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water sewer management

How Fast A Recovery?

October 15, 2020
water sewer management
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There is an expectation that the covid 19 will be slow.  Or will it?  Once a vaccine is created, assuming a large percentage of the population gets the vaccine and it works, a lot of other issues get resolved.  The next question is how quickly the economy will get back on track, especially the service industry jobs in restaurants and retail. Expect that there to be change in how these industries change operations.  The $15 minimum wage will also create a challenge – the fact that a $15/hr pay rate may cross the threshold whereby the cost of technology and cost of people are similar.  This is the same issue with manufacturing jobs.  Despite the nonsense in Washington, the biggest challenge to American manufacturing jobs has been the conversion to robot and technology, which has fewer errors, less down time, and less costs.  If you are General Motors, do you choose people or cheaper robots that have higher reliability to make cars.  The answer is a companies have the obligation to protect their shareholders, not their people or their customers. 

Please do not Flush the Wrong things

October 9, 2020
water sewer management
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One of the problems that has appeared with the covid 19 pandemic is an increase of inappropriate materials in the sewer system.  The covid chaos created a shortage of toilet paper and baby wipes, but handy wipes, baby wipes, diapers, cloths, etc skyrocketed.  That means more pumps grind to a halt, plugged up with unraveling cloth materials, leading to sanitary sewer overflows.  The Associate Press noted that Houston, TX reported a 33% increase in SSOs.  At Beale Air Force Base in California, crews were working 16 hours a day to clean up the mess. Small communities watched pump after pump burn out from these materials.  Please, toilet paper (Scott preferred) and waste – that is what goes done the toilet.  Nothing else.  Please.  Help those sewer worked who, literally, have to put their hands in the Covid laden wastewater to clean up the mess.  They need your help.

Kind of Cool

October 5, 2020
water sewer management
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We can find Covid19 in wastewater!  It seems that as utilities and regulatory agencies have tested for covid19, they find it.  Recently it was found at Yosemite National Park – no one knew.  Miami Dade County has been testing.  The University of South Florida also has been working on it also. Michigan State University and the Detroit Water and sewer Dept is participating in a similar exercise. 

An now, Florida Atlantic University (Dan Meeroff and I) has started a project through its civil engineering program to develop the technology.  The reason – it may be an indicator of covid in the community, but also future hotspots.  Sampling is occurring on campus and several local governments are interested in participating as well.  A conference presentation has been accepted.  More to come….