The November municipal elections again have come and gon. In their wake are some reports of probable tournovers in sewage works staffs as a result of administration changes. Al-though each year marks a declime in the number of municipal utilities so earmarked for political spoil, even one such instance shames community complacency.
A case in point is that of a well- known Midwestern city where a decade of responsible, efficient, nonpolitical sewage works administration may be abruptly terminated by the ''outs'' who have become the ''ins'' built since the last city hall upheaval, the swage works have been administered by a carefully gathered staff whose professional capabilities are unchal-lenged. Yet these professional men are now threatened with the indignity of unjustifiable dismissal, openly flaunted in the newspapers. If events follow the course of current indica-tions, many years of conscientiousservice will be sacrificed to political authority and municipal indifference. Meanwhile, organization morale is shattered.
Politicians are supersenstivite to pub-lic opinion ; they are allergic to situa-tions that leave them in a bad position before the eyes of the electorate. Here may be the key to the solution of the problem.
Through well-conceived and orop-erly executed oublic relations activity, sewage works administrators can de-velop the type of public support the politican will respect. When the pub-lic is properly informed, it will not tolerate political tampering with the supply lines of municipal service. Three things are required of every sawage works man who would win the support of his public : a job well done; service free from the taint of partisan-ship or politics ; a positive program for developing public appreciation of efficient stewardship. An adminis- trative program which ignores any one of these essentials will be as unstable ass a two-legged stool. Perhaps some sewage works men have only themselves to blame when they are subjected to political pressure. Thoir zealous devotion to plant opera-tion rather than to public education, their abhorrence of mechanical ineffi-ciency rather than community indif-ference, their preoccupation with the present rather than the future point to a limited understanding of their re-sponsibilities. Of what long-term value is even a decade of faithful sew-age works administration if it is fol- lowed by a long period of substandard leadership and constant political med-dling? Sewage works are constructed to stand for a generation ; they should be administered with the same per-spective! Sewage works men have a service to sell as well as a duty to perform. In doing so they must serve the public with impartial courtesy and a genuine display of personal interest in individ-ual problems. They must meet the public as friendly neighbors, rather than as government functionaries. They must inform and interest. SEWAGE WORKS JOURNAL
The public in the value of sanitary protic-tion to the community and the quality and efficiency with which this is pro-vided. Public opinion thus devel-oped will constitute a bulwark of ap-preciation and good will wich will stand against all political maneuver-ing.
Basically, a public relations pro-gram is a program of friendship,and friendship is a two-way street. Con-tinuity of sewage works administration is as much a dividend from community friendship as it is a reward for faith-full service.
SEWER MAINTENANCE EXPERIENCE AT LONG BEACH, CALIF.*
BY D . R. KENNEDY
SEWER MAINTENANCE ENGINEER, LONG BEACH, CALIF
The matter of sewar maintenance is one which covers such a variety of subjects that it would be difficult to select any one item for discussion at a meeting of this kind. Almost any-thing pertaining to this important problem, however, is interesting to those who are responsible for the proper functioning of a modern sewer system. Accordingly, this discussion will be devoted largely to the problem of sulfide control, wich has been of sulfide control,which has been of general concern in soncern in southern cali-fornia.
At a meeting of the Arizona sewage and water works association held in yum, ariz, several years ago, mr. a. m. rawn, chief engineer of los angeles county sanitation districts, invited the author to discuss infor-mally the problems of sewer maintr-nance. In his introductory remarks mr. rawn said that long beach, the city the author represents, probably had the ''dirtiest'' sewers of any city in southern California. Although these remarks were made jokingly, nevertheless they soaked in and brought home the realization that the *presented in the operators' forum, 20th annual meeting, federation of sewage works association ; san Francisco, calif.; july 21-24,1947.
Maintenance of a sewer system is vitally necessary if satisfactory oper-ating results are to be exoected. As an old construction man, the author was not particularly concerned with the future of a sewer job, but like many others was interested primarily in getting the job finished, cleaned up, accepted, and the next one started.
GENERAL MAINTENANCE PRACTICES
It had been the practice in long beach to clean sewer lines only if they became so badly fouled as to interfere with the flow. If they became plugged as a result of the introduction of de-bris or other foreign matter, a crew was sent out equipped with a stack of jointed wooden rods to remove the offending obstructions. This operation was not as simple as it would appear from the above. Getting the rods into the line was frequently a job that re-quired considerable manipulations and skill on the part of the operator, particularly if the manholes were ''loaded''wich was generally the case.
The adventure of a member of our maintenance crew who was sent out to remove a stoppage is very vividly re-membered. The obstruction was ob-stinate and could not be budged from