by Patricia Schallert

If you drive, walk or bike down Anchors Way, you might happen to see a big red box and no, it’s not for old DVD’s or CD’s. It’s called a Baker tank and it is commonly used in construction  for the purpose of holding groundwater. It is large and durable red container designed to store water at construction sites or other areas where water supply is needed.

The Ventura Water Pure project is using baker tanks so that they can treat the water and test it to make sure that it is clean before  the water is released into the ocean.  They have a permit with the State of California that allows the  Project  to discharge clean groundwater Into the harbor through storm drains

Baker Tanks  are typically made from heavy-duty materials to withstand harsh conditions and have a high capacity for holding significant volumes of water. The Baker tank makes it a convenient and efficient solution for construction projects, as it provides a readily available water source.  Moreover, it aids in controlling groundwater levels, preventing excess water accumulation and potential flooding.

The Baker Tank on Anchors Way is being  utilized to treat and test water before it is discharged into the ocean by providing a controlled environment for various water treatment processes. The tank allows for the addition of treatment chemicals and allows any necessary reactions to occur. Furthermore, it enables the monitoring and testing of water quality parameters such as pH levels, turbidity, and contaminants. By using a Baker tank, water can be effectively treated and tested, ensuring compliance with environmental regulations before it is safely discharged back into the environment.

Overall, Baker tanks play a pivotal role in construction and groundwater management, facilitating smoother operations and healthier environments.

by Richard Senate

Perhaps a simple instructive sign should be installed on Main Street to let visitors and local residents know the importance of this small walkway, Just down from the Old Mission, it dates back long before the coming of the Spanish Padres. It was used by the Chumash people. It is named for Ramon Valdez, a Spanish soldier who built an adobe home here for his young Chumash bride in 1820. Remarkably the structure stood for many years and served many purposes. It was a livery stable and for some time a Mexican Restaurant called “El Viejo Adobe,”

Here Santiago Olivas, the son of Raymundo Olivas, worked as a cook. Before that it was our first polling place where, in the historic election of 1860, all nine eligible voters cast their ballots for Abraham Lincoln (he didn’t carry the county because all of Santa Barbara went for his rival Stephen  Douglas).  At that time Ventura was part of Santa Barbara, a union that mixed like oil and water. Then the alley went to a small brick building built by the Spanish to purify the local water and repurposed by the Americans into our  first jail. It served as the local lock-up from 1866 to 1869.  Perhaps a few signs could tell of the unique history of this narrow walkway in Ventura’s early years.

by David Goldstein

Book reuse, rather than book recycling, should be our first resort for discarded books. Books free of mold, mildew or water stains may be donated to thrift stores; sold on sites such as eBay, Craigslist, or OfferUp; given away to a Friends of the Library organization or through sites such as Freecycle or bookmooch.com; or brought to a bookstore, such as Abednego Books, in Ventura, which accepts used books and, in exchange, offers partial store credit toward book purchases. Through the Little Free Libraries non-profit organization, some people set up book swap enclosures in front of their homes.

For 200 or more books at a time, collection can be provided by American Book Drive, based in Simi Valley, which also picks up CDs, or DVDs. American Book Drive depends on receiving high quality items among the discards; their business model involves selling some items and donating funds to a charity chosen by their book donors in exchange for the books. Book drives can therefore also be conducted by schools or non-profit organizations. You can contact the company at (877) 870-7701 or Americanbookdrive.com.

However, all books eventually reach a point of no return. For recycling, rather than reusing, large numbers of books, Berg Mill offers an option in Ventura. The company picks up and pays for books stored in quantities of 20 or more gaylords. A gaylord is a large cardboard box capable of holding approximately 1,000 pounds. This option works for book consolidation sites, such as regional sorting centers for thrift store chains, school district warehouses, and large Friends of the Library sorting centers with sufficient storage space.

For curbside recycling programs and recycling in commercial bins in Ventura by Harrison Industries, soft cover books are acceptable, but hard cover books are limited. The guideline in these areas is “no more than 10 hard cover books at a time,” according to Danial Marks, with Berg Mills, which markets material sorted at Gold Coast Recycling, in Ventura. “Any more than that, and there is a chance it could end up in one bale, making it difficult to recycle,” he explained. The spines of hard cover books must be cut off with device called a “guillotine” before the paper can be recycled, and buyers balk at loads requiring too much labor to process.

On-line resources:

Ventura Friends of the Library:
https://venturafriendsofthelibrary.org
http://americanbookdrive.com
http://bookmooch.com/

David Goldstein, Ventura County Public Works Environmental Resource Analyst, may be reached at (805) 658-4312 or [email protected]