… Clean and safe drinking water in the city of Sacramento is dependent on a small crew of water plant operators … who monitor the century-old plant 24 hours a day. The city staffers provide this critical service with little fanfare but growing concerns. For at least the last few years, the city’s water treatment plants have been understaffed and their operators overworked, often logging 60 hours a week. Since 2023, overtime hours for the city’s water plant staff have increased from about 4,000 hours to 5,300 hours. The total overtime cost to the city during that time? $3.5 million.

Other drinking water news:

• The Modesto Bee (Calif.): Ceres informs residents of missed 2024 deadline for drinking water line inventory
• My News LA (Monrovia, Calif.): Long Beach drinking water meets safety standards