4g - Smart Covers Costa Mesa Sanitary District
…an Independent Special District
Protecting our community’s health and the environment by providing solid waste and sewer collection services.
www.cmsdca.gov
Memorandum
To: Board of Directors
From : Scott Carroll, General Manager
Date: October 15 , 2013
Subject: Smart Covers
Summary
CMSD is using smart cover devices that are sensor modules mounted directly underneath
manhole covers and/or inside lift station wet wells to provide a second , and sometimes
third, independent high water alarm system that will help prevent sewer spills. The Board
would like to consider expanding th is program to other lift stations.
Staff Recommendation
That the Board of Directors give staff direction to expand the Smart Cover program.
Analysis
Speed is essential to preventing sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs). The sooner staff is
aware of wastewater rising in the system the faster staff can respond to remedy the
situation and prevent an SSO. Smart Covers are an effective monitoring and alarm
system that gives staff ample warnings when wastewater is reaching high levels. Smart
Covers uses ultrasonic sensor monitors that are installed underneath manhole covers
and/or lift station wet wells and then sends an alarm, via text message on cellular phones,
to staff that wastewater has reached high levels. Staff can set high level parameters on
Sm art Covers.
The District has installed at all twenty lift stations a supervisory control and data
acquisition (SCADA) that provides an alarm system to staff for high water and power loss.
Smart Covers serve as a second and sometimes third, independent hi gh water alarm
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October 15 , 2013
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system if there is a malfunction in the SCADA system and at times, Smart Covers will
provide staff high water alarms before SCADA does .
Currently, the District has Smart Covers installed at four critical lift stations, which are
Elden, H arbor, 23 rd Street and Irvine. The cost to procure and install one Smart Cover is
$4,121. To install Smart Covers to the remaining sixteen lift stations will cost $65,936. In
addition, there is a yearly monitoring service of $364 per Smart Cover. The t otal annual
cost to monitor the remaining sixteen lift station is estimated at $6,290 , which includes
sales tax. The grand total cost will be $72,226 .
Staff does not recommend installing Smart Covers at the remaining sixteen lift stations
because some ar e scheduled for abandonment in less than five years while others have
very low flows . Staff recommends the following lift stations receive Smart Cover devices
because of the gallons per minute during peak flow and their close proximity to waterways.
• Mendoza 875 GPM (gallons per minute)
• Adams 500 GPM
Canyon 800 GPM
Victoria 785 GPM
Santa Ana 1,430 GPM
21 st 825 GPM
Canyon Lift Station is planned for abandonment in less than five years. The Smart Cover
at this station can be relocated to the South Coast Plaza Lift Station when abandonment is
complete.
Strategic Plan Element & Goal
This item complies wit h objective and strategy of Strategic Element 1 .0., Sewer
Infrastructure , which states:
“Objective: To collect and transport wastewater to meet the needs of existing and future
customers.
Strategy: We will do this by the careful management of the collection infrastructure using
prudent planning and maintenance, with financial strategies to maintain suffic ient capacity
and respond to changing regulatory demands .”
Legal Review
Not applicable
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October 15 , 2013
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Environmental Review
The installation of smart covers is categorically exempt under the California Environmental
Quality Act (CEQA) (Public Resources Code Section 21000 et. seq.) under Section 15301
as a “Class 1” “minor alteration of existing public or private structures”, as further
described in Section (b) as “Existing facilities of both investor and publicly -owned utilities
used to provide …. sewerage …”
Financ ial Review
The estimated cost to procure and install Smart Covers to the recommended lifts station
above is $24,726 . In addition, the annual monitoring cost is estimated at $2,259 for a total
cost of $26,985 . This money is not budgeted in the FY 2013 -14 Budget and will need to
be appropriated from undesignated reserves in the Liquid Waste Fund.
Public Notice Process
Copies of this report are on file and will be included with the entire agenda packet for the
October 15 , 2013 Bo ard of Directors study session meeting at District headquarters and
on District’s website.
Alternative Actions
1. Direct staff to report back with more information
Attachments A: Smart Cover Brochure
Reviewed by:
Stacey Cuevas