Sewer Service

System Description

The District operates a sanitary sewage collection system that consists of more than 10 miles of six, eight and 10-inch gravity mainlines, 182 manholes, more than two miles of pressure mainline and four pump stations connected in series. Sewage from your home flows via gravity to at least one of the stations where, depending upon your location, it is pumped to the next station and ultimately the export station. At that point all sewage generated within the community is pumped out of the District to a point of connection with the Donner Summit Public Utility District's collection system and ultimately the DSPUD wastewater treatment plant. All of the stations are powered by emergency generators during a PG&E outage.Sewer System Schematic

Anything and everything you put in your drain(s) and toilet(s) is pumped at least once and as many as four times. While the pipes and pumps are reliable and designed for this application, some items are more likely to clog the pipes or pumps which could result in a backup or spill into Lake Serena. These objects include: mop heads, flushable wipes, disposable diapers and cooking fat/oil/grease (FOG). Please dispose of these items in your trash rather than flushing them down the toilet or drain.

Annual Fee for Service

The fee for sewer service is a flat rate of $1,519 per year. 

New Construction

Connection of a new home requires completion an Application for Water/Sewer Connection Permit and payment of a $7,800 facility fee.  Detailed information on the process is available here.

Click Here: Instructions to Applicant:

Click Here: Application for Water & Sewer Connection

Remodels and Additions

All plans for remodels or additions (regardless of the scope of work) must be submitted directly to the District. There are no additional fees for the addition of plumbing fixtures but the sewer service pipe from the house to the street must be pressure tested, all existing plumbing fixtures must be low-flow before the project is considered complete.  Detailed information on the process is available here:  Instructions to Applicant

Wastewater Treatment Plant 

The wastewater treatment plant is owned and operated by the Donner Summit Public Utility District.  The Sierra Lakes County Water District pays a portion of the cost of operating and maintaining the plant based on the percentage of the flow contributed by the residents of Serene Lakes. 

The plant's treatment process and capacity was upgraded in 2015 at a cost of $25 million dollars; Sierra Lakes paid approximately 41% of the total. The upgrade to a membrane bio-reactor type of biological process allows the plant to meet all regulatory discharge requirements. The improvements included: influent equalization, the ability to heat the water to promote biological activity/treatment during the winter and the use of ultraviolet light rather than chlorine to kill any remaining pathogenic organisms.  The treatment capacity was increased to allow for development of the remaining vacant residential lots in both districts and limited commercial growth within Donner's service area. Click here for a drawing of the plant process Schematic