Posts

First Rain of Season Unveils a New Pollution Problem: Masks and Gloves — Pandemic PPE

/in , , /by /San Francisco Chronicleby Kurtis Alexander

The Bay Area’s first rain of the season is washing away worries of wildfire and drought. But it’s also bringing a new concern: gobs of face masks flooding San Francisco Bay.

Early season storms typically sweep a slurry of debris from streets and sidewalks into rivers, creeks and bays. This year, the fall flush not only contains the usual gunk, waste experts say, but a whole lot of discarded PPE — or personal protective equipment, the detritus of the pandemic.

Full Story

Benefits Bubble Up: Wastewater Treatment

/in , , /by /Water & Wastes Digestby Bob Crossen

What makes Bear Republic Brewing Company special is just how conscious its chief operating officer and master brewer is of water’s impact on the business and its local community.

Bear Republic was established in Sonoma County, California, in 1995 by the Norgrove family, and opened its first brew pub in January of 1997 in Healdsburg, California. In November of that year, Peter Kruger was hired to the company, launching his career path to his current position as Bear Republic Brewing Company master brewer and chief operating officer.

At the time he was hired, Kruger said the wastewater from the beer making process was sent through the sewer system to the municipal wastewater treatment plant.

Full Story

Region’s Water Quality Celebrated by Switchfoot Musician Jon Foreman

/in , , /by /Water News Network by Ed Joyce Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

As part of its campaign to promote the quality of local water supplies, the San County Diego Water Authority and its 24 member agencies have partnered with Encinitas resident and Grammy-award winning musician Jon Foreman of Switchfoot to create a series of videos highlighting how tap water across the region meets or exceeds stringent state and federal standards.

The new videos are part of the Water Authority’s regional Trust the Tap outreach and education platform, which was launched in early 2020 to assure the public about the safety of water during the coronavirus pandemic.

Full Story

FPUD Rejects Bids for Granulated Activated Carbon System

/in , /by /Village Newsby Joe Naiman

The Fallbrook Public Utility District will be repeating the bid process for granular activated carbon treatment system equipment. A 5-0 FPUD board vote Oct. 27 rejected both bids submitted earlier in the month and directed district staff to readvertise the procurement of the treatment equipment for bid.

Full Story

West Valley Water District Approves Water Infrastructure Improvements in North Fontana

/in , , /by /Herald News

The West Valley Water District Board of Directors has approved a series of critical water infrastructure improvements for North Fontana residents in Zone 7. The actions will ensure that WVWD will be able to better maintain and control the steady flow of water to the area’s residents, WVWD said in a news release on Sept. 22. The project is located west of Citrus Avenue and north of Interstate 15.

Full Story

Water’s Long Journey to Your Faucet

/in , , /by /NBC 7 San Diegoby Joe Little

Most people take it for granted. You turn the faucet on, and water comes out.

But it isn’t that simple. In fact, it’s far more complicated to fill a glass with clean drinking water.

That’s one of the reasons why the City of San Diego’s Public Utilities Department is mailing residents the annual Drinking Water Quality Report this week.

“A lot of people just think that when you turn the tap water on, it’s just coming from the lakes and the streams,” said Michael Simpson, the Senior Water Operations Supervisor at the Alvarado Water Treatment Plant near Lake Murray.

Full Story

Vallecitos Water District Employs Technology to Decrease TSS, pH and Algal Blooms

/in , , /by /WaterWorld Magazine

Vallecitos Water District provides 5.25 million gallons of recycled water for irrigation every day. To fulfill the demands of modern irrigation systems, it is important to maintain low TSS levels. This is a challenge during the warm months in California, as algae that occur with raising temperatures, increase the level of TSS and clog the filters that are meant to remove TSS before the distribution of water to the irrigation systems.

Vallecitos Water District is known for its’ sustainable and innovative focus when it comes to water and wastewater treatment.

Full Story

PFAS Management to Drive $12.1 Billion in Water Utility Spending Over Next Decade

/in , , /by /WaterWorld Magazine

Mounting public concerns and new state regulations in the U.S. are compelling water & wastewater utilities to address health risks associated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) – a class of pervasive chemicals found in drinking water and wastewater biproducts.

According to a new report from Bluefield Research, PFAS: The Next Challenge for Water Utilities, more than US $3 billion is forecasted to be spent annually on drinking water remediation technologies by 2030. While any significant increase in water treatment solutions hinges on federal policies, 29 states have already implemented a mix of policy directives, including testing requirements, prohibitions on product applications (e.g., food packaging), and the elimination of select fiirefighting foam constituents.

Full Story

Coronavirus: The Workers Keeping the Water Flowing

/in , , /by /BBC Newsby Cormac Campbell

The way we use water is one of the many aspects of daily life that has changed in lockdown.

Commercial use may be down, but domestic use has increased.

With greater levels of hand washing, tea drinking and gardening, demand has risen “considerably,” according to David Murray, a field technician for the water network.

Mr. Murray has worked with water for 35 years and has seen how our recent usage has put pressure on the system.

Full Story

Colorado Sewage Treatment Plants are Examining Your Poop for Coronavirus Clues. Seriously.

/in , , /by /The Colorado Sunby Nancy Lofholm

For 24 hours starting early every Sunday morning, small pipes suck samples from the river of sewage flowing into the South Platte Water Renewal Partners wastewater treatment plant in Englewood for 24 hours.

The tubes deposit the raw sewage into containers inside a box that resembles a mini fridge. Goggled, masked and gloved workers then haul the samples to the plant lab, package it in special vials and overnight it to a lab near Boston.

Full Story