Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
June 18, 2009
4. Water Quality –
Byron's wastewater treatment plant gets upgrade
Contra Costa Times
Scientists forecast a large dead zone in Gulf
Contra Costa Times
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Byron's wastewater treatment plant gets upgrade
Contra Costa Times-6/17/09
By Rowena Coetsee
Byron residents now have a more modern and effective wastewater treatment plant — and might have avoided higher sewer bills as a result.
Byron Sanitary District, which launched the upgrade in 2003, put the finishing touches on the $3 million project last week.
The district had to improve the facility to meet state Regional Water Quality Control Board requirements or risk substantial fines and, in a worst-case scenario, the county taking over the plant's operation, said David Dauwalder, project engineer for the engineering firm Nolte Associates Inc.
The financial penalties would have resulted in higher sewer rates for end users without anything to show for their money, he noted.
The refurbished plant now has sensors at various locations that monitor aspects of the treatment process such as water levels and electrical current.
If the need for repairs arises — a pump fails or there's a power interruption, for example — the system automatically notifies the plant's operator by telephone with a voice mail describing the situation.
The alert enables that individual — who isn't permanently stationed at the site — to respond more quickly and thereby prevent problems from becoming bigger and more expensive.
The facility also has a backup generator for the first time, Dauwalder said.
In addition, a more sophisticated system of controls now allows the sanitation district to avoid a pond overflowing during the winter, when solid waste takes longer to treat because colder temperatures affect the bacteria and oxygen levels in the plant's half dozen ponds.
The controls will enable the facility to direct sewage into more than one pond at a time, which also makes it possible to treat the effluent more effectively, Dauwalder said.#
Scientists forecast a large dead zone in Gulf
Contra Costa Times-6/18/09
Based on the amount of nutrients flowing down the Mississippi River, scientists predict this year's area of low oxygen in the Gulf of Mexico will reach a size roughly the same as
Researchers say the area of low oxygen, known as the dead zone, will likely measure between 7,450 and 8,456 square miles. At that size, this year's dead zone could be one of the largest on record. The largest on record was in 2002 at 8,848 square miles.
Urban and
The nutrients from the heartland flow down the Mississippi and spark algae blooms in the Gulf that consume the oxygen in waters off Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.#
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