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PUC describes multibillion-dollar sewer renewal program to address aging combined system and climate impacts
Summary
SFPUC wastewater staff outlined the challenges of a 100‑plus‑year combined sewer system, described a $2.7 billion Phase 1 sewer improvement program and a total program approaching $7 billion that pairs ‘gray’ infrastructure with green stormwater projects to reduce flows and protect the bay.
San Francisco — Assistant General Manager for Wastewater Tommy Moalas presented the SFPUC’s plan to renew and harden the city’s combined sewer system, describing operational challenges and a multibillion‑dollar capital program.
Moalas said the combined system can move from typical dry‑weather flows of about 80 million gallons per day to nearly 600 million gallons per day during storms, creating unique treatment and storage challenges. He described storage transport boxes under the Embarcadero and Great Highway, the Southeast Wastewater Treatment Plant as the system’s workhorse (treating roughly 80 percent of the city’s sewage), and growing climate impacts such as higher tides and more frequent extreme events.
The PUC’s Sewer System Improvement Program has an approved Phase 1 budget of about $2.7 billion and a total program approaching $7 billion. Moalas explained the agency will pursue a mix of “gray” (pipes, treatment plant renewals) and “green” (low‑impact development, stormwater infiltration) strategies to reduce peak flows and avoid continual expansion of treatment capacity — including pilot projects with an initial ~$57 million investment to test technologies and maintenance plans.
Commissioners asked about biogas generation and resource recovery; staff said Southeast Plant already runs a 2.25‑megawatt generator on captured biogas and that future upgrades will increase biogas capture and resource recovery potential as digesters are modernized.
