Ojai Valley Sanitary District

PIPELINE

Winter 2010Issue Number 21

Vital Information on Sanitary Service for our Residents of the District

Time is Running Out Ojai Valley property own-ers with unpermitted (bootleggedandillegal)sewerconnectionshaveonly sixmonths left to come for-wardvoluntarily,correctthesitua-tionandgetoffwithoutapenalty. If violators take steps to cor-recttheirunpermittedconnectionsby first notifying the Ojai ValleySanitary District (OVSD) withinthe grace period ending June 30,2011, theywill avoidunpaidsew-er services fees, fines, and penal-ties–which in the aggregate canbeconsiderable.

It’s known that hundreds oflocalpropertyownershaveunper-mittedsewerconnections,mostof-tenfromillegallyconvertedgaragesand granny flats. These violatorshave been getting away with notpayingtheirfairshareforsanitarysewerserviceforyears. Since the grace period be-ganJuly1of thisyear,a fewresi-dentshaveinquiredaboutthepro-gram,butnonehascomeforwardto become properly permitted.That surprises and disappointsDistrict officials, who feel thenewenforcementordinanceoffers

a basically non-punitive path-way to correct what in many

cases have been long-standingviolations.

“This is an importantissue because the sewerratespaidbythemajor-ityaresubsidizingthese

unpermitted connec-tions,” said John K.Correa,P.E.,OVSDGeneral Manager.“We are engagingin this new pro-gram in the interest

of fairness–makingsure that nobody gets

awaywithbeingservedforfree.It’sallamatteroftreatingpeopleequal-lyandseeingtoitthat

everybodyplaysbytherules. “There’s still some time left,

andwe’rehopingthatourDistrictcustomerswhoareinviolationwillaccept the opportunity to make

things right with minimumconsequences to themselvesandtheirpocketbooks,”saidCorrea.

Enforcement MeasureHas Two Phases Duringthefirstphase(whichbegan July 1, 2010 and continuesthrough June 30, 2011) the Dis-trict will waive all unpaid sewerservicecharges,penaltiesandfinesforthosepropertyownerswhovol-untarilynotifytheDistrictoftheirunpermittedconnectionsandtakethestepsnecessarytopermitthoseillegalconnections.Inordertoper-mit the connection, the propertyownerwillhavetopaycertainfeesand charges, including applicablecapacitychargesandregularsewerservicecharges.

During the second phase(from June 30, 2011 forward), allproperty owners with unpermit-tedresidentialconnectionswillbesubject to up to three years’ un-paid sewer service charges, fines,penalties and other District costsrelated to correcting the unper-mitted connection plus applicablecapacitychargesandregularsewerservicecharges. Duringthesecondphase,theDistrictwillbeactivelyidentifyingunpermitted connections throughlawfullyconductedinspections. “We have already identifiedmorethan100apparentviolators,”saidCorrea. Under theDistrict’s newen-forcement policies, property own-erswithanunpermittedresidentialconnection have the option, withno cost imposed by the District,of voluntarily disconnecting theunpermitted sewer connection oraltering the use of the offendingstructuresothatitssewerconnec-tiondoesnot require apermit. Inaddition, there are procedures es-tablishedbywhichpropertyown-ers will be duly noticed and pro-vided an opportunity to be heardregarding an alleged unpermittedresidentialsewerconnection. Ifyou’re interestedinlegaliz-inganunpermitted connectionorneedadditionalinformationaboutdisconnecting an unpermittedsewerconnection,calltheDistrict’sCustomer Service Representative,LaurieJohnson,at(805)646-5548.

The complete ordinance addressing unpermitted

connections can be viewed on the District’s website at

www.ojaisan.org.

The Clock is Tickingfor Sewer Connection Violators

Ojai Valley Sanitary District1072 Tico Road, Ojai, CA 93023www.ojaisan.org

BOaRD Of DIRectORSGeorge Galgas, Division 1 Randy Burg, Division 2Pete Kaiser, Division 3 ChairmanJack curtis, Division 4 SecretaryRuss Baggerly, Division 5 Assistant SecretaryStan Greene, Division 6Vice ChairmanWilliam Murphy, Division 7

General ManagerJohn K. correa

PIPELINEPrinted on recycled paper with vegetable-based inks.

A Brief History of

SanitationContinued

Some local residents mightwonder just what it is that theOjaiValleySanitaryDistrictactu-allydoes. Theshortanswerisweprotectour environment. In so doing, wehelpmaintainthehealthandwell-beingofarearesidents.Toaccom-plishtheseresponsibilities,we:

•TakecareoftheValley’swaste-watercollectionsystem–120milesofundergroundsewerpipelinesbetweentheeastendoftheOjaiValleyandShellRoadatHighway33–continuallycleaning,repairingandrebuild-ingthepipelinesasneeded.

