{"id":404017,"date":"2026-01-13T03:05:38","date_gmt":"2026-01-13T03:05:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/404017\/"},"modified":"2026-01-13T03:05:38","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T03:05:38","slug":"how-san-franciscos-sewers-do-and-dont-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/404017\/","title":{"rendered":"How San Francisco&#8217;s sewers do (and don&#8217;t) work"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Love what you read? Love that it was free?<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"930\" height=\"620\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/ML-Fundraising-2025-3-930x620.png\" alt=\"Three people do acrobatics and hula hoop in a park with city buildings and palm trees in the background. A cartoon computer screen stands with them, displaying &quot;missionlocal.org.\" class=\"wp-image-796858\"  \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">Mission Local will never have a paywall. All our articles are free for everyone, always. Help us keep it that way \u2014 donate to our end-of-year fundraiser to make Mission Local free for your neighbors.<\/p>\n<p>Every few years during the rainy season, certain neighborhoods of San Francisco <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=TW26bZORvuQ&amp;t=1s\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">flood.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>If it rains too hard or for too long, the sewer pipes fill, pushing water (and raw sewage) out of floor drains and sewer grates.<\/p>\n<p>Residents and businesses near 17th and Folsom streets in the Mission spend every winter anxiously <a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2023\/01\/sf-storm-looming-17th-folsom-residents-prepare\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">preparing<\/a> for floods. They line the <a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2018\/11\/flood-barriers-go-up-at-17th-and-folsom\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">sidewalks<\/a> with city-issued plastic barriers and <a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2023\/03\/folsom-residents-remain-traumatized-by-january-floods\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">improvise<\/a> their <a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2021\/10\/equipped-with-sandbags-and-barricades-weekends-flood-threats-dont-hold-water\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">own designs<\/a>. The damage is so costly, at that intersection and <a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2024\/11\/mission-businesses-flooding-storm-aid\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">elsewhere<\/a>, that sometimes <a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2023\/04\/the-wooden-nickel-local-dive-closes-due-to-floods-and-mold\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">businesses shutter.<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/mission-local-logo-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"Mission Local logo, with blue and orange lines on the shape of the Mission District\" class=\"wp-image-639216\" style=\"width:150px\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left\" style=\"padding-top:0;padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);padding-bottom:0;padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20)\">Want the latest on the Mission and San Francisco? Sign up for our free daily newsletter below.<\/p>\n<p>Why do San Francisco\u2019s sewers do this?<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1352\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_1-scaled.png\" alt=\"Illustration showing a car near a flooded street, a water burst, and a diagram explaining how San Francisco\u2019s sewage flowed downhill to the bay in the city\u2019s early infrastructure.\" class=\"wp-image-802676\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1690\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_2-scaled.png\" alt=\"A worker in a raincoat opens a street drain as water flows in; nearby, another worker connects a pipe as water sprays out. Text explains how sewage systems changed cities.\" class=\"wp-image-802677\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1690\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_3-scaled.png\" alt=\"A map shows San Francisco\u2019s lost marshes, rivers, and current flood risk zones, highlighting changes from landfill and the impact of earthquakes and flooding.\" class=\"wp-image-802678\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1631\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_4-scaled.png\" alt=\"A diagram shows how city creeks and natural watersheds reduce flooding, while drained creeks and stormwater pipes in urban, uphill areas cause water to flood lower neighborhoods.\" class=\"wp-image-802679\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1279\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_5-scaled.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-802680\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_6-scaled.png\" alt=\"A map of San Francisco showing three major sewage treatment areas: North Point, Oceanside, and Southeast, with labeled facilities and major sewer lines.\" class=\"wp-image-802681\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1892\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_7-scaled.png\" alt=\"A woman reacts with concern as floodwater enters her home, covering floors and rising up the stairs. Text explains the dangers and consequences of sewage flooding homes.\" class=\"wp-image-802682\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1352\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_8-scaled.png\" alt=\"Illustration showing sewage management in San Francisco with concrete transport\/storage boxes, pumps, and overflow pipe leading into the bay, explained through diagrams and captions.\" class=\"wp-image-802683\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1245\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_9-scaled.png\" alt=\"A diagram shows how stormwater and sewage mix in sewer boxes during heavy rainfall, causing untreated sewage to flow out with stormwater instead of settling.\" class=\"wp-image-802684\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2253\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_10-scaled.png\" alt=\"Cartoon showing sewage flowing from a pipe into a waterway. Text highlights issues with cleaning underground sewage boxes in San Francisco.\" class=\"wp-image-802685\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1820\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_11-scaled.png\" alt=\"Illustration showing sandbag distribution, residents managing floodwater, and information on city flood prevention efforts and funding in San Francisco during rainstorms.\" class=\"wp-image-802686\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1820\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_12-scaled.png\" alt=\"Storm gates with sandbags block a garage door; workers in hard hats work in a street with pipes; captions discuss flood prevention and infrastructure upgrades.\" class=\"wp-image-802687\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1820\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_13-scaled.png\" alt=\"A hand holds a newspaper with the headline &quot;Green Infrastructure&quot; and an illustration of a street with rainwater. Text discusses solutions to urban flooding in San Francisco.\" class=\"wp-image-802688\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1892\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_14-scaled.png\" alt=\"A flowchart shows how SFMTA, SFPUC, and SF Public Works must collaborate for infrastructure projects, with an example highlighting challenges in adding speed bumps to a city street.\" class=\"wp-image-802689\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1391\" height=\"2560\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sewers_Finished_15-scaled.png\" alt=\"A person collects trash in a flooded urban area, while two people sit at a &quot;Flood Fund&quot; booth under heavy rain. Background text discusses city sewage and flooding issues.\" class=\"wp-image-802690\"  \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"879\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/dolores8-edit-1-879x640.jpg\" alt=\"A group of ten people standing outdoors in a park with a city skyline in the background.\" class=\"wp-image-804663\"  \/><\/p>\n<p>Join the 3,250 readers who keep Mission Local free for all!<\/p>\n<p class=\"has-normal-font-size\">Because of you, Mission Local reached and surpassed our $300,000 year-end fundraising goal. All we can say is thank you.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Thank you for choosing to invest in a local newsroom rooted in San Francisco\u2019s communities \u2014 one that listens first and reports deeply.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"has-normal-font-size\">If you haven\u2019t yet had a chance to give, it\u2019s not too late to be part of this community. Your contribution today helps sustain the reporting our city relies on all year long.<\/p>\n<p class=\"has-normal-font-size\">We\u2019re grateful you\u2019re here \u2014 and we\u2019d be honored to have you join our donors.<\/p>\n<p>\t\tTagged: <a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/tag\/department-of-public-works\/\" rel=\"tag nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Department of Public Works<\/a>\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Love what you read? Love that it was free? Mission Local will never have a paywall. All our&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":404018,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[194848,192,79],"class_list":["post-404017","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-department-of-public-works","tag-environment","tag-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/404017","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=404017"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/404017\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/404018"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=404017"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=404017"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=404017"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}