Residents in the South Land Park area recently have experienced unpleasant odors caused by repair work occurring at a sewage facility near Fruitridge Road and South Land Park Drive.
In response, the Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District, also known as Regional San, on Friday installed an odor solution that has significantly reduced odors at the facility. A more permanent solution is scheduled to be in place by the end of March.
The sewage facility is owned by the Regional San but operated and maintained by the City of Sacramento’s Department of Utilities.
“Tests have indicated that the work done by Regional San has largely eliminate the odors,” said Bill Busath, Department of Utilities director.
Full repairs of the facility—which are separate from odor issues—are expected to take up to 10 months, according to City staff.
“Sacramento has many older pipes and facilities within its sanitary sewer system and pipes break from time to time,” said Carlos Eliason, a spokesperson for the Department of Utilities. “This facility is fairly complicated, whereas many other pipe failures are generally resolved quickly without significant odor issues.”
Residents can call 3-1-1 with questions or concerns if they notice unpleasant odors.
In response to questions from local groups about the odors, City Councilmember Rick Jennings, District 7, and County of Sacramento Board Supervisor, Patrick Kennedy, District 2 issued the following statements.
STATEMENTS:
“I am grateful to City and Regional San staff for working with [County District 2] Supervisor Kennedy and I on addressing the immediate issues of the odor and the repair work. By working together, we were able to get the odor suppression equipment installed today rather than two weeks from now and the contract to make long-term repairs approved this past Wednesday rather than April 5. Working together, we were able to expedite what was needed to alleviate the impacts to the residents near the facility.” – Councilmember Rick Jennings
“As soon as our office became aware of this issue, we began working with Councilmember Jennings’s office and Regional Sanitation staff to address community concerns regarding the smell and ensuring there were no negative environmental impacts. Both Regional Sanitation and City of Sacramento staff rightly recognized the urgency of this matter, and I want to thank them and Councilmember Jennings for making it a top priority.” – Supervisor Patrick Kennedy