ABAG’s “Be Sewer Smart” Backup Prevention Campaign Gets Smarter with Added Website Planting Guide Resource
Bay Area Homeowners Can Now Access Online “Sewer Smart” Tips for Tree and Other Fall and Winter Plantings.
Oakland, CA (PRWEB) October 21, 2004 -- The Association of Bay Area
Governments (ABAG) today announced the addition of a “Sewer Smart Planting
Guide” page to its award-winning public service campaign Website, “Be Sewer
Smart.” The new Webpage, at www.sewersmart.org/plantguide.html, offers information for
homeowners to help them avoid causing expensive and inconvenient sewer backups
when making additions to their home landscaping.
High on the list of
causes of the hundreds of sewer backups and overflows that damage Bay Area homes
annually are blockages and other damage caused by roots in sewer lines.
Presented in partnership with the California Association of Nurseries and Garden
Centers (CANGC), the City of Oakland’s Public Works Agency and other ABAG member
communities, the “Sewer Smart Planting Guide” is designed to help Bay Area
homeowners make Sewer Smart planting decisions.
ABAG estimates that it
costs local homeowners and their communities as much as $20 million annually to
undo the damage caused by such backups. Most of these backups occur during the
northern California rainy season, which coincides with the fall and winter
planting seasons. Each backup prevented can save from tens to hundreds of
thousands of dollars in cleanup costs in a single home – a good reason to be
“Sewer Smart” when it comes to planting.
“The what, where and when of
tree planting are important considerations for homeowners this time of year.
Working together, communities and homeowners can avoid the many problems that
can occur as plantings take root,” said Raul Godinez, Director, City of Oakland
Public Works Agency. “The ‘Be Sewer Smart Planting Guide’ Website is a great
resource for homeowners to find planting and maintenance tips, including those
of the City of Oakland tree program, and links to catalogs of Sewer Smart trees
and shrubs.”
“A little research can help homeowners avoid significant and
extremely disruptive problems as today’s plantings grow and share yard space
with hidden, underground utilities tomorrow,” said Buzz Bertolero, past
president, California Association of Nurseries and Garden Centers. “In addition
to the certified nursery professional at your favorite nursery or garden center,
the information provided on the ‘Be Sewer Smart Planting Guide’ makes it a great
place for homeowners to find planting and maintenance tips and links to detailed
catalogs of Sewer Smart, and not so Sewer Smart, trees and
shrubs.”
“Among the many important considerations to be made when
selecting home landscaping additions, interference with underground utilities is
often overlooked. To achieve a successful, long-lived and trouble free planting,
the ‘Be Sewer Smart Planting Guide’ Website is a good place to start,” said Walt
Hagen, chairman of the board, California Association of Nurseries and Garden
Centers. “Our certified nursery professionals in nurseries and garden centers
throughout the Bay Area are pleased to support this important community service
and stand ready to provide further advice to homeowners to help them make their
fall and winter planting endeavors successful.”
ABAG’s “Be Sewer Smart”
campaign targets homeowners whose most important investments may unknowingly be
at risk of backup. It seeks to make these homeowners more aware of such events,
their responsibilities in maintaining sewer lines, and “Sewer Smart” tips for
avoiding problems. In addition to the Sewer Smart Planting Guide, the campaign
makes information and risk assessment tools available through www.sewersmart.org. Among
these tools, a simple five-question online test helps homeowners determine the
likelihood of experiencing a backup and suggests actions to take to avoid
them.
Campaign Background and Sponsors
“Be Sewer Smart” is a public
education campaign of the Association of Bay Area Governments’ Pooled Liability
Assurance Network (PLAN) Corporation. The campaign is designed to help
homeowners become more aware of and understand the risks and responsibilities
related to the potential of sewer backups into their homes. Ultimately, the goal
of the campaign is to prevent such backups and the damage and inconvenience they
can cause.
ABAG PLAN Corporation is a non-profit corporation whose
purpose is to benefit the citizens of each ABAG member community by establishing
a stable, cost-effective self-insurance, risk sharing and risk management
program for each member. The PLAN was formed in 1986 and currently has 31 member
cities and towns in the Bay Area. It provides liability and property coverage as
well as a variety of risk management services such as training, claims
management, loss prevention and consulting services. For more details, visit www.abag.ca.gov/plan.
The Association of Bay Area
Governments is one of more than 560 regional planning agencies across the nation
working to help solve problems in areas such as land use, housing, environmental
quality, and economic development. Founded in 1961, ABAG is the regional
planning agency for the 101 cities and towns, and nine counties of the Bay Area
and is recognized as the first council of governments in California. Visit www.abag.ca.gov for
more information.
The California Association of Nurseries and Garden
Centers is a professional organization dedicated to the promotion and
advancement of the nursery industry for its members and the public it serves.
For more information, visit the CANGC Website at www.cangc.org.
Other
program participants include the Peninsula Builders Exchange (www.constructionplans.org) and the
Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors of Contra Costa and Alameda Counties (www.phccaccc.org).
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2004/10/prweb169954.htm