Asset Maintenance, Engineering & Operations Team

SD1 continues to make significant progress toward our first Clean H2O40 Amended Consent Decree milestone goals. As you may know, by July 1, 2023, we must reach at least 67 percent recapture of typical-year combined sewer overflows and elimination of at least 20 percent of our baseline typical-year sanitary sewer overflows.

Over the next 21 months, projects such as the installation of equalization (EQ) tanks in Highland Heights, Silver Grove and Wilder; improvements at the Bromley Pump Station; the Licking River Double Siphon; our River Water Intrusion Mitigation Program; and the use of dynamic or coordinated controls on detention basins will ensure that we exceed those overflow reduction milestones.

To accomplish these and future goals, it will become increasingly important to enhance collaboration and communication across SD1 departments. To that end, and in furtherance of our commitment to continuous improvement, we are reorganizing a number of departments to create an Engineering, Asset Maintenance and Operations Team. This group, which will be led by Chief Engineer Ralph Johnstone, will work together to plan and execute the future of optimal infrastructure management at SD1.

Reporting to Ralph will be:

Joe Baxter, Director of Plant Operations
Kyle Boyle, Director of Collection Systems
Rob Schroeder, Director of Infrastructure and Capital Planning
Spencer Stork, Director of Design and Construction Management
Bill Wulfeck, Director of Asset Maintenance

The day-to-day work and responsibilities of these teams will not change significantly, but having these groups around the same table, creating a shared vision and working together to address the challenges we face will improve both effectiveness and efficiency.

Some of the Clean H2O40 improvements will require resources across multiple departments to commission, operate and maintain infrastructure so that it performs as designed. Other areas that will require increased collaboration include the expanded use of technology and data to continue to improve long-term capital investment decisions; contingency planning for critical wastewater and storm water infrastructure; and development of creative sustainability solutions.

This will also allow us to establish a single point of contact with our stakeholders to coordinate work activities and explore project partnerships and advance identified condition assessment initiatives to assist with short- and long-term capital planning needs.

If you have any questions about the Engineering, Asset Maintenance and Operations Team, feel free to contact Ralph at rjohnstone@SD1.org.