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Club Ink ... Online
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Articles
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by Alexis Haletead As in the past, this year’s conference provided valuable information on a wide variety of topics, a great chance to network, a chance to see and hear about the latest wastewater treatment related products and services and have a bang-up good time gabbing and laughing in reunion with old friends. This year’s Ice Breaker had a few new wrinkles added to it, with the goal of raising money for the Kirt Brooks Scholarship Fund. There was a line of carnival booths set up, each with a different carnival-like game to play for a dollar. No matter how spastic, everyone received a prize. SFBS Secretary/Treasurer, Edith Hadler wowed us with her sports abilities by kicking the soccerball into the hole, flipping the frog into the bucket, knocking the quarter off the Q-ball and walking off with most of the big prizes. (She also was the first woman to finish the Sludge Trudge.) The cost of the booths was underwritten by a $155 donation from each Local Section. The sections also staffed the booths in costume. Those who forgot their costumes were issued a silly hat so they wouldn’t feel left out of the fun. Mike Donovan was charming in his flower petal hat, John Larson was adorable in his bunny ears. (Photos at 11:00.) During the carnival, there was an auction of items donated by CWEA members. Items to bid on included bottles of wine, dinner at President Weir’s house, a couple stays in a Maui condo, a sailboat outing, golf clubs, a tour of SF’s Hetch Hetchy water system and many other great things. Between the carnival, auction, personal donations and section donations the scholarship fund is now up to over $175,000. The Pre-conference WERF Seminar Sunday was titled "Creating a Competitive Utility: a Toolkit for Success." The areas covered included organizational development and change management, operations and maintenance issues, energy management, and process technologies. I received the most value out of the innovative practice case studies. The technical sessions I attended included mostly Super group and Safety topics. Presentations on Sleep Deprivation, Empowering Staff: Putting Words into Action and Aging Workforce provided valuable information on these issues. SF Bay Section did well in the area of CWEA awards. Robert Donati of Daly City received Collection System Person of the Year; Union San. was awarded Large Collection System of the Year; Dublin San Ramon’s "Cleanwater Revival Groundwater Replenishment System Performance and Reliability Evaluation" project received the Engineering and Research award, and Central San. was recognized for "Our Water, Our World Pesticide Reduction Program" with the Large Budget Public Education award. Andy Stamatelos’ years of commitment earned him the Sidney Bidell award for "extraordinary personal service." SF Bay Section member, Katherine McMahon was successful in her bid for a Kirt Brook Scholarship and Jack Foley would have been inducted into the 5-S had he been there. (We’ll get you Jack, there is no escaping.) Student
Activities Committee News by Garrett Sheehan, CWEA and SFBS Student Activities Committee Chair As this academic year draws to a close, another successful year for the Student Activities Committee is also coming to an end. The Berkeley Campus Student Chapter was active this semester and an article highlighting their activities will be published in a future newsletter. Outside of the student group’s activities, our committee was able to organize and sponsor a number of interesting and useful events for the students. Recent Events Last December, ten engineering students had the opportunity to "Spend a Day with an Engineer". With the help of various corporate and public agency sponsors, students had the opportunity to spend a half-day or full-day learning about different career choices and opportunities. Feedback from both the students and sponsors was excellent. Next year we hope to make it easier for more students to participate by scheduling this event earlier in the semester and providing transportation to sponsor organizations that are not located on mass transit routes. In March, the annual Student Career Night was held in Oakland at the monthly Bay Section dinner meeting. Prior to the dinner, over 50 students from local colleges had the opportunity to discuss career options with engineering consulting firms, municipalities, and public agencies from around the Bay Area. The following sponsors were a key part in the success of the career fair and student night, and we appreciate their continued support of this event:
After the career fair, two student speakers from UC Berkeley gave presentations on their doctorate research topics. Katherine (Trina) McMahon discussed "The Search for the Bio-P Bug in Activated Sludge" and Anna Schmid spoke on "Hormone Removal in Wastewater Treatment". Both of these talks gave the audience a good idea of the emerging technologies and issues that will become increasingly useful and important in the next few years. Upcoming Events and How to Get Involved The summer typically signals a slow-down in student activities, as the students are away from campus until classes start again in the fall. However, this slow-down gives the committee a few months to get organized for the next semester. We are actively looking for new members interested in becoming involved with student activities. All we need are a few people to provide ideas and to help organize events that will expose students to the many opportunities available to them. Remember that exposure to many of the activities and projects that we are involved with on a daily basis can be new and exciting to college students who are trying to find out how their education fits into possible career paths. If you have any ideas or would like to talk about how you can get more involved with the Student Activities Committee or the Berkeley Campus Student Chapter, please feel free to contact me at gsheehan@carollo.com or (925) 932-1710. Also, please check out the CWEA web site at www.cwea.org for the latest information on CWEA events and activities. SBSA
