Management & Planning

The goal of NapaSan’s management team is to be forward-thinking – to anticipate the wastewater treatment needs of the community and to have the infrastructure and processes in place at the right time to ensure that NapaSan can meet those needs.

Additionally, NapaSan strives to keep costs down and to increase resource efficiency by reducing energy use and increasing the production and distribution of recycled water.

In order to meet these goals, NapaSan has prepared strategic plans for key functional areas. These plans help identify priorities, needed improvements, project alternatives and potential timelines. In short, these documents provide a road map forward to allow NapaSan to be successful in providing excellent wastewater collection, treatment and disposal service.

NapaSan Strategic Plan

The purpose of the Strategic Plan is to describe the goals, objectives and priorities of NapaSan. The Strategic Plan was developed through a series of discussions involving the NapaSan Board of Directors and NapaSan Department heads. The current version of the plan was completed in May 2021.

Performance Measurement Reports

After the end of each calendar year, NapaSan prepares a Performance Measurement Report. The report includes performance measures that, when taken as a whole, provide a snapshot of how well the organization is performing and being managed. This report highlights areas where NapaSan is performing well, but just as importantly, it also identifies areas that need improvement. This information can feed into work plans for the coming year.

NapaSan uses the Effective Utility Management  (EUM) framework for presenting this information. This framework is specific to water and wastewater utilities and provides for the possibility of comparing NapaSan to other wastewater utilities once more providers begin using EUM for measuring and reporting on performance.

Climate Change Adaptation Plan

In 2022, NapaSan completed the Climate Change Adaptation Plan which includes analysis of risks posed by five hazards (sea level rise, precipitation changes, temperature changes, wildfires, and groundwater rise) on NapaSan assets and identifies strategies for adapting to these risks.  The climate adaptation study concluded that NapaSan does not face an immediate crisis. Even over the long-term, risks appear to be slow-moving and therefore manageable even if they grow large over future decades. However, the ever-changing nature of climate calls for a proactive approach that allows NapaSan to stay abreast of evolving knowledge about climate change risks and respond accordingly. Integrating adaptation measures into NapaSan’s existing planning processes provides an opportunity for NapaSan to address long-term risk while minimizing cost in both the short and long term.  To read the report, click on the link in the column to the right.

Wastewater Treatment Plant Master Plan

NapaSan completed a Wastewater Treatment Plant  (WWTP) Master Plan in October 2022. The master plan includes a review of existing treatment plant performance, focused condition assessment of critical facilities, evaluation of unit process capacity and identification of existing deficiencies, evaluation of operational vulnerabilities, and established triggers and prioritizes major capital projects for the planning period (over the next 20 years through year 2040) for nutrients, biosolids, energy, and recycled water. To view the report, click on the link in the column to the right.

Strategic Plan for Recycled Water Use

NapaSan completed the Strategic Plan for Recycled Water Use to determine a recycled water planning approach through the year 2020. The plan considers seven strategies, ranging from recycling only enough water to meet NPDES permit requirements, to recycling all water available. In examining all the strategies, NapaSan considered treatment, storage and distribution system requirements as well as capital and operation and maintenance costs. NapaSan also wanted to factor in the cost to sewer customers and the responsibility to augment local water supplies. The plan evaluates all the recycled water strategies and makes recommendations.

Communications Plan

In 2016, NapaSan completed a long-range strategic communications plan to prioritize communication strategies, identify important messages to convey to the community, and identify the best outreach methods to convey these messages to the community.  The Communications Plan can be found here.

Collection System Master Plan

In 2021, NapaSan completed a Collection System Master Plan. The collection system is the network of sewer pipes that collect wastewater and carry it to the treatment plant. This plan evaluates the condition and performance of the sewer pipe collection system under both current and future (year 2040) build-out conditions. The Master Plan concluded that while the collection system has adequate dry weather capacity to handle anticipated growth, it has inadequate capacity for existing wet-weather peak flows due to excessive inflow and infiltration (I/I) entering the system. I/I occurs defects in the collection system allow rainwater or groundwater to enter the sewer pipe system. Inflow can also come from other connections such as rain downspouts or sump pumps that are illegally connected to the sewer system.

The Master Plan concludes that the most cost-effective solution is to conduct I/I reduction projects as opposed to wholesale capacity upgrades to the system. Based on this recommendation, NapaSan will continue to implement the I/I reduction program that was originally recommended by the 2007 Master Plan. For more information on the Collection System Master Plan, call NapaSan at 258-6000. To view the plan, click on the document link in the column to the right. 

Capital Improvement Program

NapaSan’s Capital Improvement Program, or CIP, is a ten-year plan that identifies capital projects and equipment purchases, provides a planning schedule and identifies options for financing the plan. Essentially, the plan provides a link between NapaSan’s strategic plans and its capital budget. This plan is incorporated into the Annual Budget.

Energy Alternatives Study Project Implementation Plan

In 2010, NapaSan completed an Energy Alternatives Study to evaluate wind, solar, and cogeneration power generation requirements. The study determined that wind generation was not feasible because of inadequate wind speeds at NapaSan sites. 

The study’s top recommendation was the immediate installation of a fat, oils and grease (FOG) receiving station. The breakdown of FOG in the treatment plant’s digester creates large amounts of methane gas that can be used to fuel generators (known as cogeneration) at the wastewater treatment plant. This power generation reduces demand for purchased electricity at the plant. NapaSan completed construction of the FOG receiving station in July 2012.

Winery Waste Management Technical Memorandum

In 2008, NapaSan determined that there were a number of wineries or winery-related businesses operating within its service area that are not regulated by NapaSan. These businesses potentially have on-site activities that are incompatible with NapaSan’s Industrial Pretreatment Program requirements, and/or are discharging wastewater in excess of purchased capacity for the property.

To address these issues, the NapaSan implemented a study to analyze various strategies for addressing winery waste within NapaSan’s service area. The Winery Waste Management Technical Memorandum, completed in October 2009, recommended managing these discharges through the existing Industrial User permitting program as the most feasible of several options.