Yosemite Slough
The Yosemite Slough is located in the Bayview/Hunters Point community of San Francisco. The lower portion of the watershed contains the Naval Shipyard, which has severe land and water contamination from point and non-point sources.

Windows Project - TBA

HP Shipyard Conveyance

YS Road Alternatives

The Hunters Point Landfill

GIS

Community Partners

SF Bay Area

The South Basin of the Yosemite Slough is the focus of the YSWRP

These two components involve Community Education and the establishment of a Watershed Council. By discovering what was there before the City developed the land, it can be determined what sustainable restoration opportunities are feasible. Based on historical accounts, much of the original natural state of the Yosemite Slough was wetlands with an abundance of aquatic life. Many elders in the community say that as recently as the 1960s, there was an abundant supply of shrimp, clams and fishing....

In determining that was there before, we can get a sense of "what was lost" and work to restore the area to its original state for the benefit of the community and the environment. Another component of the project is the wastewater infrastructure. What is there now is a sewer shed. The Yosemite Slough contains the main sewage treatment plant for the city of San Francisco. As water runoff increases during winter storms, the overflow from this treatment plant dumps untreated water into the South Basin. Instead of allowing runoff mixed with sewage to flow into the Bay, an alternative is a treatment wetlands, which would keep the rainwater from going to the treatment plant, and instead collect it where it falls and let it flow naturally into the basin as treated water. The Alliance for a Clean Waterfront would work to get the rainwater out of the plant and treat it separately by routing it through a different set of pipes that lead to the wetlands.

Part of this project involves educating the community about the data collecion results that indicate what's in the water, and why this new wastewater treatment system is beneficial. We teach local kids how to do the data collection, and in this way prime the pump by teaching a new generation about the benefits of alternative wastewater treatment solutions. Phase II of the YSWRP involves providing the Watershed Council with results of our data collection and analysis, and offering the conclusions of our study for input to determine future development plans. Part of this information is a wetlands feasibility analysis. If they determine that such a wastewater treatment plan is to be implemented, it could serve as an example to the rest of San Francisco.