Seeks Protection of Sewer Pipeline Easement at Bair Island SBSA Press Release Preserving access to a wastewater pipeline that services 135,000 southern San Mateo County residences and businesses should be a component of an environmental impact study for restoration plans at Bair Island in Redwood City. That’s the message of the South Bayside System Authority. More than 75 persons attended a workshop this week hosted by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to receive public comments on the future of Bair Island. Clyde Morris, manager for the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge, of which the 3,200-acre Bair Island is its newest addition, said the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service intends to prepare an environmental impact statement and environmental impact report for the development of a restoration and management plan for Bair Island. Bair Island, which is actually three islands with sloughs snaking through them, is located northeast of Highway 101 between Whipple Avenue and Holly Street. The purpose of the workshop at the Community Activities Building in Redwood City was to receive public comment to identify issues and concerns that will be considered in the preparation of the draft EIS, which Morris said is scheduled for release in February 2001. Rather than receive public testimony, the workshop directed participants to go to various stations staffed by Fish & Wildlife Service and voice their concerns or issues relating to the future of Bair Island. Those concerns were posted on easels for others to see. Issues ranged from maintaining public walking and running and hiking on Bair Island to totally restoring the Island to marshland. The SBSA provides wastewater treatment services to 200,000 customers in southern San Mateo County. SBSA is owned by the cities of Belmont, Redwood City and San Carlos, and the West Bay Sanitary District, which provides services to portions or all of Atherton, Menlo Park, Portola Valley and Woodside. The SBSA in 1969 constructed a five-foot diameter pipeline along a levee in what is generally regarded as Inner Bair Island. The SBSA at the time acquired an easement from Leslie Salt Company (and its subsequent successors). This easement grants right of entry for operation and maintenance of the pipeline. This pipeline carries wastewater from the City of Redwood City and jurisdictions within the West Bay Sanitary District to the SBSA plant in Redwood Shores. Combined, the service area represents 135,000 customers. "It is imperative that suitable access be continued in the future so that SBSA can fulfill its obligations to service and maintain the pipeline," SBSA Manager Jim Bewley said. "The levee must also be protected from erosion to assure adequate maintenance, operation, repair and replacement of the pipeline." Morris reported that plan objectives for Bair Island include enhancing the public awareness "of the unique resources by providing opportunities for wildlife-oriented recreation and nature study, and restoring the island to provide critical habitat for the endangered salt harvest mouse and the California clapper rail." Opening Pond A-12 either by controlled flooding or tidal action could seriously impair SBSA’s ability to operate its pipeline, according to Bewley. "This is because either action could flood a portion of the pipeline easement there by obstructing SBSA’s access to its facility and, over time, eroding the levee in the vicinity of the pipeline," Bewley explained. "The latter event would ultimately cause the pipeline to fail, through loss of support." Bewley said either effect "clearly endangers SBSA’s ability to carry out its duty to provide for the public safety, health and welfare through its sanitary facilities." This is why, Bewley said, the SBSA strongly recommended that these issues be considered in the environmental analysis. Bewley said possible solutions include:
"The SBSA does not have a position on the overall land use alternatives for Bair Island," Bewley said. "Our concern and expectation is to assure continued access to the legal easement that the SBSA acquired for the pipeline so that required maintenance and service for 135,000 customers can be maintained." The pipeline has leaked and undoubtedly will leak again due to the inherent instability of bay mud in which it is installed, Bewley noted. "We must have adequate, safe and convenient access to its facility." Morris said Bair Island is one of the largest, remaining restorable wetland in the south San Francisco Bay. "According to the Salt Harvest Mouse and Clapper Rail Recovery Plan, Bair Island must be restored in order to prevent extinction of these two species," he said. South Bayside System Authority |
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