By: John Upton
Examiner Staff Writer
12/28/09 9:15 AM PST

SAN FRANCISCO — Julie Labonte didn’t know what her high-achieving career as a water engineer held in store for her as she bounded down Mount Kilimanjaro in 2005, propelled by gravity, in the midst of a yearlong globetrot.

The Canadian-born, U.S.-trained engineer had walked away from an illustrious career with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission for a multi-continental jaunt, peppered with frequent climbs of rugged mountains.

While working for the SFPUC — which oversees such services as water and sewers around the region — in San Francisco and its suburbs over a decade, Labonte had managed fluoridation of the water supply, a water treatment plant, utilities strategies for major redevelopment projects and massive sewer improvements.

Read more at the San Francisco Examiner.

Denise Johnson-Kula
Sunday, October 9, 2005

On Feb. 2, 2004, with no public input and minimal notification, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission switched from chlorine to sanitize its water supplies to chloramine, a combination of chlorine and ammonia.

The introduction of chloramine has compromised our safety. Many residents, unaware of the changeover, suddenly began to experience health effects: burning skin; red rashes; itching; dry mouth and throat; digestive problems; coughing; wheezing; sinus congestion; and severe asthma symptoms. Some individuals’ serious and debilitating symptoms were documented by their physicians. Foul taste and odor of the water were also reported.

Read more at the San Francisco Chronicle.

Glen Martin, Chronicle Environment Writer
Monday, June 13, 2005

The debate over the proposal to breach the Sierra’s O’Shaughnessy Dam, drain the reservoir behind it and restore Hetch Hetchy
Valley to its former natural splendor is apt to intensify this summer with the release of a California Department of Water Resources study on the issue.

But preliminary comments from the agency indicate two things:

First, the restoration is technically possible without disrupting water supplies to San
Francisco, Modesto and Turlock, the cities that are the beneficiaries of Hetch Hetchy water.

Second, it will cost a lot of money: From $4 billion to $8 billion, depending on whom you
talk to.

Read more at the San Francisco Chronicle.

Wednesday, March 23, 2005
By Edward Carpenter
Daily News Staff Writer

Independent auditors will be hired to double-check San Francisco Public Utilities Commission calculations regarding the increasing costs of the Hetch Hetchy Water System overhaul, Bay Area water officials said yesterday.

“I do have some questions,” said Art Jensen, general manager of the Bay Area Water Supply and Conservation Agency. “I’m going to have two outside experts review it.” The agency represents 28 Bay Area governments and water districts outside San Francisco, including San Mateo County. The 80-year-old system, which delivers water to about 2.5 million Bay Area residents from near Yosemite, is vulnerable to earthquakes and could leave the region without water for as long as 60 days if were to break, officials have said.

Jensen said that input from the auditors would help convince him that the methodology, factors and costs of the utility commission proposal are sound or that there are questions that need to be explored further.

The announcement that the Conservation Agency will hire the two auditors comes the same day that the commission released the most detailed breakdown yet of the nearly $1 billion in additional costs announced Feb. 8, raising the total cost from about $3.6 billion to more than $4.3 billion.

As reported in the Daily News Monday, Jensen, along with Conservation Agency board members, have continued to take the utilities commission–the agency heading up the Hetch Hetchy Water System rebuild–to task for its lack of clarity and openness regarding the cost and time it will take to complete the project. The utilities commission took a major step in trying to assuage critics yesterday by voting to raise San Francisco water rates by 15 percent both in the current year and coming year to help pay off the bond debt for the rebuild.

“It’s us honoring our commitment to step forward and issue the bonds for the rebuild,” said Tony Winnicker, commission spokesman, describing the vote.

San Francisco residents, on average, will pay about $1.10 more per month for water under the new rates, officials said.

January 22, 2005
By Christine Morente
STAFF WRITER

Twelve San Mateo and Santa Clara county residents filed an injunction against the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission to stop using chloramine or at least provide a permanent filtration system for their homes.

The group, who call themselves the Concerned Citizens Against Chloramine, filed Friday at San Francisco City Hall, seeking unspecified damages.

“We feel at this point, the (SFPUC) are absolutely adamant that they’re not going to take this stuff out of the water,” said David Heran, a San Bruno resident. Chloramine aggravates his asthma, he said. “We have a group here with problems and health issues that are not going away.”

Ever since chloramine — a combination of chlorine and ammonia — was added into the Hetch Hetchy water system, county residents have complained of rashes and respiratory problems. Many are staying away from the water.

“I’ve had an unbelievable proportion of problems with the water,” said Menlo Park resident Denise Johnson-Kula, who also suffers from respiratory problems. last year, she filed a similar complaint against the SFPUC, but her case was dismissed. “It’s like living in a Third World country — going to the well, cleaning under your arms and that’s it. The impact on my life is severe.”

The group wants the SFPUC to stop putting in chloramine and start studying it through dermal and inhalant testing. Johnson-Kula and her group is waiting to hear back from the SFPUC.

SFPUC Spokesman Tony Winnicker said he hasn’t read the claims yet, but will work with the city attorney to follow the case. He does maintain that chloramine is safe but takes their concerns seriously.

“There is a certain percentage of the population who have skin issues and people all over the country have been drinking water with chloramine for years,” Winnicker said. “It’s widely respected and researched by the Environmental Protection Agency, and the state Department of Health.”

Anyone who is experiencing skin or respiratory problems or has questions is asked to call Johnson-Kula at (650) 328-0424.

Staff writer Christine Morente can be reached at (650) 348-4333 or at cmorente@sanmateocountytimes.com.

By Justin Nyberg | Staff Writer
Published on Friday, December 3, 2004

Concerns about the potential health effects of chloramine in local drinking water has prompted two county supervisors to seek the opinion of the state’s top medical advisory panel.

Board of Supervisors President Mark Church and Supervisor Rich Gordon will present a resolution to the full board Tuesday calling on the California Conference of Local Health Officers to take a formal position on the safety of chloramine. The group is a coalition of county medical officials from across the state that makes policy recommendations on public health matters.

“Serious health concerns have been raised about the effects of using chloramine in our drinking water. At this time, the full extent of the potentially harmful effects is not known,” Church said.

The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, which approved the use of chloramine as a substitute for chlorine in February, has maintained that the chemical is safe for drinking. Still, some people have blamed chloramine for allergic reactions, or cited studies suggesting it may be carcinogenic in high doses.

A subcommittee of the California Conference of Local Health Officers will consider the matter in late January.

Katia Hetter, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, August 25, 2004

The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission’s rebuild and expansion of the Sierra-fed Hetch Hetchy waterworks may be completed two years ahead of schedule in 2014, but the $3.6 billion project could cost an additional $194 million to complete, according to a state-mandated report released Tuesday.

Agency deputy manager Harlan Kelly, whose office issued the report, said the increased cost estimates are still very preliminary, but the report cites increased planning, engineering, construction and soil disposal costs on specific projects.

Read more at the San Francisco Chronicle.

Suburban users call for more oversight
Katia Hetter, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, June 30, 2004

A group of suburban water users, who two years ago tried to wrestle away from San Francisco control over the regionally vital Hetch Hetchy waterworks, is again calling into question the competence of the city’s management of the system.

In a scathing three-page written statement released Tuesday, the Bay Area Water Supply and Conservation Agency, an association of water agencies serving residents and businesses in San Mateo, Santa Clara and Alameda counties, called on San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom to step into a perceived leadership vacuum at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, the city agency responsible for the Sierra-fed, city-owned Hetch Hetchy water and power system.

Read more at the San Francisco Chronicle.