•OperateaWastewaterTreatmentPlant,whichtreatsthesewagefromhomesandbusinessesusingnaturalbiologicalprocesses.Aftertheprocesscleansthe

If you’ve ever endured thestress,strainandstenchofasewagebackupintoyourhome,chancesareyou’lldoeverythinginyourpowertoseethatitneverhappensagain. Whetheryou’veexperiencedabackupornot,youcanreducetherisk that itwillhappen in the fu-ture–with a little easy, preventivemaintenance: keep fats, oils andgreases(FOG)outofyourdrains. Grease congeals and hardensin your lateral (the undergroundpipe in your yard that carrieswastewaterfromyourhousetotheSanitaryDistrict sewer lineunderthe street). The congealing greasecan cause blockages and, some-times,sewagebackups.

waterandmakesitsafefortheenvironment,thewaterisdis-patchedintotheVenturaRiver.

•Respondpromptlytoemergencies.

•Operateanarrayofspecializedequipmentneededtocleanandmaintainthecollectionsystem.

•Keepupwithscientificadvancesinourfieldandcomplywithever-changingenvironmentalregulations.

•Conductpubliceducationprograms.

•Manageourresourcesinafiscallyresponsiblemanner.

•Takeaproactiveapproachtoenvironmentalprotectionforthepresentandthefuture.

TheOjaiValleySanitaryDis-trictmightbeoutofsightand,forthe most part, out of mind; butremember,someofthemostbasicconveniencesyou take forgrantedevery day–sinks that drain, toi-lets that flush, sewers that don’tleak–are there because OVSD isdiligentlyservingtheneedsofourcommunity.

•Pouroffgreasefrompansintoadisposablecontaineranddeposititintothetrash.

•Wipedownallpots,pansandutensilsthoroughlywithpapertowelsbeforewashingthemandplacethetowelsintoyourgarbagereceptacle.

InadditiontoFOG,there’sanother potential threat toyour laterals, right out inyour yard. Avoid plant-ing trees and shrubsdirectly above the lat-eral. Roots commonlygrow into sewer laterals,particularly at the joints,andcancausemajorblockages.

FormuchofU.S.history, theouthouseor“privy”wasacommonfeatureof life.Thenationhashada somewhat checkered history ofwastewater management, as theserandom highlights and lowlightssuggest:

•InBoston,priortothe1700s,manyhomeswereseweredtotheneareststreams,viahollowed-outlogs.

•Chicagoin1850developedplanstobuildacomprehensivesystemof“combined”sewers,recognizedasthefirstcomprehensivesew-agesystemintheU.S.Unfor-tunately,thecombinedsystemsweredesignedtodrainintotheChicagoRiver.ThisinturnledtoLakeMichigan,themainsourceofwaterforChicago.In1885,aheavystormcausedtherawsewageintheChicagoRivertobeflushedouttotheLake’sdrinkingwaterintakepoints.Thetyphoidandcholeraepidemicsresultingfromthisdebaclekilledanestimated11to13%ofthepopulation

•BaltimorewasoneofthelastAmericancitiestobantheuseofcesspools.In1915itbecameoneofthelastandlargestAmericancitiestoinstallacomprehensivesewagecollectionsystem.

•Theconstructionofsewersys-temsdidnotnecessarilymeanthatsewagewasbeinghandledsafelyinthe19thandeven20thcenturies.Inthe20thcentury,forexample,rawsewagefromcoastalcitieswasstillbeingintentionallydischargedthroughsewerpipesintotheocean.

Inthe1920s,LosAngelesandmanyof the independentcities inLosAngelesCountyweresewered. Not to be outdone, the CityofOjaibuiltitsownsewercollec-tionsystemandsewage treatmentplantinthelate1920s,quiteanac-complishmentforatownsosmall.In contrast, the unincorporatedareas of the OjaiValley–MeinersOaks,MiraMonte,OakView,Ca-sitasSprings andVenturaAvenuearea–did not have sewer serviceuntilthe1960s.Residentsofthoseareasreliedonseptictanks. Meanwhile,theCityofOjai’scollection system was expanding,drivenbypopulationincreases,butthe city failed tomake theneces-saryinvestmentstoupdate,expandandmodernizeitstreatmentplant.Localsbecameawareofthisbythe1950sand1960swhentheystartednoticing that San Antonio Creekwasfullofsoapsuds. In the early 1960s, as sewerswereconstructedintheunincorpo-rated areas of theValley, the OakView Treatment Plant was built.TheCityofOjaiwasonlytoohap-pytohookuptothenewtreatmentplant. In 1985, as the result of theconsolidation of the Ventura Av-enue,OakViewandMeinersOaksSanitaryDistricts and theSanita-tion Department of the City ofOjai,theOjaiValleySanitaryDis-trictwas formed.TheDistricthasbeen serving the area ever since,constantly updating itself and itsfacilitiesandadheringtothehigh-estenvironmentalstandards.

How to Avert a

Stinking Mess

OVSD: Behind the Scenes, Working for You