We aren’t sure where things are going….Our country is going through rapid changes now, and no one knows how things will end up, whether locally or nationally. One thing seems obvious however, people now in control of government appear to care more about money and power, than the good health and wellbeing of citizens and their environment.
Agencies and programs are being defunded right and left and those public servants with expertise on keeping things running smoothly, are moving out in large numbers. In several cases, high level agency heads, such as Cabinet members, with no experience in the field to which they are appointed, do not even possess the skills to lead large national programs for which they have been made responsible. While California is attempting to hang on to our environmental values, the methods that some agencies use may have undesired results.
Big changes call for addressing old problems & new requirements….Major changes are coming to West County in the form of new septic system requirements. The focus promises to be on individual systems that don’t or can’t meet new requirements and are most likely to pollute a waterway. Consequently, those properties in close proximity to the river will receive early attention over the twenty year period during which these changes will be phased in. Septic systems may need to be abandoned in some areas and replaced with hookups to central sewer systems. This can be an expensive proposal for someone used to not paying large sewer fees. We don’t know yet how this will play out for homeowners, but we will keep tracking it to keep you informed. The action plan still needs to be approved by the State Water Board. The emphasis on expanding central sewer systems in West Sonoma County may have huge cost impacts and end up urbanizing several sections of the area and having major impacts on the natural environment. Is it wise to damage part of the area in order to save another part?
Because it is difficult (or impossible) to get loans and grants from the government for individual septic systems, close attention is being paid by government officials for funding opportunities to build and/or repair central sewer systems which may take on the loadings from nearby septic systems. Some think this is the cheapest way to go, though that is not necessarily the case. Care needs to be taken that plans and projected expenses are realistic and cover all contingencies. Many older central systems are in trouble now because new requirements are usually expensive to meet, maintenance grows more expensive each year, and necessary upgrades fall further behind as funds are prioritized to keep system functioning properly. Russian River County Sanitation District, (RRCSD), is required to prevent spills during major floods, but nevertheless has so far inadequately addressed their collection system problems. At least $47,000,000 is needed now for repairs to get it in full compliance.
Planners have been informing local citizens that their central sewer system fees would be reduced if communities are joined together in lengthy pipelines and expanded waste treatment facilities. But many of the suggested configurations may cost over $200 million dollars to construct. That is hardly affordable unless significant expanded growth occurs and many more people are required to hookup to the system. Their intention may be to ultimately persuade current property owners to dispose of septic systems entirely if they are in relatively close proximity to a treatment plant. RRCSD ratepayers now contribute over $2000 a year to the system that still needs $47 million worth of repairs. Local government can probably get State or Federal funds to pay at least part of the bill if spent on current central sewer treatment facilities. Government has indicated little interest in funding septic system upgrades.
“West County Water Quality and Recycled Water Supply Feasibility Study” In our last mailer we gave details on two of the eight proposals put forward in the initial study. Since then, three proposals were eliminated from consideration. We describe here one of the three proposals still remaining but not described in our last letter. (This document is a very rough design proposal of only a few pages, that is currently being reviewed inhouse. We are part of the citizen’s group giving input. None of these ideas are going to become reality for many years but will have such a large impact that we wanted to inform you early on in the process.) If you have questions, please send them to me via email and I will try to get them addressed. The first committee meeting looked at treatment plant costs for each alternative.
This letter covers Alternative 2b selected as our example. This alternative would export all West County wastewater from current facilities to Santa Rosa’s treatment facility at 4300 Llano Road, 20 plus miles away. It would involve constructing 20.8 miles of new pipeline and cost for merely hooking up to SR’s system would cost $61 million dollars. (Treatment and other services would be charged separately.)
Initial plan describes Alternative 2b this way:
- All untreated wastewater flows from west county would be treated at the Subregional Laguna Treatment Plant operated by the City of Santa Rosa. Estimated capital costs for this scenario are $165.7 to $248.5 million and 29.3 miles of new wastewater conveyance pipelines –with 9 river crossings- would be needed. (Another part of the same document says there are 4 crossings.)
- In another document following on August 27, 2025, this option was stated to cost $258.6M (The citizens committee did not prefer this option but it has not yet been eliminated.) Also, this cost does not include costs of hooking up any unsewered communities such as Monte Rio and Villa Grande.
- The phrase: “…all untreated wastewater flows from west county includes”: Guerneville, Graton, Occidental, and Forestville (I enumerated the four west county systems being included in the analysis.)
- We had separately been informed that there is not enough capacity in Sebastopol’s pipeline and it’s unclear if this has been calculated into the estimates. We believe that a larger pipeline would be needed to be built and this could add excessive costs to what is included now.
- Furthermore, the notes of the August 27th meeting claim that the study is only looking at treatment plant options and estimates don’t include collection system issues and expenses. $258.5 estimate would go into the stratosphere when joined with collection system repairs and new construction.
- The discrepancies in cost figures, and what is included, and what is not, indicates that this is going to be prohibitively expensive and it leads us to wonder if different people came up with different numbers. A lot more work is needed on this segment and presenters need to speak with one voice.
This is all preliminary information and just a sample of what is being considered. We are tracking this proposal carefully and will keep you informed. When they come out with the final proposal, that is when we will analyze project details more closely. Also, analysis of irrigation capacity that would be made available by each of the final options is a major component to be considered in our next meeting.
RRWPC needs your continued support! Donor contributions sustain our independent river protection work and are badly needed now. Furthermore, we inform our community about topics not usually covered in local newspapers. We rely exclusively on five or six mailers a year to supporters for our entire fiscal support. We are primarily a volunteer organization and appreciate any amount you can contribute. Donations may be sent via mailed check (with card and envelope provided) or by using PayPal at our website (www.rrwpc.org). Thank you!
Also, we have been having trouble with our email lists and request that you send us a notice via email if you change your contact information, especially your active email address. When you don’t notify us, the whole list usually goes bad and we have to spend hours figuring out which is the non-working address. We only send out occasional emails when we need your help addressing important, and especially last minute meetings and events that need more input than our group can provide all alone. Brenda