The Big Stink
There is something rotten in the state of California, and it stems from the city of San Francisco. So we learn from reading an article by Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross on the website of The San Francisco Chronicle. And who is responsible for what has come to be called The Big Stink? The environmentalists, who else? You see, they have been pushing low-flow toilets, and San Francisco being San Francisco has gone with the flow that is low. The results are smelly, and the big stink has further complicated the city’s fiscal crisis.
Skimping on toilet water has resulted in more sludge backing up inside the sewer pipes, said Tyrone Jue, spokesman for the city Public Utilities Commission. That has created a rotten-egg stench near AT&T Park and elsewhere, especially during the dry summer months.
The city has already spent $100 million over the past five years to upgrade its sewer system and sewage plants, in part to combat the odor problem.
Now officials are stocking up on a $14 million, three-year supply of highly concentrated sodium hypochlorite - better known as bleach - to act as an odor eater and to disinfect the city's treated water before it's dumped into the bay. It will also be used to sanitize drinking water.
That translates into 8.5 million pounds of bleach either being poured down city drains or into the drinking water supply every year.
But, as we learn, this expedient is controversial -- especially among the folks most responsible for the big stink -- and the eco-blogger Adam Lowry is recommending hydrogen peroxide as an alternative.
Methinks Ricochet should come to the rescue.
Peter, Kenneth, John Yoo!
And all of the rest of you connected with Ricochet, too!
What should be done about the big stink? Or did San Francisco always stink? Do you think there might be a movie script in here somewhere?
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Comments :
Sep '10
Re: The Big Stink
I'm glad I wasn't drinking anything when I read this post; my computer would be sopping wet if I had been. Divine justice.
Oct '10
Re: The Big Stink
I consistently tell me foreign friends, the reason Americans do not care about environmental stuff is because our environmentalists are insane.
This proves it, yet again. Oh, the joy of environmentalists lowering the standard of living, so only the really rich and the really poor can live there.
Jul '10
Re: The Big Stink
Clearly, evacuation is the way to go. Love Canal by Alcatraz. We need an 11th addition to the Bill of Rights, toilets and shower heads that work. Perhaps we can convert some of those inactive farms into relocation centers.
Re: The Big Stink
Here's a thought. The last time we heard from Dave Carter he was carrying a load of baked beans to put in storage in New Jersey so that Gail Collins and the editorial board at The New York Times would have food for thought. If we catch him in time, it could be diverted to San Francisco -- where it could be deployed for the purpose of unclogging those drains.
Sep '10
Re: The Big Stink
I'm not too happy about eco-blogger Adam Lowry's suggestion that they use hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) instead of bleach. In concentrated form--not the 2-3% solution sold for home use--hydrogen peroxide is very, very flammable. In fact, the Germans used it in WW2 to fuel the Me-163 rocket plane (in a mixture called "T-Stoff") and a little later, we used it to power the reaction control thrusters on the X-15.
If Lowry is a chemical engineer, as the article claims, he should at least tell us what concentration he's thinking of, and how to store it safely, and what effects it might have on sea life. The dilute 2-3% won't do much to kill off the Big Stink.
Edited on Mar 1, 2011 at 4:55pmJul '10
Re: The Big Stink
It's gotta be pretty bad when the hippies are complaining.
Oct '10
Re: The Big Stink
Nanny state—shtoonk!
So, individualists and those whose sense of smell is still working will put a dollop of Clorox in the bowl with every flush.
That's gotta help!
As long as you aren't reading colorimetry or professional photography Web sites, it's amazing how edifying it is to globally replace “green” with “dumb”.
Hey, there's a plug-in for that!
Dec '10
Re: The Big Stink
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors should mandate the use of composting toilets. Sewage problem solved!
(Probably won't do much for tourism, though, especially after the hotel rooms are appropriately retrofitted to comply with the law.)
Dec '10
Re: The Big Stink
This post reminds me of a joke my father, a high school teacher, used to tell. The punch line was, "I don't have enough to make a Superintendent of Schools!"
May '10
Re: The Big Stink
It is always fun to watch 1) when the unintended consequences of leftist environmental do-good-ism become plainly apparent, and 2) when different factions of leftist environmental do-good-ism do battle with each other. Is it a thought crime to revel in a bit of schedenfreude?
Edited on Mar 1, 2011 at 6:18pmMay '10
Re: The Big Stink
Perfect poetic justice.
May '10
Re: The Big Stink
Well, it doesn't really matter much anymore, whether the toilets are low-flow or not, since here in California the dams that were built by an earlier, wiser generation are soon to be dismantled in the name of our Rousseau Utopia. There will not be enough water available to flush any kind of toilet, or water a garden, or wash clothes, or take a shower. But, there will again be bountiful wild salmon, as in the days of the sainted natives, which we will of course not allow you thick-necked six-pack types to catch. You see, we hate you, we hate the fact that you despoil our soon-to-be pre-columbian paradise, without all the awful strip-malls and suburban tract houses you hoi-polloi seem to like driving to and living in. We were here first, or at least we got what we wanted when we got here, and we're going to see to it that we push you all out so not to spoil our view, except those of you who mow our lawns and take care of our kids. We're altruistic, of course, but we don't share.
May '10
Re: The Big Stink
I can vouch for this... the stink part, anyway.
Once a week or so I walk between the CalTrain station and a little bit north of the Bay Bridge. That's by AT&T Park, and by the CurrentTV office (*). And indeed, for the last year or so, the air in that area has often smelled like raw sewage. About 70% of the time, by my imprecise sampling. Now I know why.
(*) Ahem...
Jan '11
Re: The Big Stink
When they mention toilets that are low flow do they mean the ones with the 1.5gal tanks or is this something even more ridiculous? I've got a new American Standard that can easily be fixed to take you back to the good old days.
Jan '11
Re: The Big Stink
It's sour dough starter.
Edited on Mar 1, 2011 at 11:08pmOct '10
Re: The Big Stink
Reap what you sow, SFO..