Every year, Oro Loma inspects over 120 miles of sewer lines, nearly half of the 280 miles of the

District’s underground sewer lines. Using a closed-circuit TV camera that crawls through the

pipeline, Oro Loma identifies lines with defects or problems. Defects can include cracked or col-

lapsing pipes, root intrusion, or loose connections. Each year, the sections of pipeline with the

most serious problems are replaced. One of the sections chosen for replacement in 2012 is a

50-year-old sewer line under Hesperian Boulevard.

Crews will be working on Hesperian Boulevard between West A Street and Bartlett Avenue, re-

placing 1,100 feet of cracked 12-inch clay sewer pipe with 18-inch high density polyethylene

(HDPE) pipe. The work is expected to begin in January 2012, and continue for about a month,

from 8:00 am–5:00 pm Monday–Friday.

Oro Loma is using a trenchless, pipe-bursting technique that breaks apart the old 12-inch clay

pipe while still in the ground, and allows the 18-inch HDPE pipe to be pulled through the exist-

ing trench. The HDPE pipe is more durable than clay pipe and does not allow root intrusion or

groundwater infiltration. Trenchless pipe-bursting saves time and money and minimizes disrup-

tion to the public by avoiding the need to dig open a trench along the entire length of the pipe.

Traffic on Hesperian Boulevard, however, will need to squeeze down to one or two lanes during

the pipe replacement operation.

Another project that will get underway shortly is at Grove Way and Mission Boulevard in Hay-

ward. This project should also last about a month, weekdays 8:00 am–5:00 pm. The project

involves shutting down three of four siphons that run under a nearby creek, demolishing one

manhole, and rebuilding a major 25-foot deep manhole structure. The District has approximately

45 of these deep-vaulted manholes that connect multiple sewer lines.

These projects are funded through the District’s Capital Improvement Program.

Here are some ways to make the

season environmentally friendly:

1. Buy wrapping paper made with

recycled content.

2. Save used wrapping paper and reuse

it next year.

3. Make your own gift wrap from butcher

paper, reused brown paper bags,

newspapers, and the funny pages.

4. Buy baskets at garage sales and local

thrift stores to fill with homemade treats.

5. Make reusable gift sacks from scrap

cloth material.

6. Or, don’t give packages at all. Instead,

give certificates for services like car

washing or babysitting.

Food shared with friends and family nourishes the body and the soul. By following a few simple steps, that holiday feast can

also benefit the environment.

• Never pour fats, oil, or grease down drains, even if you have a garbage disposal. Fats, grease, and oil poured down the

drain can solidify and cause sewer backups in the home or street.

• Pour small amounts of cooking oil and grease into a sealable container and dispose of it in the garbage.

• Take large amounts of used cooking oil (including from deep fryers) to a grease recycling location. To find a location near

you, visit http://baywise.org/disposal-locations.

• Large amounts of grease can also be brought to one of four household hazardous waste sites in Alameda County. For more

information, including hours of operation and directions, go to www.household-hazwaste.org or call (800) 606-6606.

• Use a kitchen sink strainer to catch food particles and leftover food scrapings. Then dispose of them in your green waste

cart.

• Collect vegetable peels, turkey carcasses, ham bones, and food-soiled paper products and put them into your green

waste cart for pickup every week. The food scraps mixed with yard waste will be brought to a commercial composting

facility, where they will be turned into valuable compost. For more information and a list of items accepted for food scrap

recycling, go to www.oroloma.org/refuse/residential/recyclable.html.

P

Free 15-month 2011-2012 calendars have been delivered

to schools throughout the District. These calendars

showcase all First, Second, Third Place, and Honorable

Mention winners in the Oro Loma Earth Day 2011 Poster

Contest and feature the new Kindergarten Recycling Star

Award posters on the cover. Free calendars may also be

picked up at the District

office.

Oro Loma Sanitary District has one of the most am-

bitious recycling programs in the Bay Area, and Oro

Loma customers have historically done their part to

help reduce the amount of refuse going to landfills.

Plastic containers, bundled plastic bags and wrap,

empty aerosol cans, aluminum and tin cans, glass

bottles and jars, mixed paper and newspaper and corrugated card-

board are recycled every other week. Garden trimmings, including

plant and grass clippings, weeds and roots, leaves, twigs, and small

branches, uncoated wood, wood chips, bark, and sawdust are col-

lected weekly, as are food scraps and food-soiled paper products. In

addition, Oro Loma customers can recycle used motor oil and used

motor oil filters every week.

