Making the Invisible Visible as San Francisco Reimagines the Southeast Wastewater Treatment Plant

As we step into an era of water infrastructure replacement(1) intensified by a growing demand for services in urban areas, future capital projects will need to address environmental and social challenges by strengthening partnerships between those responsible for implementation, the communities where projects are implemented, and final users. The Environmental Protection Agency projects that a $271 billion investment is needed for wastewater infrastructure replacement over the next 20 years(2). Capital improvement programs will have the opportunity to foster innovation in water science and conservation, develop resource recovery technologies, and attract the future workforce that can implement these projects. To succeed, these programs must create new platforms for dialogue and gain the support of final users and directly impacted communities.Our work merges future infrastructure investments in San Francisco’s Southeast Plant with environmental and community aspirations, rendering infrastructure as a technical, cultural, and social process.