SEWAGE SPILL:

1,500 gallons of raw sewage spills into Bay; Officials notified the public soon after San Quentin Prison waste flowed into water

Contra Costa Times – 2/15/08

By Richard Halstead, staff writer

 

Officials wasted no time Thursday notifying the public of a 1,500-gallon spill of raw sewage from San Quentin Prison into the Bay.

 

Matthew Hymel, who oversees Marin County government as administrator, notified the press himself -- even though the spill was a fraction of the size of the 2.7-million-gallon spill that occurred Jan. 31 at the Sewerage Agency of Southern Marin's Mill Valley plant. Marin health officials were criticized for waiting to notify the public until the day after they learned of that spill.

 

"We are in the process of getting water samples and posting signs," Hymel said. "We are advising that no one enter the water in the vicinity as a precaution. As we get more information, we'll be posting it on our OES (Office of Emergency Services) Web site."

 

Coast Guard officers also made calls to the press Thursday to ensure that word of the spill at San Quentin received immediate attention.

 

Lt. Sam Robinson, San Quentin's public information officer, said the spill occurred when a sump pump in the prison's lower parking lot malfunctioned at 9:50 a.m. The prison reported to the state Office of Emergency Services that an estimated 1,500 gallons of untreated sewage overflowed from a manhole and flowed across the parking lot into the Bay. California law requires that spills of 1,000 gallons or more be reported to the state.

 

Robinson said construction associated with a new medical facility planned for the prison seems to have affected the pump, which sends sewage to the Central Marin Sanitary Agency's sewage plant in San Rafael.

 

"They were building around the pump," Robinson said. "It was an extension into the parking lot."

 

It took the prison about an hour to contain the spill, Robinson said. The prison's fire crew blocked gutters leading to the Bay. The prison's sewage was being transported by truck to the Central Marin plant pending repair of the pump.

 

Jason Dow, the plant's general manager, said the plant receives about 900,000 gallons of wastewater per day from the prison -- just 100,000 gallons less than the daily flow from Corte Madera. #

http://www.contracostatimes.com/search/ci_8270221?IADID=Search-www.contracostatimes.com-www.contracostatimes.com

 

 

WATER PLANT HONORED:

Encinitas water plant honored

North County Times – 2/15/08

 

ENCINITAS ---- An Olivenhain Water District filtration plant has been named Plant of the Year by an industry association.

The David C. McCollom Water Treatment Plant near Elfin Forest was recognized by the Southwest Membrane Operator Association for creating high-quality water. The award also recognized the contributions of employees at the plant, which can process 34 million gallons per day.

 

The plant employs a filtration system that offers better protection against waterborne diseases while using fewer chemicals, a plant spokesman said. The plant also generates its own electricity with energy recovery turbines that offset about half the plant's power needs.

 

The Olivenhain Water District is a public agency providing water, wastewater services, recycled water, alternative energy sources and the operation of the Elfin Forest Recreational Reserve. Organized in 1959, the district serves approximately 60,000 residents in Encinitas, Carlsbad, San Diego, Solana Beach, San Marcos, Olivenhain, Leucadia, Elfin Forest, Rancho Santa Fe, Fairbanks Ranch, Santa Fe Valley and 4S Ranch. #

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2008/02/15/news/coastal/encinitas/21_39_392_14_08.txt

####