For the Oro Loma/Waste Management Earth Day 2012 Poster Contest,

themed “Ride the Recycle Cycle,” students are asked to show all the

ways in which THEY recycle. The contest starts January 17, 2012

and ends March 16, 2012. Winners will be announced on Earth Day,

April 22. An awards ceremony, where the placement of winners is

announced, will be held on May 22, 2012.

In 1990, voters in Alameda County approved Measure D, establishing the goal of 75% refuse diversion from landfills within

the County. To date, the Oro Loma service area remains short of the goal by approximately 8%. As with any effort, the easiest

diversion came with the initial efforts. In the case of residential refuse, offering green waste and recycling carts allowed for great

early gains. Later, we enhanced our service with greater outreach to multi-family residences, public schools, and expansion of

the green waste program to include food scraps and other organic materials. In 2012, the District will re-double its outreach to

expand recycling among its local commercial customers.

At the County level, the Alameda County Waste Management Authority, known as Stopwaste.org, is shifting its focus from voluntary

efforts to mandatory ones. Recently, they banned green waste from the landfill. Stopwaste is now considering a county-wide ban on

placing easily recycleable materials in the trash, a ban on single-use shopping bags, and mandatory commercial recycling.

The challenge to the citizens of Oro Loma is, “How can we work together to achieve the last 8% diversion?” The responsibility

for answering the challenge falls on each of us. We should consider ways that we can decrease the amount of material sent to

landfills.

Studies of what people in Alameda County throw away point to two significant opportunities. First, the greatest amount of read-

ily recycleable material in the trash is food, green waste, and food-soiled paper products. Take time to examine what you throw

away. Is it readily compostable (i.e., will it rot)? If so, put it in your green waste cart.

Studies also show that recycling within commercial businesses lags behind residences. If you own a business, consider starting

or expanding your recycling capacity. Call the District for an audit of how to improve recycling within your business. If you work

in a business, consider championing a recycling effort in the workplace. If you are a customer, ask about recycling, and support

businesses that make recycling a part of their everyday practices.

In short, we are close to 75% diversion, but not there yet. Please consider ways you can be a part of achieving our goal.

PRSRT STD

US POSTAGE

PAID

OAKLAND CA

PERMIT NO. 591

In 2003, after more than 20 years in the newspaper

industry, Scott von der Lieth decided he needed a

change. Although he had many years experience as

a mechanic and as a supervisor, he had no formal

training in wastewater treatment. Still, when the position

of Utility Worker Trainee at Oro Loma became available, Scott applied for

the job. After all, he always had an interest in ways to conserve water.

Once at Oro Loma, Scott showed management and his fellow workers why

it was such a good idea to hire him. He quickly moved from Utility Worker

Trainee to Mechanic I and then to a vacant Mechanic II position. On Octo-

ber 17, 2011, Scott was promoted to Supervisor of Plant Maintenance.

As Supervisor of Plant Maintenance, Scott is responsible for the mainte-

nance that keeps the wastewater treatment plant running at peak efficiency.

That includes planning and budgeting for the Maintenance Department,

setting up training schedules, and supervising Oro Loma’s maintenance

crew. Scott is particularly interested in making broader use of the District’s

Computer Maintenance Management System (CMMS), which helps keep

track of the facility’s 1,500 pieces of equipment.

Scott values and respects the people he works with and appreciates the

support management has given him by promoting him to Supervisor of

Plant Maintenance.

Scott is also the proud father of two daughters, one of whom is studying

for her PhD in Psychology, while the other is finishing up a 27-month

assignment in Panama, teaching English with the Peace Corps.

Oro Loma Sanitary District Office and

24/7 Emergency Response: ....(510) 276-4700

Waste Management: ...................(510) 613-8710

Alameda County Recycling Hotline: .(877) STOPWASTE

Alameda County

Household Hazardous Waste: ......(800) 606-6606

• January 2-13, 2012

• Green trees only.

• Trees 6 ft and under or cut into 6-foot lengths.

• NO flocking, tinsel, ornaments, tree stands,

or nails. (Cut up flocked trees and place in the

garbage.)

• Place green trees next to your green waste

cart on your regular collection day.

• Bulky pickup is suspended during the

holiday tree pickup period.

• After January 13, 2012 green

trees may be cut up and

placed in the green waste

cart for pickup.