The Mission Bay Park Committee (MBPC) heard information on secondary treatment at the Point Loma Wastewater Treatment Plant (PLWTP) at its Tuesday, Dec. 4, meeting at the Santa Clara Recreation Center, 1008 Santa Clara Place.
The committee’s Council District 2 representative, Karl Jaedtke, presided in Chairperson Rick Bussell’s absence.
San Diego is the only city in the state not moving toward secondary treatment of sewage, as outlined in the Clean Water Act (CWA). Mayor Jerry Sanders has decided that the city will continue to monitor conditions and move to secondary treatment if and when those conditions change.
The CWA is written with a “one size fits all” approach, Dr. Timothy Bertch of the city’s Metropolitan Wastewater Department said in a phone interview. “The standard is the same whether (a plant) is discharging into a pond in New Hampshire or an ocean in California.”
Oceans are better able than smaller bodies of water to handle discharge, so facilities like the PLWTP can apply for a waiver, Bertch said.
In November 1995, the city received such a waiver. It was renewed in September 2003 but will expire in June 2008. Under its modified permit, the city removes more than 85 percent of suspended solids discharged into the ocean.
The city maintains that a deep ocean outfall, advanced primary treatment of wastewater, rigorous monitoring of environmental conditions and other factors fully protect the ocean from sewage.
Some environmentalists disagree and have demanded that the Point Loma facility be retrofitted to facilitate secondary treatment.
Such a retrofit could cost the city up to $1.5 billion. That could mean an increase in average sewage bills from $38 to approximately $65 per month.
The committee did not discuss the financial cost of secondary treatment versus retrofitting but instead focused on energy and environmental impact.
“Right now, Point Loma Waste is a green facility,” Jaedtke said. “They give some of the energy they make back. If we go to secondary treatment, they’d actually be one of the top 20 users of electricity in San Diego.”
As sludge is processed at the plant, methane is produced and used to fuel two Caterpillar engines in the PLWTP’s Gas Utilization Facility. The excess energy produced is then sold to a local energy grid.
“It’s a net negative environmental impact,” Bertch said.
In other business, the committee approved the Humane Society’s permit request for the 2008 Walk for Animals.
The MBPC will not meet in January.