Union Sanitary District Wins Plant Safety Award

Union Sanitary District -- recently received top honors for its Plant Safety Program from the California Water Environment Association. The award acknowledges outstanding achievement in safety over the past year for large treatment plants. CWEA is the California industry association for wastewater professionals, with nearly 9,000 members statewide. The District also accepted the George W. Burke Safety Award, a national award which recognizes municipal or industrial wastewater facilities for establishing and maintaining an active and effective safety program.

“We are very pleased to receive this recognition of our multi-faceted safety program,” says Mike Marzano, USD’s Environmental Health and Safety Program Manager. “USD’s management and employees have worked hard to create safety strategies that benefit the entire District.” USD’s program includes comprehensive training, worksite and facilities inspections, outside audits, visits to other award-winning facilities, and employee-designed safe work strategies.

“Communication is an important element in an effective safety program,” Marzano continues. “We’ve created several options for communication between employees and management regarding safety, such as monthly safety committee meetings including team representatives and the general manager, an anonymous safety blog that allows employees to discuss issues and obtain management response, and safety inspections that include employee input and observations.”

Marzano also points out the importance of safety’s role in the District’s training program. “USD puts a high priority on employee development, and a key component of our training is safety,” he says. “In fact, the importance of safety is a focus throughout the organization. These awards recognize our efforts to make safety the foundation of every work day. A safe, healthy workforce is what makes it possible for USD to fulfill its mission to protect public health and San Francisco Bay.”

Union Sanitary District operates a 30 million gallon per day wastewater treatment facility in Union City and provides collection, treatment and disposal services to the Tri-City area. For more information about USD’s safety program, visit the District’s website at www.unionsanitary.ca.gov.