Sonoma Water asks for $135,000 more for West County sewer study, on the Nov. 3 agenda

By The Downspout · Posted Nov 1, 2026 · 3 min read

On Tuesday, November 3, 2026, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, meeting as the board of the Russian River County Sanitation District, is asked to add $135,000 to a study of joining West County sewer systems. The study also prices sewer service for neighborhoods on septic tanks. The contract total would be $775,000. Item 19 is on the consent calendar, and it is a proposal until the board votes.

What the district is and why there is a study

The Russian River County Sanitation District is a Sonoma County sewer district. It owns the sewer pipes in its service area and the Russian River Wastewater Treatment Facility at 18400 Neeley Road in Guerneville. See it on a map: Russian River Wastewater Treatment Facility, Guerneville.

Sonoma Water, the county water agency, runs the district under contract.

In 2019, wastewater escaped from the district's system. The North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board (the "Regional Water Board") imposed a $1,033,546 penalty.

The order requires the district to pay $147,001. The other $886,545 is suspended once the district completes the study. A feasibility study checks whether a project can work and what it would cost. This is that study.

What the study looks at

The study area is in West County. It runs roughly between Occidental, Graton, Monte Rio and Forestville. It includes Guerneville, Camp Meeker, Villa Grande, Hacienda and Hollydale.

It asks whether nearby sewer systems could join together, or send wastewater to other treatment plants, including through new pipelines to the Santa Rosa Sub-Regional Water System. It also looks at more recycled water and at flood and drought resilience.

The staff report says small customer bases and high sewer rates are a problem for several of these communities.

It also says the Regional Water Board estimates that up to 12,000 owners of on-site wastewater systems, mostly septic tanks, in this area must meet the Russian River pathogen limit. A pathogen is a germ that can make people sick. The limit caps those germs in the river. See our earlier post on the state's Russian River bacteria plan.

What happened

Sonoma Water hired the engineering firm West Yost & Associates in April 2024 for $640,000. The study began with eight ways to join systems and narrowed them to five.

The Final Feasibility Study Report went to the Regional Water Board in May 2026. Work then moved to a follow-up report, the Project Advancement Report. The staff report says a public review was expected in September and the final Project Advancement Report was due to the Regional Water Board in October 2026. It does not say whether those happened.

Now staff want to change the contract. The change adds $135,000 to the $640,000 contract, so the most that could be spent under it is $775,000. The end date stays June 30, 2027.

The added money pays for these things.

Closer study of a fifth way to join systems.
Costs of building and running every option, with and without the neighborhoods that have no sewer now.
More help for meetings with stakeholders, the groups and people with a stake in the study, and for the Project Advancement Report.
A revised draft report that uses their input.

The staff report says the $135,000 is already in the 2026-27 budget for the district's operations. No new appropriation, or extra budget approval, is needed.

What it means for you

If you live in this area on a septic system, this study is where sewer hookup options and their costs will be worked out. It is a study, not a decision to build anything. The staff report calls it a high-level feasibility study.

The staff report says it weighs more reliable and cost-effective service for rate payers. The documents we read give no per-home cost.

Our view: the study's own goals include looking at connecting septic systems near waterbodies already impaired by germs and nitrogen. We think it is worth reading what the options cost before any choice is made.

The documents we read list no public comment method for this item. They name Sonoma Water staff contacts: Brad Sherwood, 707-547-1900, and Parastou Hooshialsadat, 707-547-1961.

What happens next

The board takes up the item at its meeting on November 3, 2026, at 9 a.m. It is item 19, on the consent calendar. The vote needs a majority. The recommended action is to let Sonoma Water's general manager sign the amended contract for the district.

The documents we read do not say when a board decision on any sewer project would come.

Where this came from

The Sonoma County staff report on the West County Water Quality and Recycled Water Supply Feasibility Study (File 2026-1059) and the agenda for the November 3, 2026 Board of Supervisors meeting, both on the county's online meeting site.

Sources

Checked 2026-11-01. Rules and programs change. If something here is out of date, the source above wins. Spot an error? See our corrections policy.