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Public Works Department Wastewater Division. The City’s Wastewater Division consists of two sections: Plant Operation and Collection System. The Plant Operation staff performs operations and maintenance at the Calera Creek Water Recycling Plant. The Collection System staff performs operations and maintenance of the collection system.
The Wastewater System is operated by the City as an enterprise fund under the authority of the City Council. The Wastewater System is administered by the Director of Public Works who provides management oversight support and direction for all operations, including coordination and evaluation of programs undertaken by Wastewater Division and preparation and monitoring of operating and capital budgets. As of June 30, 2016, the Wastewater Department Division consisted of 24 full-time equivalent employees (“FTE”), which is equivalent to approximately 12.5% of the total number of City FTE employees as of such date.
City Employee Pension Plans
The City provides health and retirement benefits to all full-time employees of the Wastewater System, the costs of which are reflected in the operating budgets of the Wastewater System. Retirement benefits are provided through a contract with the California Public Employees’ Retirement System with all Wastewater System employees covered under the Miscellaneous Plan. See APPENDIX B for a summary of the City’s pension and other postemployment benefits.
THE WASTEWATER SYSTEM
Wastewater Facilities and Operations
General. The Wastewater System consists of the sanitary sewer collection system (96 miles of gravity pipeline and 4 miles of force mains), and the Calera Creek treatment plant and disposal facilities. The Wastewater System provides collection, treatment and disposal of all residential, and commercial sewage in the City service area. Facilities specifically include the following:
• Calera Creek Water Recycling Plant (the “Calera Creek Plant” or “CCWRP”), • sewage and storm water drainage pump stations, and
• 100 miles of sanitary sewers.
The Calera Creek Water Recycling Plant. The Calera Creek Plant began operations in 2000 and consists of a sequencing batch reactor biological treatment process, auto-thermal thermophylic aerobic digestion solids treatment process, sand filtration, and ultra-violet light for a final disinfection process. The Calera Creek Plant is controlled by a supervisory control and data acquisition system and the daily operators take and test samples at an on-site State certified lab to determine the operational effectiveness are the various processes. The Calera Creek Plant has one of the most stringent permits in California and there were no violations of this permit in 2016.
The Calera Creek Plant was designed with the capacity to treat a daily dry weather wastewater flow of 4 million gallons per day (“MGD”) with a peak daily capacity of approximately 20 million gallons (“MG”). The average daily demand on the Calera Creek Plant in calendar 2016 was 2.65 MGD. The peak daily wastewater flow load on the treatment plant -19-
was 18.83 MG which occurred on March 13, 2016 due to a storm in the area. The month that historically has the highest average daily flow is January, and in calendar year 2016 the average daily wastewater flow in that month was 4.05 MGD. For calendar year 2017 to date, the peak month flow has been March, with an average daily wastewater flow of 5.63 MGD.
The City’s Sewer Maintenance Program. The Collection System staff manages an ongoing sewer system maintenance program in compliance with the City’s SSO Reduction Plan. The SSO Reduction Plan was developed for the City by RMC Engineering and the information from that plan is incorporated in a Computerized Asset Management/Maintenance System (the “CMMS”). The data that is aggregated in the CMMS is used to update scheduled cleaning of the Wastewater System and to schedule any needed repairs.
Sewer Pipe Inspections and Repairs. The City has implemented a number of measures to ensure that the Wastewater System operates and is maintained is good working condition, including the following:
• In-house Inspection Program: This program was established to identify sources of potential overflows and infiltration and inflow. Since the inspection program was implemented, the City has inspected over 96 miles of sewer mains, or approximately 100% of the sanitary sewer collection system. • Sewer Repair Crews: The Collection System Division has a regular sewer repair crew that performs spot repairs of main lines identified as category four or five defects. In 2016 the Collection System Division performed over 35 spot repairs and main line replacements with this in-house crew. • Chemical Root Control Program: The City administers a program to minimize major root intrusion issues related to the Wastewater System. • Fats, Oils and Grease (“F.O.G.”) and Source Control Programs:
Wastewater Department staff inspects the food establishments and F.O.G. producers in the City approximately once or twice a year to confirm compliance with City ordinances and to require upgrades where needed.
Any establishments identified as not in compliance are sent a formal letter requiring them to come into compliance or face fines.
• Private Sewer Lateral Ordinance: Places the responsibility for maintaining and upgrading individual building sewer laterals with property owners, and requires a condition assessment and potential replacement of the sewer lateral at a transfer of property event, significant structure remodel, addition of drain or fixture, or a change in water services. Source control staff performed over 253 construction inspections of private sewer lateral replacements in 2016 and many were replaced as a result of this ordinance.
Wastewater System Power Providers. The Calera Creek Plant, wastewater pump stations, and all other facilities are supplied regular power by Pacific Gas & Electric Company (“PG&E”). In addition, the Calera Creek Plant and the pump stations have emergency power generators that can provide uninterrupted power to fully operate the facilities when PG&E power has failed. The generators at Calera Creek Plant, Linda Mar Pump Station, Sharp Park Pump Station, and Skyridge Pump Station are fueled by diesel. The generators at Rockaway Pump Station and Brighton Pump Station are fueled by natural gas. Anza Stormwater Pump