City sued over sewer overflows
By Michelle Durand
San Mateo Daily Journal
San Francisco Baykeeper has added San Carlos to its list of Peninsula cities sued because of sewer overflows but the city contends its aggressive program is addressing the problem of an outdated system.
The city hopes to reach a settlement with SF Baykeeper, in part by developing an agreement recognizing the steps already taken to reduce overflows, said City Attorney Greg Rubens.
Unlike the city of Millbrae which is protesting the number of violations claimed in the federal lawsuit, Rubens said it is too early in the process to know if San Carlos can make the same claims.
“I haven’t evaluated every single one to see if the city is liable or if it is private property,” Rubens said. “This is just the beginning.”
The lawsuits aimed at San Carlos, Millbrae and the West Bay Sanitary District alleges rampant sewage problems and calls for badly-needed upgrades. The three jurisdictions, according to the suit, have dilapidated systems that have spilled “thousands of gallons of sewage over the past five years” which threaten “the health of the Bay and its wildlife, as well as recreational users of popular South Bay spots like Bair Island and Corkscrew Slough.”
The suits mimic those filed earlier by SF Baykeeper against the city of Burlingame and the town of Hillsborough. Both were settled in July.
All are part of the group’s Sick of Sewage Initiative, aimed at reining in the Bay’s spill problem by suing for alleged violations of the Clean Water Act.
Like many Peninsula cities, San Carlos’ sewer system is antiquated, dating back to the early 1900s. In 1988, the city began an aggressive sewer main replacement and has averaged spending $840,000 on the system over the last five years, according to Public Works Director Robert Weil.
Increased maintenance includes root control, inspections every 90 days for problem areas, more cleaning, certification of workers and a reduction in fats, oils and grease. All together, the efforts caused a drop in sewer system overflows from 78 in 2007 to 69 in 2008, Weil said in an announcement of the lawsuit.
The current sewer budget includes a $94,000 study on ways to be even more effective. Although city officials are working on an agreement with Baykeeper, they are also asking residents to help out by not flushing baby wipes, diapers or towelettes down the toilet and throwing cooking grease in the trash rather than down the sink.
While San Carlos is in the beginning stages of the suit, the city of Millbrae is aggressively fighting back by claiming that more than 90 percent of the alleged 6,500 violations are unsubstantiated.
After the city received a notice of intent to file suit, City Manager Marcia Raines called the claims “largely unfounded” and highlighted improvements to its sewer system.
The city is about to break ground on a $30 million renovation of its Water Pollution Control Plan, including installation of a 1.2 million gallon underground flow equalization structure. The structure will give the sewer collection system extra storage capacity to reduce the duration and size of overflows.
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