From the Manager
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By Teresa Herrera
SVCW Manager
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I’ve been contemplating the topic of transparency in government lately. With all that is occurring on the national level, I’ve been impelled to bring it home and evaluate how I operate in the realm of right vs. wrong, just vs. unjust, and an individual’s right to privacy vs. the public’s right to know.
It’s a deep and broad subject, one that everyone will develop their own position on based on a myriad of personal and professional experiences.
My instinct has always been to maintain a high level of personal privacy and now, as Manager of this wonderful agency, I find that following my instinct isn’t always the appropriate approach.
Building trust and enabling folks to be their absolute best requires sharing information, ideas, and sentiments about things. It takes being open to input and being able to actively listen to what people are telling me. I have to set my ego aside and really think hard about the best approach to ensuring the good of our agency. I need to be transparent about what I’m thinking and feeling so that others can understand where I'm coming from.
This isn’t always easy. Sometimes I just want to make a decision and move on. But if I do that, I don’t provide my team members with the opportunity to learn and grow. We lose the opportunity for all of us to share ideas, strengthen our bonds, and develop better ways to move forward.
All in all, I think that transparency definitely has its place in the scheme of governing, and while it isn’t always possible to be 100% transparent, it is something to strive for. I realize that if I continue to be self-reflective, curious, and open to hearing what others tell me, we all benefit. I give myself the opportunity to be my absolute best and I enable others to be their absolute best as well. It is also the way to get to the best answers and create a culture of innovation.
If you'd like to read up on some of the ways SVCW is innovating our approach to clean water, click
here
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The Regional Environmental Sewer Conveyance Upgrade (RESCU) Program includes 11 projects that will constitute full replacement and
rehabilitation of SVCW’s sewer conveyance system. It will support the safety and reliability of the community’s wastewater system and protect the San Francisco Bay through rehabilitation and re-purposing of existing infrastructure, and construction of new facilities. Below are the latest updates for the major projects.
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Aerial view of the Receiving Lift Station (RLS) shaft and the Surge and Flow Splitter (SFS) shaft.
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We continue to make progress on the rehabilitation and replacement of SVCW's conveyance system, which will ensure we can efficiently move and treat wastewater from its four member agencies (Belmont, San Carlos, Redwood City, and the West Bay Sanitary District) for many decades to come. Following is an update on the Front of Plant Project (FoP) which includes a new wastewater receiving lift station, new headworks to remove rags and grit before they reach the wastewater treatment plant, and an influent pipe to convey flow from the headworks to the plant.
SVCW and its design-build partner, Shea-Parsons Joint Venture (SPJV), have finalized the design elements for the FoP using the Progressive Design Build project delivery method. This method integrates members of the design-build team with the SVCW team starting at the earliest stages of project development and ensures strong collaboration on developing design solutions and resolving construction challenges as the project moves forward.
In the field, excavation of the 90-foot deep Receiving Lift Station (RLS) shaft is complete. Next, SPJV will pour a thin layer of concrete to create a working surface at the bottom of the shaft. This shaft is built to house the new lift pumps and related support equipment. The new RLS will have capacity to pump at a maximum flow rate of 80 million gallons per day. That's nearly 56,000 gallons per minute! It will be the delivery system for raw wastewater moving from the discharge end of the new gravity pipeline up to the new SVCW headworks.
Concurrently, we began excavation of the Surge and Flow Splitter (SFS) shaft. We expect it to be completed by the end of November. The SFS provides surge protection during high flows and dissipates the energy of the influent flow before it reaches the RLS. Once the excavation of the SFS is complete, a temporary slab for Salus, the tunnel boring machine, will be installed. Salus will bore through a special section in the wall panel of the SFS shaft.
We also started construction on the above-grade portions of the new headworks structure. This month, we'll build the first-level concrete walls, columns, and temporary framework structures for future storage rooms and working decks.
