Bottoms Up Olive Heffernan Analysis

Bottoms Up is an insightful and entertaining article that presents the advantages of drinking filtered sewage water. Written by Olive Heffernan, Bottoms Up focuses on the City of San Diego Public Utilities Department and its battle for public and governmental approval on reusing sewage water. In the article, Heffernan interviews many officials and experts on the subject to assess the risk of using sewage water. She also expresses the concerns of those who oppose it. But, with the collected data and irrefutable evidence, Heffernan convinces the reader to reconsider their disposition and grab a glass. Bottoms Up is an extremely well written and thought-provoking article. It sheds light on a new and interesting topic and delivers it in a comprehensive
After her tour of the facilities, she’s presented with three water-filled glass containers and challenged to assign each container to a selection of choices: tap water, traditionally treated wastewater, and purified sewage water. This test is obviously to prove the quality of the facility’s purification process because the purified sewage water is aesthetically the cleanest and purist. After this demonstration, Heffernan was immediately engaged and supportive of the San Diego AWPF’s mission and project. She also explains that because of the reoccurring droughts, many residents of California are starting to favor the idea of reusing sewage water, with the stipulation that all purified sewage water be released into reservoirs before use, a process known as indirect potable reuse. The San Diego Public Utilities Department also recommends this procedure but suggested an extra step. Known as direct potable reuse, this method would intensify the purification process and skip the reservoir, sending it straight to the tap. No one knows which technique will be implemented, but, Heffernan explains that whichever process does succeed will persuade California regulators in the
To achieve this goal, the plant has initiated tours of their facilities, allowing key members of society, such as parents, Girls Scouts, and elected officials to watch and experience the purification process. The pilot facility must also prove themselves by providing water cleaner than current standards. To do this, many AWPF have established four levels of purification. The first level, microfiltration, is a water purification process by which water is sent through tubes at high pressure. These tubes contain 9,000 fibers, each with microscopic pores to filter bacteria from the water. The next step, reverse osmosis, is depicted as a more accurate, precise version of microfiltration where the water is sent through even more fibers with smaller pores. This stage eliminates even smaller chemicals and bacteria. Ensuing, Ultraviolet oxidation occurs when water is mixed with hydrogen peroxide and exposed to ultraviolet rays. This creates a chemical reaction that destroys residual chemical elements. The final level of purification is called ozone disinfection. This procedure introduces ozone into the water. The ozone then exterminates any remaining molecules. The article displays all four steps and their functions in a detailed reference