In my association with engineering consultants over the years I've seen a plethora of water (and waste-water) treatment plants in various stages of disrepair and dilapidation.?ÿ I guess the unthinkable happened in Jackson and the plant finally failed.?ÿ This has apparently left some 150K residents with no water.
I'm sure a discussion on municipal planning and budgeting would fill volumes..and could approach a political discussion.?ÿ But the point I would like to make is Jackson, MS is not the only WTP that sorely need fund, maintenance, or both.?ÿ The entire US is plagued with a crumbling infrastructure.?ÿ The quicker we do something kiddies, the farther away we stay from some catastrophic failure ourselves.
I was a little pissed the other night listening to our city council meeting.?ÿ The public works was requesting some emergency funds for badly needed repairs.?ÿ The council kicked the can down the road hoping for a bond election next year.?ÿ Meanwhile they approved a half million dollar upgrade for the city's computer system.?ÿ I had to shake my head.?ÿ All I could think was if the city starts falling apart, they can sit in their office and watch on their computer the whole thing happen in real time.
The barbarians aren't necessarily wielding swords and shields....?ÿ
I guess the unthinkable happened in Jackson and the plant finally failed.
My oldest daughter works for the local water and sewer district in Olympia. She said she was in a meeting one day, about system failure. The first thing they said was; If you ever have a catastrophic failure, in the sewer treatment plant, the first thing you want to do is polish up your resume...
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I've seen a plethora of water (and waste-water) treatment plants in various stages of disrepair and dilapidation
I've spent my share of time dealing with various treatment plants; we did the survey for the sewer treatment plant in Dayton WA. This was built as part of the WPA in 1938
I don't think there's been an upgrade since then...
The Jackson MS situation has been a political fuster-cluck for some time. State & Federal inspections identified problems as far back as 2016 (it may go back further) with no corrective action. A contracted company was managing the system for years with no improvements made and millions lost due to delinquent water bills and back handed dealings.?ÿ The situation is actually worse than seen on the news because of the political wrangling.
IMHO, our infrastructure should become a mandatory funded item for every municipal budget in the country, but I seem to be in the minority when it comes to spending tax dollars.
millions lost due to delinquent water bills
A self-styled "libertarian" acquaintance of mine discovered that, under city guidelines, his trash would continue to be collected whether he paid his trash collection bill or not.?ÿ So he stopped paying and got free-to-him trash collection for years.?ÿ It sounds like the same thing happened in Jackson.?ÿ Of course maintenance goes unfunded.?ÿ It really doesn't help a community in the long run to continue to provide services to people who don't pay their share.
I stopped being upset by individual welfare fraud when I realized how the point system for municipal utilities works.?ÿ Basing funding on greatest need can only work when balanced with mandatory performance metrics.
Simply exercising valves once or more a year would save millions but why bother when you only get grant money if your system is in shambles.
feds and state government will likely bail them out and the consultant and contractors hired for interim fixes will make $$$$$.?ÿ The City should look at privatizing or a private public partnership to get their system back up and running.?ÿ It is apparent the City cannot manage that portion of their infrastructure.?ÿ This is gonna cost a lot of people a boatload of money.?ÿ No wonder those that have the wherewithal move out of the city.
The City should look at privatizing or a private public partnership to get their system back up and running.?ÿ
Ask the folks in Flint how that worked out.
@jim-frame bottled water for a few years??ÿ One problem is elected officials do not understand the value of their infrastructure.?ÿ They do not have a plan/do not fund improvements to lead pipes or a failing treatment system.
There's money involved, which means the liars and thieves show up.?ÿ Thinking on the number of bk after the gfc in '08.?ÿ
Number of cities, municipalities .. what have you.
..Simply exercising valves once or more a year would save millions but why bother when you only get grant money if your system is in shambles.
The first thing we always did when we arrived at a plant that needed help was ask for their O&M docs.?ÿ Every plant built or upgraded in the last 30 years that spent fed. money has one somewhere.?ÿ 75% of the operators and management I've run into have never seen those docs.?ÿ We found O&E manual in a manila envelope in a records drawer.?ÿ It was over 15 years old and had never been opened.
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75% of the operators and management
Don't tell me, let me guess, they were related to (insert name of government official).
What do I win?
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Jackson Mississippi?
Didn't Charlie Daniels pass through there a long time ago?
Shiny new buildings look pretty.?ÿ No sewer system looks pretty, no matter how much lipstick you apply.?ÿ No one gets too concerned about where the poop disappears to SO LONG AS IT KEEPS DISAPPEARING.?ÿ When it fails to disappear and stays close to home THEN INDIVIDUALS GET EXCITED.?ÿ Too bad, magic solutions don't exist.
Everybody wants to build/buy new; nobody wants to do maintenance.
if I were in Jackson, I might just drill a well for 'agricultural' water and share with my neighbors until the 'system' could deliver 'good' water.
The author of the words to that song said he had no particular Jackson in mind, but did comment he liked the sound of the hard consonants better than the soft sound of Nashville. Most people who recorded the song have associated it with Jackson Tennessee.
..Simply exercising valves once or more a year would save millions but why bother when you only get grant money if your system is in shambles.
The first thing we always did when we arrived at a plant that needed help was ask for their O&M docs.?ÿ Every plant built or upgraded in the last 30 years that spent fed. money has one somewhere.?ÿ 75% of the operators and management I've run into have never seen those docs.?ÿ We found O&E manual in a manila envelope in a records drawer.?ÿ It was over 15 years old and had never been opened.
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40- years ago as a fresh out of college graduate engineer I worked on the construction of an upgrade to a wastewater treatment plant in Chattanooga.?ÿ Since the funding was partially from EPA we had COE and EPA regulations to go by.?ÿ A portion of my job was to assemble the O&M manuals.?ÿ The specifications required?ÿtwelve?ÿbound, in 3 inch ring binder, copies of ANYTHING which went into the plant.?ÿ Have you ever tried to come up with an O&M for wallpaper, for a valve wrench, or linoleum tile??ÿ I had about 30 feet of wall space, 5 shelves high filled with 3 inch ring binders.?ÿ I got chewed by one of the inspectors when I refused to drill holes in the hard backed manuals for the Mack trucks so they could be put in a ring binder.
Andy
