My Shot
Yep, sewage. Not the most pleasant subject in the Sierra — but important nonetheless.
The Donner Summit Public Utilities District is undergoing a required facilities upgrade and expansion of its treatment plant in Soda Springs. We expect the final proposal later this year. This is important because:
1. New development needs new treatment capacity — one of many limiting infrastructure factors on Donner Summit. (You can’t sell a subdivision if they can’t flush the toilet.)
2. Treated Donner sewage is discharged into the South Yuba River — an important natural resource on the summit and drinking water downstream. (Some of us even swim in it.)
So, as DSPUD pursues its facilities upgrade, Sierra Watch is working to achieve two important goals. First of all, we will ensure that plant expansions do not include growth-inducing capacity that could subsidize new subdivisions. The draft 2007 development plan for Royal Gorge proposed to remake the summit — not just with new resort homes but also with roads, dams, and other infrastructure to service new development. Too often, developers look to infrastructure upgrades as an indirect solution to their own capacity issues; we won’t let that happen on the summit.
Equally important, we’re working to ensure that plant upgrades enhance water quality in the Yuba River. In 2009, DSPUD was fined for failing to meet state water quality standards. The plant upgrade is a great opportunity to employ new treatment technologies and improve water quality in one of the great rivers of the Sierra Nevada.
Granted, we’d rather spend all our time enjoying the great Sierra outdoors. But it’s our job to scrutinize planning documents and attend DSPUD meetings, too.
As one of our allies put it recently, even in the absence of a specific development proposal for Royal Gorge, we need to ‘stay on top it.’ We are — even on top of the unpleasant issue of sewage.
If you’d like to dive into the exciting issue of sewage on the summit yourself, DSPUD is hosting a Wastewater Treatment Plant Tour and Open House on Saturday, Dec. 4 from 10 a.m. to noon at its Donner Summit facility.
~ Tom Mooers is the executive director of Sierra Watch, based in Nevada City.
