Old Pipes, Storms Cause Wastewater Overflow Throughout Valley

Two wastewater overflows, caused when a crucial pipe burst from the pressure of raging rains, plagued cleanup crews in the Sonoma Valley this morning.

On Sunday a pipe burst near the Sonoma Valley County Sanitation District water treatment plant, at the intersection of Eighth Street East and Imperial Drive, creating a large sinkhole and spurring a pipe leak at the intersection of Splude Road and Broadway which leaked about 2,250 gallons of wastewater into the Shellville Creek

Another pipe leak, this time Oman Springs Court in Boyes Hot Springs, leaked an estimated 4,575 gallons of wastewater into a residential area.

The Sonoma County Water Agency attributes the leaks to the weekend's excessive rainfall, which increased the water flow in pipes from 1 cubic feet per second to over 1,500 cubic feet per second in certain areas, and the aging series of pipes in the Sonoma Valley.

"The SVCSD operates and maintains 118 miles of wastewater collection pipes – many over 50 years old," read an offical SCWA statement describing the leaks.  "Old, cracked wastewater pipes allow the infiltration of rainwater which can overwhelm wastewater collection pipes and wastewater treatment facilities, resulting in untreated and partially treated wastewater being released into the environment."

The Sonoma Valley County Water Agency , which is slated to replace and improve many of the Valley's aging pipes - including the pipe that failed near the treatment center.

"This incident really kind of supported our plan to remove these old aging pipes because they can wreak havoc to the system," said Sonoma County Water Agency Representative Brad Sherwood.

According to Sherwood, residents shouldn't fear health risks because of large amount of rain which diluted any sewage or refuse that may have leaked into public areas.

"Had the pipelines burst during a summer drought, that would've been another story," said Sherwood.

Cleanup crews worked Monday morning to place sandbags and a large metal cover on the sinkhole on Eighth Street East - which is now sealed from the flow of additional water and debris.  Crews also used a vacuum pump the leak on Oman Springs Court to complete the cleanup process.

In addition, falling trees and storm debris caused a series of eleven power outages in the Sonoma-area this weekend, which cut power to more than 11,000 residences starting at 1 a.m. Sunday.