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.

Ken Garcia
Monday, January 24, 2005

THERE WERE MANY dire predictions about potential waste, delays and cost overruns when San Francisco voters went to the polls two years ago to vote on fixing the aging Hetch Hetchy water system. Some people must get tired of being right.

Rebuilding the Bay Area’s most intricate water-delivery system is proving, so far, to be a challenge for San Francisco’s much-maligned Public Utilities Commission. How daunting is it? Well, some people are likening it to the Bay Bridge retrofit, which is now entering its 15th anniversary with a statewide battle going on over the design and the projected cost soaring by billions.

Read more at the San Francisco Chronicle.

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.