REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Approval of the 2025 Sewer System Management Plan
Report
BACKGROUND
On December 6, 2022, the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) adopted new Statewide Waste Discharge Requirements (WDRs) for sanitary sewer systems under Order WQ 2022-0103-DWQ (General Order). These updated requirements mandate the development and/or revision of a Sewer System Management Plan (SSMP) every six years. Under the previous General Order issued in 2006, SSMPs were required to be updated every five years.
The SWRCB requires each agency's governing body to approve its SSMP in a public meeting. The 2020 SSMP (link in Attachment 1) was approved by Council on May 19, 2020 (RTC 20-0490.)
The General Order requires public agencies that own or operate sanitary sewer systems to develop and implement an SSMP aimed at reducing sanitary sewer spills (spills). It also mandates agencies to report all spills to the Board. The SSMP must include 11 key elements demonstrating how the agency constructs, manages, operates, and maintains its sanitary sewer system. These elements, outlined in the attached 2025 SSMP update, include:
1. SSMP Goals
2. Organizational Structure & Communication Chain
3. Legal Authority to Operate and Maintain the Sewer System
4. Sewer Collection System Operation & Maintenance Program
5. Design and Performance Provisions for the Sewer Collection System
6. Sewer Overflow Emergency Response Plan
7. Sewer Pipe Blockage Control Program
8. Collection System Evaluation & Capacity Assurance Plan
9. Monitoring, Measurement & Plan Modifications
10. SSMP Internal Audits
11. Public and Stakeholder Communication Program
Key Updates since the 2020 SSMP are as follows:
* The term "SSO", Sanitary Sewer Overflow, has been replaced with "spill."
* The FOG Control Program has been expanded into a broader Blockage Control Program.
* In June 2023, the City published a Spill Emergency Response Plan (SERP) to fulfill a General Order requirement; this docume...
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