The project is on track for completion in 2022. Read more
here
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Rebar set in wall panels ready for the next concrete pour.
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Living Our Mission:
No Single-Use Plastic Bottles at SVCW
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SVCW used to discard 1,300 plastic bottles a month. That amounted to 16,000 bottles a year. Using single-use plastic bottles is not in alignment with our agency’s mission, so we did the only responsible thing -- we stopped.
Now we provide everyone at our plant with stainless steel insulated water bottles, which they can refill from our onsite water treatment systems. By doing this, we improved our own environmental record, and encouraged others to take this eco-friendly habit home to their families. It’s easy to do, and it helps keep plastics from polluting our water and harming marine life.
In the U.S., the 2018 plastic recycling rate was projected to be an abysmal 4.4 percent. That year, the United States ranked 20th on the list of countries contributing to plastic pollution in the ocean with an estimated 88 to 242 million pounds/year of plastic marine debris.
We’re fooling ourselves if we think we are being green by putting our plastic water bottles in the recycling bin. South Bayside Waste Management Authority (SBWMA) of San Carlos reports that there is no market for plastic waste. China was the
world’s largest buyer of plastic recyclables
but as of January 1, 2018, they stopped accepting plastic waste from other countries. They also closed their borders to 24 categories of recyclable waste, including several kinds of scrap plastic and mixed paper.
The move hit hard in the U.S., which has historically exported about one-third of its recyclables annually, most of it to China. Across the U.S., mountains of plastics and other recyclable materials, including paper and cardboard, have been piling up or going into landfills. This is becoming a crisis for our region, state, and nation. Many municipalities across the country — from
Sacramento, California
to
Hooksett, New Hampshire
— have canceled or significantly curtailed their recycling programs.
We encourage people to feel good about recycling, but it’s much more complicated than putting a bottle in a bin. If you think by using the recycling bin you’re not wasting resources and not harming the environment, then you clearly don’t understand what’s happening.
Since China stopped accepting recyclables, countries began exporting their recyclables to Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam. However these types of exports were not yet legal and the countries were not ready to accept shipments, so their governments had to temporarily ban the import of plastic scrap last year. They will eventually lift the bans once new regulations are approved, but the expectation is that only limited amounts of plastics will be allowed into these countries.
A 2018 proposal from Norway would add plastic scrap to the list of materials covered by the
Basel Convention
, a 1992 treaty on the movement of hazardous waste between nations. While 185 countries, including those in the EU, abide by the treaty, t
he U.S. does not. But the proposal would apply to everyone accepting plastics.
Many countries are moving towards a complete ban of all single-use plastics. By setting an example here at SVCW, and encouraging our staff to do the same at home, we are doing our part to inspire everyone to stop using single-use plastic water bottles.
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Have a Plumber-Free Holiday!
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Many of us look forward to this time of year, when family and friends gather to celebrate and enjoy the delicious bounty of the season. The holidays are also the busiest time of the year for plumbers, because amidst all the merrymaking we forget to be mindful of keeping fats, oils, and grease (FOG) out of our pipes. And nothing interrupts a wonderful holiday gathering like having to call the plumber.
Why is FOG so Harmful to Plumbing?
Sewer overflows happen when the pipes that run from your home to the street become clogged. FOG buildup and debris cause the majority of sewer overflows in the Bay Area. To stay in the flow this holiday, keep FOG, hair, wipes, and other things that can cause backups out of your pipes. Remember only toilet paper and human waste should ever be flushed down the drain.
How to Dispose of Grease
To dispose of small amounts of FOG, wipe the pan with a paper towel or pour grease in a container and let it cool and solidify, then place it in the trash. Large quantities of FOG from frying turkeys or other foods should be taken to a collection event or grease disposal site. Here are some places that accept FOG:
San Mateo County Transfer Stations
Some Restaurants and Grocers -- Ask yours.
We wish you happy, plumber-free holidays this season! Read more tips
here.
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