Clean Water Agreement

A regional agreement to settle a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been reached in the form of a Federal Consent Decree (CD) focused on significantly improving the aging sewer infrastructure and protect the San Francisco Bay from sewage spills.

About

Oakland has committed to the following project deliverables, many of which were already in place, and will be assessed and monitored over the 22-year period of the agreement:

  • Rehabilitate 13 miles of sewer pipes per year
  • Clean the entire sewer system by 2018 and 140 miles per year thereafter
  • Inspect 92 miles of sewer pipes per year
  • Treat (by root foaming) 50 miles of sewer pipes per year
  • Renovate all seven sewer pump stations by 2022
  • Eliminate high priority storm water inflow sources within two years wherever found
  • Inspect and clean sewer hot spots annually
  • Require Private Sewer Lateral (PSL) rehabilitation (initiated in 2012)
  • Report defective sewer laterals owned by local, state or federal entities to EPA
  • Rehabilitate sewer laterals owned by the City within 10 years at targeted locations
  • Notify owners of private-property defective sewer laterals within 90 days
  • Enforce repairs on high priority defective sewer laterals
  • Assist EBMUD in development of sewer lateral education program
  • Formalize the previously implemented fat, oil, and grease control (FOG) program